Moving to Bournemouth
An overview of Bournemouth
Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole (BCP) is the UK’s newest city region and it’s brimming with prospects, positivity, and pride.
It’s a place where culture and heritage meet innovation and modernity, village meets town, country meets coast, creativity meets digital, businesses flourish, and people thrive.
Communities here are vibrant and diverse, with an outstanding quality of life, where everyone plays an active role. It’s a globally-recognised coastline of opportunity, where people love to live, learn, work, explore, invent, relax, and play.
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Bournemouth’s coastline is beautiful and full of fun activities
The cost of moving to Bournemouth
As with any relocation, the cost of moving to Bournemouth will depend on where you’re coming from, and what you’re bringing with you.
If you’re planning to move the contents of a three-bedroom house (roughly 875 cubic metres of belongings) from London to Bournemouth, you should expect to pay £1,239, on average.
This includes:
- loading and unloading
- packing services and materials
- dismantling and reassembling furniture
- the fee for distance travelled
The drive from London to Bournemouth is around 108 miles, and most removal companies charge £1 per mile (source: comparemymove, 2020).
The amount you’ll end up paying will also change depending on your moving date, the removal company you choose, and whether you require any additional services.
The cost of living in Bournemouth
Bournemouth is one of the most expensive places to live in the UK (source: LoveMoney, 2018).
However, it’s also one of the best coastal towns in the UK, meaning that it’s a wonderful place to live – and almost certainly worth the expense.
Here’s a look at how much you can expect to pay for different goods and services in Bournemouth (source: Numbeo, 2021).
| Item | Average price |
|---|---|
| Pint of beer | £3.95 |
| Regular cappuccino | £2.84 |
| Mid-range bottle of wine | £8 |
| Monthly public transport pass | £61 |
| Cinema ticket for one | £10 |
| Monthly gym subscription | £28.57 |
| 1kg of local cheese | £3.45 |
Property prices
Bournemouth is in the top 27% of local authorities in England and Wales, when you compare how much the average person earns with house prices (source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), 2021).
It ranks 89th out of 334 local authorities – though to be fair, that makes it a cheaper area than all but two London boroughs.
The median house price in Bournemouth is £285,000 – just a little above the average across England, which is £267,000 (source: Office for National Statistics, 2021).
If you want to buy a terrace house in Bournemouth, the average price is £283,571. The average cost of a flat is lower, at £218,566 (source: Zoopla and rightmove, both 2021).
If you want to rent a home in Bournemouth, you can expect to pay £795 per month, on average – slightly more than the English average of £725 (source: ONS, 2021 and 2020).
Council tax
The council tax bands in Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole for 2021/22 range from £1,251.61 (Band A) to £3,754.84 per year (Band H), depending on the type and location of your property.
There are discounts and exemptions available for various reasons, including if you or someone who lives with you is disabled, receives certain benefits, or is a student.
Electricity bills
You can expect your electricity bills in Bournemouth to be a little bit above the UK average.
The average fixed cost of electricity in the South West is £87.15 per year, which is £3.06 above the UK average of £84.09.
And the average variable unit price of electricity in the South West is 17.9p per kWh, which is 0.7p higher than the UK average of 17.2p (source: NimbleFins, 2021).
The city centre is also delightful
Getting in and out of Bournemouth
Bournemouth is relatively easy to get in and out of, especially when you compare it to bigger cities.
It’s the 17th-best urban place to drive in the UK, according to a 2020 survey by car dealership Robins & Day, and its train links are incredibly useful.
Plus, Bournemouth International Airport is just a 13-minute drive from the city centre. From there, you can travel to dozens of destinations all over Europe.
Public transport in Bournemouth
There is a network of buses, trains, taxis, Beryl Bikes (the biggest bike share system outside of London), and e-scooter hire available to help you navigate the area.
They can also help you explore suburbs, villages, and towns, including Southbourne, Westbourne, Charminster, Lilliput, Poole Quay, and Mudeford.
Transforming Travel is a £100m infrastructure investment set to change the way people travel in the area.
It’s aimed at providing people with greener, healthier, and better-connected travel choices, to make walking, cycling, and using public transport more attractive – particularly for shorter journeys.
Working in Bournemouth
Health is the biggest industry in the area, with 665 organisations employing 29,000 people – which is 15.7% of the workforce (source: Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole Council, 2019).
