Netherlands → Spain
Moving to Spain from Amsterdam?
The honest version — the climate you'd actually be trading for, where the Dutch already settle, and how hard it is to get home. No brochure gloss: just SpainScore's climate normals, Spain's own population register and the real direct-flight map.
The climate you'd be trading for
Swap Amsterdam for a typical Spanish city and, on the national picture, you're looking at about 4°C milder winters, 2 more hours of December daylight, about two-thirds the rain and about 7°C hotter summers. But "Spain" isn't one climate — it runs from the wet Atlantic northwest to the dry Mediterranean southeast, so the honest answer depends on where:
- Vigo Galicia · Atlantic
vs Amsterdam: about 5°C milder winters, 1.5 more hours of December daylight, about twice the rain and about 2°C hotter summers. mild, green and wet — Spain’s Atlantic northwest.
- Alacant Costa Blanca · Mediterranean
vs Amsterdam: about 6°C milder winters, 2 more hours of December daylight, about a third of the rain and about 8°C hotter summers. dry, warm and sunny — the Mediterranean southeast.
- Málaga Costa del Sol · Mediterranean
vs Amsterdam: about 7°C milder winters, 2 more hours of December daylight, about half the rain and about 8°C hotter summers. warm winters on the southern coast.
Climate deltas compare 1991–2020 normals for Amsterdam (Meteostat) against the same 30-year measure for each Spanish anchor. Rounded to whole degrees and bucketed rain ratios on purpose — coarse enough that measurement noise can't flip the direction.
Where the Dutch actually settle
Not where a magazine says — Spain's own census records the people born in the Netherlands who live here today. Of about 62,007 the Dutch across all 8,132 municipalities, these 8 hold the most:
| Municipality | Province | Born in the Netherlands | per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barcelona | Barcelona | 3,002 | 1.8 |
| Madrid | Madrid | 1,826 | 0.5 |
| Alfàs del Pi, l' | Alicante/Alacant | 1,398 | 66.4 |
| València | Valencia/València | 1,213 | 1.4 |
| Xàbia | Alicante/Alacant | 1,028 | 33.4 |
| Altea | Alicante/Alacant | 847 | 34.2 |
| Marbella | Málaga | 842 | 5.2 |
| Mijas | Málaga | 823 | 8.7 |
Source: INE Censo Anual — residents by country of birth, 2025. Counts, not estimates. Big places top the list simply because they're big; the "per 1,000" column shows concentration. Linked names have a full town profile.
Getting back to Amsterdam
Direct flights home run year-round from 15 Spanish airports:
- Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD)
- Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport (ALC)
- Bilbao Airport (BIO)
- César Manrique-Lanzarote Airport (ACE)
- F.G.L. Airport Granada-Jaén Airport (GRX)
- Fuerteventura Airport (FUE)
- Gran Canaria Airport (LPA)
- Ibiza Airport (IBZ)
- Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport (BCN)
- La Palma Airport (SPC)
- Málaga-Costa del Sol Airport (AGP)
- Palma de Mallorca Airport (PMI)
- Seville Airport (SVQ)
- Tenerife Sur Airport (TFS)
- Valencia Airport (VLC)
Seasonal (mostly summer): Asturias (OVD), Girona-Costa Brava (GRO), Menorca (MAH), Santiago-Rosalía de Castro (SCQ).
Direct-route map from SpainScore's airport dataset (Spanish-departure scheduled routes). "Getting home easily" is one of the things the quiz can weight for you.
So where in Spain — for you?
Climate, compatriots and flights are three inputs. Your budget, whether you need short medical waits, a city or a village, winter sun or mild summers — those decide the rest. The 3-minute quiz scores all 8,132 Spanish municipalities against what you care about.
Updated 2026 · SpainScore