Cádiz · Andalucía
Rota
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast.
The case for Rota
- 8.5 hours of sunshine a day, averaged across the year
- only 51 rainy days a year
- 12.9°C average winters
- XRY airport 32 minutes away
- Cádiz — a 100,000+ city — 33 minutes by road
- official bathing water 4.6 km away
- 87 restaurants and cafés
- 21 schools in town
- 13.5% of residents are under 15 — more children than the typical Spanish town
No adjectives, no opinions — every line is a measured value from the data below, shown only when Rota genuinely earns it. Distances marked "as the crow flies" are straight-line estimates.
Rota's Spainability Scores — by who's moving
Not our opinion: we ran the same scoring engine behind the quiz for six settler profiles across all 8,132 municipalities. Each score is Rota's percentile for that group — 87 means it beats 87% of the towns we could score. How scoring works.
Higher than 98% of the 8,088 Spanish municipalities we could score for American retirees.
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast. A strong pick for American retirees — 19 min to a hospital and 17.7 US-born per 1,000.
- Winter average temp 12.9°C
- Drive to a hospital 19 min
- U.S.-born residents 17.7 per 1,000
- Registered long-let rent €8.1/m²·mo
Higher than 90% of the 8,088 Spanish municipalities we could score for retiring couples.
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast. A strong pick for a retiring couple — 19 min to a hospital and a health centre close by.
- Winter average temp 12.9°C
- Drive to a hospital 19 min
- Surgical wait (region) 173 days
- Registered long-let rent €8.1/m²·mo
Higher than 89% of the 2,555 Spanish municipalities we could score for heat-averse settlers.
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast. A strong pick if you can't stand hot summers — 4 km from the sea and a settled international community.
- Summer high (Jul–Aug) 30.6°C
- Rainy days a year 51 days
- Summer water stress (WEI+) 9
- Winter average temp 12.9°C
Higher than 82% of the 2,299 Spanish municipalities we could score for families.
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast. A strong pick for a family with school-age kids — 4 km from the sea and a settled international community.
- Schools in town 21
- PISA maths (region) 457
- Registered long-let rent €8.1/m²·mo
- Drive to a hospital 19 min
Higher than 82% of the 2,299 Spanish municipalities we could score for remote workers.
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast. A strong pick for a remote-working couple — a settled international community and 4 km from the sea.
- 100 Mbps+ coverage 96%
- Drive to nearest airport 32 min
- Registered long-let rent €8.1/m²·mo
- Summer high (Jul–Aug) 30.6°C
Higher than 74% of the 2,299 Spanish municipalities we could score for budget-first coastal settlers.
A charming old fishing town on the Bay of Cádiz, its narrow streets and low houses set on a spit between two beaches, sheltered from the winds that batter the rest of the coast. A strong pick for coastal living on a budget — a settled international community and 4 km from the sea.
- Registered long-let rent €8.1/m²·mo
- Net income per person €12,985
- Summer high (Jul–Aug) 30.6°C
What is the climate like in Rota?
Rota's reported winter average is 12.9°C, while July–August highs reach 30.6°C.
Climate
- Winter average temp
- 12.9°C top 5% of 8,131 towns 5.1°C above the Spanish average (7.8°C)
- Summer high (Jul–Aug)
- 30.6°C bottom 49% of 8,131 towns 0.4°C above the Spanish average (30.2°C)
- Rainy days a year
- 51 days top 19% of 8,088 towns 26% less than the Spanish average (69 days)
- Sunshine
- 8.5 h/day top 1% of 3,829 towns 18% more than the Spanish average (7.2 h/day)
- Summer water stress (WEI+) regional estimate
- 9 top 12% of 8,033 towns 47 below the Spanish average (56)
- River-flood depth (T=100, town centre) estimated
- 0 m top 1% of 8,129 towns 0.04 m below the Spanish average (0.04 m)
- River-flood risk score estimated
- 0 top 1% of 8,129 towns about the Spanish average (0)
- Wildfire burn rate (2010–23)
- 0 ha/km² top 1% of 8,132 towns 2.31 ha/km² below the Spanish average (2.31 ha/km²)
- Forest fires (2010–23)
- 0 top 1% of 8,132 towns 6 below the Spanish average (6)
- High fire-weather days (province) regional estimate
- 19.2% top 5% of 8,130 towns 3.7% below the Spanish average (22.9%)
The year, month by month
AEMET 30-year climate normals — what a January or an August actually feels like, not the annual average.