Retail is the next biggest employer, and includes 1,200 businesses which employ 20,250 workers, but the banking, finance and insurance sector contributes the most to the economy in purely financial terms.
When it comes to companies, the area’s biggest employers are JP Morgan, technology firm Siemens, and insurance company Liverpool Victoria.
Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole has a higher than average unemployment rate, but not by much.
Unemployment was 4.5% in the year from January 2020 to December 2020, which put it in the top 35% of local authorities in the UK (source: ONS, 2021).
Go visit the stunning Old Harry Rocks; you won’t regret it
The best neighbourhoods in Bournemouth
If you love a seaside resort as much as the countryside, open space, and bustling highstreets, Bournemouth offers the perfect mix of the south coast city-region lifestyle – as do Christchurch, and Poole.
Charminster
A wonderful area for young professionals
Average property price: £325,073
Ideal for the younger student resident and trendy young professionals, Charminster is the cosmopolitan capital of Bournemouth, with a heady mix of international restaurants and bars.
Southbourne
The ideal home for families
Average property price: £418,597
Perfect for families, Southbourne is within easy reach of the beach and stunning Hengistbury Head.
Offering an enviable high street with independent shops, eateries, and bars, it’s ideal for a more mature lifestyle.
Mudeford
A surfer’s paradise
Average property price: £433,222
This is a beautiful harbourside and beach-side location, with fantastic surfing opportunities.
It’s close to Christchurch Quay and Christchurch town, as well as riverside Wick and up-and-coming Tuckton.
Lilliput
The perfect place for luxury living
Average property price: £659,835
Bordering Sandbanks, Canford Cliffs, and Lower Parkstone, Liliput has a shoreline within Poole Harbour and stunning views of Brownsea Island and Purbeck Hills – meaning it’s ideal for more affluent residents.
Poole Quayside
A glorious location for retirees
Average property price: £430,876
Poole Quayside offers enviable waterside living.
It’s home to stunning views, award-winning seafood eateries, cafes, and pubs.
Things to do in Bournemouth
There’s always something to do in Bournemouth.
The award-winning coastline is the gem in the region’s crown, and when you’ve got 15 miles of beach on your doorstep – and a microclimate – who needs to get on a plane? Here’s what we like to do.
Water sports
Poole is home to the world’s second-largest natural harbour and is a water sports enthusiast’s dream, whether you want to try something new, or simply spectate.
Pull on a wet suit and try kayaking, surfing, kitesurfing, and stand-up paddle boarding.
And for a more laid-back activity, relax on the rivers and waterways connecting Bournemouth with its neighbouring towns and suburbs.
Explore green spaces
Bung on your boots, pack a lunch and get yourself, your family, and your friends out to some of the awesome open spaces.
Enjoy the riverside jaunts, forests, walkways, historic castles and houses, rolling hills, coastline, and cycle trails. Take it all in, it’s here for us all to enjoy.
Culture
Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole are home to the south coast’s finest entertainment venues, including The Old Fire Station, O2 Academy, Lighthouse, Poole Centre for the Arts, Bournemouth International Centre, and Pavilion Theatre.
There’s plenty of historical and cultural museums and buildings dotted across the area, and cultural diversity in the communities, as well as a vibrant outdoor lifestyle and café culture.
Get festive all year round
Bournemouth offers an incredible year-round calendar of diverse, colourful, and bold events, including the award-winning Air Festival, the Arts Festival, the Emerging Arts Fringe, Christmas Tree Wonderland, and Festival Coast Live.
There’s something for everyone to enjoy, in wonderful indoor and outdoor locations.
Nightlife
Whatever your idea of the perfect night out, you’ll find it here.
Perhaps you want to see the latest pop acts, comedians, or stage shows. You can choose from a host of venues, including the O2 Academy, which was once an old Victorian circus.
You can also enjoy cosy eateries, fine dining, bars, pubs, cafes, high street favourites, and quirky independents. The city is gloriously multicultural, which means you get your fill of food from practically any country you like.
And if you want a comprehensive rundown of all the best venues in the area, DesignMyNight has you covered.
Summary
The south coast is waiting to welcome you. Whether you’re after a beach life, nightlife, a sporting life, outdoor life, family life, or work life, Bournemouth has got the balance just right.