Danielle Grant, 35, and her husband Russell Grant, 40, moved from Leigh-on-Sea to Crete in November 2024 when their daughter was three months old. According to Daily Express - Finance, Danielle Grant described their primary motivation as wanting to give their daughter the finest possible upbringing, while also expressing disillusionment with the UK's spiraling cost of living and stating they no longer felt safe there.
The financial benefits were significant. They now rent a three-bedroom villa with a pool and roof terrace in Crete for £850 per month, which is £300 cheaper than the £1,150 they paid for a one-bedroom property in Essex. According to Daily Express - Finance, Danielle Grant noted they get much more for their money in Crete, citing that a glass of wine and a pint cost £19 in Leigh-on-Sea, which she considered crazy, and that UK rent is shocking for what you get.
We no longer felt safe in the UK, we were sick of the rat race and the weather. Our jobs weren't location-dependent, so we thought why stay in the UK when we can travel the world and live life to the full.
Both work remotely in digital marketing and secured digital nomad visas to live in Greece. According to Daily Express - Finance, Danielle Grant described falling in love with Crete's culture, lifestyle, and people during a holiday visit about five years ago, and they grew tired of British weather. Their food in Crete is locally sourced and organic.
Safety perceptions also played a role. According to Daily Express - Finance, Danielle Grant said they kept hearing stories about crime being committed and police not taking things seriously in the UK, and they believe that in countries like Greece, crime would not be tolerated as it is in the UK. It remains unclear what specific crime stories contributed to their feeling of unsafety or how local authorities in Crete respond to crime compared to UK police. Their long-term plans regarding their digital nomad visas are also unknown.
After visiting Crete on holiday about five years ago, we fell in love with the culture, the lifestyle and the people. They are so family-orientated and they just make you feel really at home, we didn't feel like we had that back in the UK.
We have a huge villa and loads of land space, all of our food is locally sourced and organic. It's such a different way of life and it makes us feel so enriched and alive.
You get so much more for your money here, we pay £850 for a three-bed villa with a pool, whereas we were paying £1,150 a month for a one-bed flat back in Essex.
We just kept hearing more and more stories about crime being committed and the police not taking anything seriously. In countries like Greece, it just wouldn't be tolerated.
Everywhere in the UK is now London prices. In Leigh-on-Sea, a glass of wine and a pint was £19, to me that's crazy. Rent is shocking for what you get and childcare is ridiculous.