- Jan-Peter van Tijk
I wish I'd found InterNations sooner: It would have made my first few month as an expat in London much less overwhelming.
Living in Hastings
Few visitors to Great Britain get very far without hearing about this sunny seaside town. As an expatriate living in Hastings, of course, you'll hear plenty about the famous Battle of Hastings when, about thousand years ago, the last successful hostile invasion of the country took place. Today, though, Hastings is a friendly beach town with a long, grand colonnade fronting the sea and a beautiful old center that expats in Hastings will immediately feel welcomed and at home in. In fact, the town is reputed to be one of the most bohemian and artistic in the country, as well as one of the sunniest. Expatriates living in Hastings have a wealth of culture, scenery and history to enjoy. The now crumbling Hastings Castle sits defiantly on a hill above the town, with other sights worthy of mention including the extraordinary cliff railway, the striking Pelham Crescent and, for any expat living in Hastings with an interest in nature, the Underwater World Aquarium.
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Moving to Hastings
It's hard not to joke that expats moving to Hastings should bring an army and be prepared for a frosty welcome. This is, of course, outdated travel advice and modern-day Hastings is far more straightforward to get to. The Eurostar train line running from continental Europe to Britain is connected to the city via a short connecting journey and there are ferries from Europe to Ramsgate, approximately two hours' drive away. The easiest route for an expatriate moving to Hastings from further afield is probably to fly to London's Gatwick airport, which is again linked to Hastings by rail. Expatriates moving to Hastings can get plenty of more general expatriation information in the InterNations’ Expat Magazine. This online collection of articles covers a variety of topics from living abroad to international banking advice for expats, and we've also got a good amount of content written by members on our website, offering unique insights into expat life.
Working in Hastings
The seaside town has a vibrant economy centered around the fishing and tourism industries. The former has been a mainstay of Hastings since even before the famous battle, and any expat in Hastings with an interest in the city's maritime history can visit the Stade, a shingle beach which is home to Europe's largest beach-based fishing fleet. There is also a strong retail sector and the bar and restaurant scene is well thought of in the region – partly due to the freshness of local fish, which generally goes from the boats to the town's many seafood restaurants in a few hours. To complement life as an expatriate working in Hastings, you can use the discussion groups and private messages on the InterNations website to get in touch with other global minds, organize meet-ups or network with the local international community. You'll find that settling in as an expatriate in Hastings is a lot easier than it used to be.