“You’re going to Murcia?! The most popular city in all of Spain!” everyone yells, as you tell them the news. …Ok, maybe that wasn’t the response you received when the Aux program gave you your placement. Murci-what? Where is that? What is there to do? And the googling begins.

I had never heard of Murcia before moving there and, to be honest, I wasn’t super impressed upon arrival. After my first year, though, and currently finishing my second, I am happy to say I have found loads of amazing things that have brought me to love this region and city. I’ve broken it down into 4 categories: Where to live, What to do, Traveling, and Tips & Tricks. I wish I had some of this information back when I started, so I hope it can help a few people in my (old) shoes!

Where to live:

First thing’s first; If you work in a pueblo outside of Murcia city, and can access it through a carpool or public transportation, I would opt to live in Murcia city as opposed to the pueblo. There is more to do, more culture to appreciate, and a better variety of options in everything from food to socializing. This is a personal choice, but my info below is based on living in Murcia city.

Renting

Typically, you can find ads for by-owner apartment (“pisos particulares”) rentals on Idealista.com, fotocasa.es, and milanuncios.com. Always call the ads. Do not e-mail or message them – they never respond that way. There is no lack of realtors (“inmobilarias”) that will also post on these websites. Most realtors will charge you either a flat fee, or the first months rent once you find an apartment through them. Depending on the date you arrive, there may be more inmobilaries than particulares. Please note that Murcia is a university town. In September ALL of the auxs and students arrive at the same time, and it is a FRENZY to find an apartment. Read more about this in the “Tips & Tricks”.

You can find descriptions about some neighborhoods in Murcia capital here.

What do to:

There is plenty to do in Murcia if you keep your eyes open. The town hall (ayuntamiento) posts various festivals, weekend celebrations, events, etc. monthly. Most can be found on their website, or on posters around the center. Facebook events are also a good way to find random happenings. I have attended salsa in the street, a 3×3 Olympic-games qualifying basketball series, biological and ecological fairs, various concerts in the park or in plazas, beer festivals, and more. Bora Bora has weekly salsa/bachata nights where beginners can learn the steps for the cost of one drink. Every Thursday morning there is also a huge street market behind Plaza de Toros, and on Sundays a small garage-sale type of market near El Malecon by the river. There are bigger concerts of both Spanish singers and English groups/singers in various locations throughout the year (for $, of course) too. Events are not lacking!

Food, food, food

The restaurant scene is lively and, while most of it will be Spanish food, it’s definitely worth exploring. In modern words, I LOVE me some good food. If you’re like me, see my favorite restaurants in Murcia here.

Shawty meet me in the club discoteca…

Chances are, you’ll find yourself in the university zone of clubs very quickly. Badulake, Farandula, Kotao, etc. are the typical reggaeton Erasmus-student bars. Sala REM and Revolver are more alternative, with a different and varied crowd. Luminata is bigger, playing top 40’s, some electronic, and reggaeton. Alterego, on the other side of Gran Via, has an older crowd (aka 25+, which I preferred), and strangely enough is the most fun on Sunday afternoon… you heard me right. Murcia is very well known for this thing called “tardeo” (translated to afternoon-o). Plaza 3 (another club) also participates, but is smaller. Think of it as a daydrink, except that the clubs are open and full by 7 PM. These are usually the clubs with older crowds (25+, with the average being in your 30’s), not university students, as these people live up a good day drink and can still recover for work early Monday morning. Let me tell you, that older crowd can party.

Holidays/Festivals

Christmas in Murcia: The month of December has various events and small Christmas concerts throughout the city. I recommend attending the Christmas tree lighting in Plaza Circular. Definitely check out the seasonal shops that they set up on the street Alfonso X (by Plaza Santo Domingo). If you want to go out to eat during this month, a reservation is mandatory. All of the businesses have their “Christmas dinners” and restaurants/nightlife is packed! People tend to dress to the 9’s (but, hey, that’s Spain for you).

Semana Santa and Fiestas Primavera: If you’re working in Murcia, chances are that you’ll have 2 weeks off around Easter for these celebrations. Semana Santa (first week) is usually more expensive to fly, because it is Spain-wide. However, my personal recommendation is to travel the first week anyway, and enjoy Murcia the second. Semana Santa has various Catholic processions for Easter. They are interesting to see, but seeing one suffices. As for Fiestas Primavera, there are various HUGE town parties, super-strange yet exciting traditions on the streets, a plethora of parades & flowers, and much more. I hope to share a short post with the details in a few months. Keep it in mind and stay tuned!

