Top 5 tips to live in Bahrain

1. If you have school age children then getting them in to a school is the first thing you have to do. Schools are very full and waiting lists long. You may have to put your child in to a school on the other side of the Island to where you want to live.

2. Research the area's carefully before selecting where you choose to live. It is usually better to choose an expat area like Riffa Views, Saar, Janabiyah, Adliya, Seef or Amwaj Islands.
Also note that you will need to pay 3 months' rent in advance before you can sign the contract. You then pay no rent for 3 months and then negotiate if you pay monthly or quarterly. You may also need to pay a security deposit but this is rare. If the landlord is not paying utilities then there is a deposit to be paid to EWA (Electricity and water authority) of between BD300 and BD1,000. This is returned to you when you vacate the property.

3. If you are bringing pets with you then certain inoculations are needed and the process can take up to 3 months. Plan well ahead to ensure your pet isn't left behind in kennels waiting to be flown over.

4. Bahrain is a Muslim country but unlike other countries Bahrain welcomes other religions and traditions. We have Catholic churches and Hindu Temples, we have great Christmas and Easter celebrations.

5. Be prepared to find virtually no public transport service in Bahrain other than taxi's. This is going to change in the middle part of 2015 but traffic can get very congested as everyone has a car to get around.

6. Bahrain is full to bursting with shopping malls, you can buy virtually anything here that you can get back home

7. Join an expat club to make friends quickly and easily. Friendships in Bahrain happen quickly and tend to be very strong.

8. Join Aramex shop and ship, it is $40 US dollars for a lifetime membership and you can shop in over 10 countries and get the goods sent to your home in Bahrain at a small cost. http://www.shopandship.com/en/home

9. Get a Skype number that is from your home country and also get a subscription for free calls to that country - this helps you stay in touch with family and friends but also gives you a number to list on your bank accounts, credit cards etc.

10. There is good internet service and satellite TV - in some properties this is included in your rent and that is a very good deal. There are 3 mobile providers - Viva, Batelco and Zain. There are lots of internet providers but ensure you check that they work well in the area you choose to live. OSN is the best TV provider. If you wish to watch your home country Tv through you PC then you will need to download a good VPN to assist with that.

Jo well done for your comprehensive list of list of useful tips. You gave 110% as usual - Were you a boffin at school by any chance ? -  always hitting top marks -    hahah just joking Jo -  Thanks for posting very good tips as always 

These are my tips and its more of when you start living here but it helps knowing the following before hand 

1. Be prepared for the way the driving goes on here. Not in a bad sense but just be careful as you do have boy racers here and the odd person(s) now and then who are always in a hurry and want to rush without consideration for others on the road. You may be in the right on the road, but you will get the rough riders who may do some not so good driving, so keep your distance and be on your guard. Although with strict driving laws implemented recently, lets hope they'll be a big improvement soon.

2.Be patient here especially if you come from Europe as things are not done fast. Things here take 'a little longer' to do here. Paperwork work i.e work permits to ID cards can take a while especially during the fasting month as the working hours are shorter.

3.In Bahrain there's the fasting month and  lasts for 30 days. During this time, working hours are shorter (this may be dependable on the company you work for) - please do respect the people who fast here during the month. Therefore, there's no eating or drinking in public during the fasting month. The eateries here will close and will only open after the fast is broken for the day, normally in the evening. The restaurants and shops will then stay open past midnight. Even for the expats who don't fast, please note you cannot smoke or drink water in public or even in your car. So please do respect the fasting month here.

4. Work contracts here are normally 2 years. So make sure you understand everything on your contract. Make sure you and your HR person(s) understand whats agreed and most importantly you understand it fully. This forum has valid input about the working laws here so may be worth reading it just to get an idea. Even today on Expat.com people ask what they should do if they have completed their 1st year and want to quit.? Their employers are asking them to pay back some costs, i.e. visa, flight..etc so Make sure you understand what your ties/penalties are with your company before you quit.

5. As Jo mentioned in her post, there's not much public transport here so you have to be dependent on catching taxis everywhere - which can be quite expensive. Driving would be a big plus point if you have a driving license from abroad. Some licenses are accepted here and can be exchanged for a Bahrain one. Not all Expats can get their licenses exchanged, I know UK and US ones can be exchanged, so check before hand. Otherwise if you wish to drive here you will have to take lessons and then a test. I believe one of our Expat.com expats has gone through the driving lesson process here and has listed it. I have also written a post on how you can exchange your foreign license (UK one) for a Bahrain one. I list the tips on how to save time too before you go to the Traffic Directorate.
Please see the Transport and cars section.

6. The weekends here in Bahrain are Friday and Saturday. Therefore you will find the roads, malls, supermarkets, cinemas quite packed on Thursday evenings till late. Friday mornings are great as its so quiet outside and everywhere. Come lunchtime, the places start becoming busy especially the eateries till late night. The busy rush is caused by the weekend revelers, and due to tourists coming to Bahrain from other GCC countries. Then  come Saturday evening, things wind down.

7.The weather here consists of two parts the way i see it. The hot months and the cooler months. The temperature starts rising from May and keeps rising till June/July. The conditions here are hot and humid especially during July/Aug. Then in  mid Sept the temp starts dropping right till Nov/Dec. Although the afternoons are warm. Jan Feb March are cooler months too and you can walk outdoors. So wear comfortable clothes during the hot season and warm clothing during cooler months as it can get chilly at nights during the cooler season.
About dress code here - please dress appropriately.  I would advise  dress sensible and not bare too much skin or dress with short skirts (for women)..etc Else you get the odd sleaze bag that will say things to you or beep at you - so avoid attention to these kind of people.

Good luck to the newbie expats 

I am a person from india and I have got a job in bahrain for hotel manager on 500dhiram I am married ?can I settle there

Hi. I asked the same question to my self but I think it all depends on your way to live. I mean where you will live, if you will have a car and other expenses.

I am waiting for my visa since 10 days.

Good luck to you.

If you check out the cost of living post I linked below, I think you will find your answers there.  None of us can tell you what you can and cannot live on because we aren't you and we don't know how you spend.  This will be something you must figure for yourself.

https://www.expat.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=337348

Best of luck to you both.

Hello haddybaig,

This topic is about Top 5 tips to live in Bahrain, if you wish to have other infos, I suggest you create a new discussion in the Bahrain forum and look for topics like Cost of living in Bahrain as mentioned above.

Thank you,
Marjorie