We enjoyed our winter trip to Spain in 2019 so much that it may well have become a permanent feature in our calendar!!!!
It’s time to avoid the British winter again!! Although last time we went away the weather was probably better in UK for a good part of our trip.
So where are we off to this time? Outline plan is – Poole to Cherbourg then drive down the west coast of France crossing in to Spain at the northern end of the Pyrenees. Once into Spain we will head for Burgos and then a loop around Madrid – difficult to get a campsite near enough to visit – via Salamanca to Cordoba and then due south to Malaga. Aim is to spend some time on or near a beach and then head West to Cadiz, into Portugal and on to the very southern tip before heading north and eventually visiting Lisbon and Porto. Then along the northern Spanish coast and back into France and north to St Malo for the ferry home. Where we stop on the northern Spanish coast will depend entirely on how much time we have before the ferry.
As usual we will be blown off course by any number of things, wind, weather, poor aires, poor campsites, good aires and campsites, complete change of mind for no apparent reason and also getting some good information from fellow travellers.
The usual links are available;
Google maps for our route.
Smugmug link for our photographs.
Google Earth.
Trying out the Google Earth Project option. NOTE: This only works in Google Chrome.
When the info cards appear just click on them to open up the information. Then double click on the pictures to open them up fully.
Tuesday 14th.
Set off about 2ish planning on getting to Poole early evening – no chance!!!!!!!
Probably the worst journey we have had in a very long time. Raining when we left Peterborough and continued to rain for the rest of the afternoon. The weather just got worse and worse. Ended up driving in torrential rain and darkness for a lot of the journey – the rain was so bad that it got dark about 3:15pm. Very pleased to drive into the harbour area and pull up next to a very large building, hoping against hope that it would shelter us for the night from the worst of the weather. We were still buffeted quite strongly by the wind and of course you can always hear the rain in the van.
Vans are allowed to park on the harbour right next to the entry point for Brittany ferries so we were not the only van sheltering from the elements.
Wednesday dawned fairly quietly and dry – the storm blew out about 4a.m. – I know I was listening – we were processed and on the ship for eight o’clock. Had a nice continental breakfast and then found ourselves a pair of nice reclining couches for the crossing. Unfortunately, whilst the weather had improved considerably there was a very heavy swell which did not impress LRM. “Hideous” was the word she used.
Docked at Cherbourg and had our first change of plan. We were going to drive to La Rochelle but realised that it was too far away to reach on Wednesday afternoon so we headed to an aire that we have used before in Fougere, about 2hours away. Nice and quiet and right next to the old castle. Settled in and then walked into town – up a very steep hill. Back to the van, ate and then slept – very early to bed after the night in the harbour at Poole.
After a swift visit to an Eleclerc next morning we headed south towards La Rochelle. Nice pleasant day, no rain and the sun was shining – a vast improvement.
Arrived at La Rochelle to find that the parking area for camper vans that we usually use – 5 mins from the town centre – had been turned into general parking and we were directed to Port Neuf and a campsite for motorhomes. Cost 10 euros but that was fine as it came with mains electricity.
The campsite was a 5 minute walk from the rugby stadium where the town team play – a very good team in the French top league. A few minutes later we were on the seafront heading for the town centre. Had a nice meal watching the world go by and then walked up to the town square to grab a taxi back to the site.
Friday dawned nice and bright and we set off towards our next stop, an aire on the coast above Biarritz. Found it last year and it was very pleasant, right next to an inland lake with nice walks and cafes on the other side. The weather was not kind to us on the journey down. Very heavy rain and strong winds most of the way.
I said earlier that we would be blown off course by any number of things and of course as we got close to our site we saw a sign for a new aire at Castets which was just off the motorway. So we turned off and got ourselves set up. Only van on the aire but several more turned up before dark. Going to this aire saved us a further 30 or 40 minutes driving plus the drive back to the motorway so all in all a good decision.
I know that there has been a lot of rain in UK but I was surprised at the extent of the soaked land from Cherbourg all the way down to here. Nearly every field had standing water in it.
Saturday saw us heading into Spain and Burgos in particular. Nice drive through mountains and lots of tunnels. A dramatic change in landscape which I think we both enjoyed. Burgos is situated on a high plain – it was a steady climb for many miles – but we arrived mid afternoon and found the campsite. Nothing too special other than probably the best showers we have ever had on a campsite (or maybe we just really needed a good shower).
Up late on Sunday and decided to walk into town, about two and half miles. Got myself drugged up and off we went. The path outside the campsite headed towards town so we just followed it and found that half the town used it for their Sunday exercise. If we had known, the campsite gave us no info, we would probably have cycled as the path was used by walkers, runners and cyclists.
Walked all the way to the East gate so that I could get some photographs, it really is an impressive piece of architecture. However it pales in comparison with the cathedral – without doubt the most impressive cathedral we have ever seen. Although they are renovating parts of it the many side chapels were fantastic. Each one seemed to be more elaborate than the last, well worth a visit.
Taxi back and into the camp café for a coffee and wine. The place was busy when we left and it was just as busy this afternoon. It looks like all the walkers come out here for a light lunch then head back to town.
Tomorrow, Monday, we are heading for Salamanca and hopefully some slightly warmer weather. We definitely did not come to Spain to dress in big coats, scarves, gloves and bobble hats.
Monday 20th January.
Happy Birthday Katherine!!!!!! Hope you haven’t put too many holes in the walls with your pressie.