Tips & Tricks:

Paperwork

This is, by far, the most frustrating part about moving to Spain. Perhaps even more than apartment hunting. The system is slow, confusing, and annoying. Two people from the same office will give you three different answers. Get everything in writing and pray that God grants you the gift of patience. Literally. The extranjeria, contracting wifi service, or just trying to get through to someone on the other end of the phone can take five times longer than in the US… BUT know that for what they lack in an efficient customer-service system, Spain makes up for with a bigger and better social life than in the states. It will take some getting used to, but you’re not alone. Look to other auxs and the Aux office in Murcia for help. Everything can and will be resolved with time.

Arrival and Renting

My suggestion is to arrive very late August/very beginning on September. That being said, I know that most auxs will arrive mid to late-September. Tons of university/Erasmus students (1 or 2 semester study-abroaders) will arrive to hunt for apartments in the same central area as you. It may take some time until you find a place, and that’s ok. Keep it in mind.

Never sign or pay for an apartment you don’t see. Read the contract carefully. Take pictures of your flat the day you move in to ensure you get your deposit back. I would say that the average room in a city center apartment will range from 200-300 euros, plus “gastos” (bills = light, electricity, gas, water, wifi). As an estimate, in my 2-bedroom flat we paid around 25/month for electricity, 30/month for gas, and 20/month for wifi (great experience personally with CableMurcia fiberoptics wifi, by the way).

Going out/Fiesta!

Enjoy a “menu del dia” (pre-fixe menu) during a weekday to fill up on 3 courses for between $7-$15. Tons of restaurants have it; look for a sign or ask a waiter.

Be ready to start pre-gaming only after 10PM minimum, and don’t you dare enter a club before midnight… no one will be there/it will be closed. The cheap alcohol at the university bars will give you the worst hangovers of your life (remember the 5$ bottle of vodka in college?). Make sure your bags are closed so no one’s hand slips in to take your phone.

Traveling:

Planes

Skyscanner.com is the Godsend for finding cheap flights, if you haven’t discovered it already. You can type “Alicante” (closest airport to Murcia, easily accessible by bus) to “everywhere” and it will show you the cheapest flights. Find that flight to Oktoberfest! Go try that waffle in Belgium! The world awaits, and your pocket will be happy.

Trains

Renfe.com is the train company with the station south of the river. As of now, unfortunately, Murcia is not connected by the AVE (“bullet train”) like other parts of Spain, but the train is still a very relaxing and dependable mode of transportation to various cities.

Tranvia (tram) is a good local mode of transport when you want to go to the Ikea or the malls (Thader and Nueva Condomina). A bit slow, but reliable.

Automobiles

Blablacar.es sounded like the sketchiest thing in the world to me upon arrival. What do you mean I share a car with a stranger to the same destination? Like, pre-planned hitchhiking?! That would never work in the USA…But that’s what it is, and it’s an excellent and popular mode of transportation here in Spain. Usually cheaper, faster and more convenient than trains/buses. You can even practice your Spanish along the way. Highly recommended.

I have also rented from Enterprise in Murcia city center and, while it’s not the cheapest option, the company was really great. We split the cost between 4 people for a weekend trip to Sierra Nevada which was well worth it. We even had a small car accident (oops) with our NEW rental car, and the insurance claim process was the easiest thing we could have hoped for, and they didn’t charge us *anything* extra for it (note: we had thankfully gotten full coverage upon renting).

Buses

Alsa is a popular bus system I used while in Murcia. For longer trips and your bus to the airport, Alsa is typically the way to go. They leave from the Murcia bus station. Tickets can be bought online.

There are also local buses – the LAT, yellow buses – which leave from both city bus stops and the bus station. LAT bus tickets are bought in person or at the station. Both have schedules that are posted on their respective websites.

Bikes

As of spring 2019, Murcia installed a wide-range system of bike lanes along the main roads. The city utilizes a bike rental system called MuyBici (similar to CitiBike in the U.S.), which has saved me hours of walking per week. It was only 40 euros to sign up for the year, with bike stations in all of the main central spots. You sign in, pick up your bike, then drop it off at any other station. 10/10 in my experience for efficiency. (You can skateboard, roller-blade, or scooter on these bike lanes too!)

Happy traveling!

There you have it — a load of general information about your new city! If you have more Murcia-specific questions, feel free to shoot me a message here. Now go out, explore, and have fun!