Couple in their late fifties/early sixties looking for a house to sit in january/february/march

About this sitter

We are an active couple and like to go on long cycling trips across Europe when we have the time. We used to own a real estate company in Amsterdam but have recently sold that. By the end of this year we will slowly retire, even though we still have a lot of work to do on our house, a listed monument that always needs some paint, gardenwork or other fixings up. In this house we also run a small B&B in the summer months and Simone is a parttime painter as well and has a studio in the house.
We would love to spend more time in the outdoors and we both would like to escape the dark Dutch winter. Therefor we are looking for a place to sit in the South of Spain during some weeks in the first quarter of 2026. We love animals, have always had a cat and still have some hens. The hens will move to our neighbors during our absence.
Simone would bring some canvases to work on and Paul plans to improve on his Spanish. Paul is also a good carpenter, so a shed, some tools and available wood would please him very much.

Why they want to house sit

We are interested in house sitting because we would like to experience what spending the winter in the south of Spain would be like. We love animals, so caring for somebody else's home and animals seems like an ideal way to do that. Also, Simone would like to paint in a quiet environment with fewer social 'obligations'.

Their experience

We are not experienced house sitters, however we are experienced home owners and we know very well what we like in our house sitters;-)
Besides that, Simone has done a lot of voluntary work in the north of Spain - through WOOF (organic farming)-, so she knows what it is like to stay in someone else's house and to spend longer periods away from home.

What can they bring to the assignment

We are experienced gardeners, do-it-yourselvers and - as entrepreneurs - used to be creative and solve problems when one arises. Both of us are professional cat petters, dogwalkers and chicken whisperers and Simone is good with cattle (cows, pigs, sheep and horses) We both speak English, Dutch, German and a bit of French and Simone speaks Spanish. Communicating with local workmen or experts would not be a problem if necessary