How good is healthcare in Rota?
Rota's nearest health centre is 5.1 km away, and the reported hospital drive is 19 min.
Healthcare
- Drive to a hospital
- 19 min top 20% of 8,132 towns
- Nearest health centre
- 5.1 km top 28% of 8,132 towns
- Surgical wait (region) regional estimate
- 173 days #17 of 17 regions, +70 days vs national 60% more than the Spanish average (108 days)
What are schools like in Rota?
Rota has 21 schools in town; the nearest international school is 15 km away.
Schools
- Schools in town
- 21 top 3% of 7,042 towns
- Nearest international school
- 15 km top 15% of 8,132 towns
- PISA maths (region) regional estimate
- 457 #16 of 17 regions, −22 vs national 24 below the Spanish average (481)
How much does it cost to live in Rota?
Rota's reported home price is €2,796/m², while registered long-let rent is €8.1/m²·mo.
Cost & economy
- Home price
- €2,796/m² appraisal (valor tasado) bottom 26% of 306 towns 27% more than the Spanish average (€2,208/m²)
- Asking price
- no local data
- Registered long-let rent
- €8.1/m²·mo
- Registered rent p25
- €5.75/m²·mo
- Registered rent p75
- €13.8/m²·mo
- Registered-rent yield
- 3.48% bottom 15% of 306 towns
- Net income per person
- €12,985 bottom 30% of 8,059 towns 10% less than the Spanish average (€14,495)
- Income growth ’18–’23
- 29.2% top 31% of 6,605 towns
Which languages are used in schools in Rota?
Spanish is the only region-wide official language in Andalusia, and Spanish-medium teaching is the public-school default. Individual bilingual and international programmes can use other languages, so check the specific school. See the Andalusia region guide for the wider regional context.
What is the community like in Rota?
Rota's reported population is 29,620.
Who lives here
- Population
- 29,620
- Born in Spain
- 91.8% 3% above the Spanish average (88.8%)
- Born elsewhere in EU/UK
- 1.3% 2.5% below the Spanish average (3.8%)
- U.S.-born residents
- 17.7 per 1,000
How easy is it to get around Rota?
Rota is a reported 32 min drive from the nearest airport, with 93% fibre-to-home coverage.
Getting around
- Drive to nearest airport
- 32 min top 8% of 8,132 towns
- Fibre-to-home coverage
- 93% top 34% of 8,132 towns 15% above the Spanish average (79%)
- 100 Mbps+ coverage
- 96% top 36% of 8,132 towns 13% above the Spanish average (83%)
Numbers: Spainability town dataset, derived from INE, AEMET, Mitma and the Catastro. Registered long-let rent is SERPAVI declared-contract data; its p25–p75 values show the observed band. Registered-rent yield is gross, excludes costs and is never imputed. Percentile chips count only the municipalities that report the figure — the "of n" says how many. Region-ranked figures (PISA, surgical waits) compare Spain's 17 comunidades autónomas. A blank means no municipal-level figure is published — not a zero.
How does Rota fit you?
These are the town's numbers. Whether it's your town depends on what you're optimising for — winter sun or mild summers, a city or a village, short medical waits, an easy flight home. The 3-minute quiz scores Rota against every one of Spain's 8,132 municipalities on your priorities. It sits about 19 min from El Puerto de Santa María, if that's your anchor.
Take the quiz — rank Rota for you →Questions to verify locally
- Ask whether current long-let rents match the registered-contract figure.
- Request recent comparable sales before relying on the appraisal figure.
- Test fibre speed at the exact address, not the town average.
- Visit local schools and confirm places for incoming families.
- Confirm health-centre registration and opening hours in person.
- Ask about summer rental crowds and parking near the coast.
Nearby towns
Other places we profile within easy reach.