Heading south, Burgos to Salamanca, just after we set off LRM noticed 3 storks but didn’t tell me!! Not to worry as we found out later plenty more where they came from.
Passed the 1000-mile point between Burgos and Salamanca.
We keep looking for places to stop for a coffee along the route but the difference between the northern rest stops and these central ones is huge. Northern ones are pleasant to go in and have a pretty good atmosphere for a motorway stop. Central ones are really hit and miss mostly just truck stops so we drive in and drive out or park up and sort ourselves out in the van.
Found the parking area in Salamanca – definitely not an aire – just over the river from the town centre. Settled in, then wrapped up to visit the town. Bobble hat, 3 or 4 layers, gloves and a fleece. Unfortunately, by the time we were in town the cathedral was closed but still a very impressive building. Found a coffee shop and got warmed up watching the world go by.
The town square is very impressive, colonnaded all the way around with shops, bars and cafes in abundance.
Walked on around the shopping area which is very impressive and worked our way around towards the square again but managed to find a very nice bar before we got there.
Both ready for something to eat and drink so we ordered the following;
Chips double fried eggs and ham croquets for LRM
Chips double fried eggs and Iberian sausage for me
All chip options came with double fried eggs!! Go figure.
It was dark by now but the town seemed to be coming alive. Headed back to the square and took some photographs as well as photographing the cathedral and then headed back to the van.
Disaster!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Had a real problem with the 12v leisure battery that just didn’t seem to be holding it charge. Remember we had just driven over 3hours so the battery should have been fully charged but after putting the lights on and the heating – I know, I know, we shouldn’t really but it was cold – everything just failed. Turned everything off and went to bed to read by torch light.
Tuesday morning dawned bright and cold and the van was covered in snow!!!! Just what we need with no heating or hot water. So, boiled the kettle and had a rinse before heading to a Carrefour for a coffee and pastry and to fill the van up. Then headed south towards Caceres and a motorhome repair garage.
They were very helpful – particularly as they closed at 1400 and we arrived at 1345 – replaced and fitted the new battery.
260.00 eruos.
We continued heading south to Merida and paid 15.00euros for an overnight stop in what was described as “the latest in technology etc” for an aire. Clearly this information is somewhat out of date. The site is a secure area that is one of the town bus stops and car parking area. It also appears to be an area where crashed cars come to die. At least our area was cordoned off and we had mains electricity and free wifi.
Oh and on the way down we saw a flock of storks - 7 is that a flock ? - and lots of nests on top of pylons.
So we are now warm, sorted out, fed and watered.
Where’s my bed??
Wednesday 22nd
A 2hour trip to Seville today so a slow start, sorted the van and left the bus area via the correct exit lift barrier – that would be the one I tried to enter through – oops! Amazing how you can drive on the right hand side without making any errors but just turning a corner and you automatically drive into the left lane.
Storm Gloria has struck the med coast of Spain causing untold havoc. Lots of snow, huge waves crashing into the resort areas – and there is nothing to stop the waves – high winds and torrential rain. We have been travelling through the centre of Spain heading generally south by south west and we definitely have not escaped the outskirts of the storm. Clearly not as bad as the coast but it is a long time since we have seen such high winds and heavy rain.
The traffic in Seville was horrendous – 3,4 and sometimes 5 lanes of traffic. We managed to find the aire at Port Gelvas after doing two loops of a section of the dual carriageway and just missed out on the last spot. However, the guy found us a spot but with no electricity but not a big problem (we’ve got a new battery)
Settled in and went for a walk around the area – still cannot get used to seeing streets lined with orange trees – had a beer on the Port watching the world go by and headed back to the van for a quiet night.
Seville Thursday 23rd
The rain was so bad we didn’t move out of the van until about 11:00. By then I had sorted out the toilet, in the rain, and dried off before we set off for the bus stop just outside the Port area.
Amazingly the rain had stopped and the bus arrived about two minutes after we arrived at the stop – its normally the other way around!!! When the bus pulled up fairly nearer the centre and the driver got off for a fag break we decided to get off and start the tourist bit.
Headed towards the cathedral but stopped for a coffee near the bull ring. The café décor was all about matadors and huge bulls heads mounted on the walls – very atmospheric.
Into the cathedral – wow – even more impressive than Burgos. Huge vaulted ceilings with massive pillars and the obligatory hundreds of Japanese. The tomb of Christopher Columbus was very impressive as well as all the icons and art work. Check out the Google Earth Project that I have linked above, lots of info.
Also visited the Alcazar a Moorish palace. I am sure that it was very impressive when it was occupied fully, there must be a wing still being used as there was a full security scan and detail before you could go in, but the rooms were empty. Just lots of rooms with tiles, arches and recurring patterns. Gardens were closed – too much rain.
In between these visits we managed to fit in a Tapas lunch – absolutely great. 5 dishes, 2 large glasses of wine - €23.60 and a very welcome sit down for an hour.
Jumped into a taxi and headed back to the van. Unfortunately, we must have picked the only taxi driver in Seville who didn’t know exactly where Port Gelvas motorhome area was. I ended up using my phone and google maps to get him close but we eventually jumped out and walked the last part. Settled into the van with a glass of wine and the heavens really opened up for about an hour, in fact as I write this it is still raining.
The weather has been so bad that we have changed our plans. From here we are heading to the Cadiz area and then probably towards Malaga and heading back via Valencia and Zaragoza. We are leaving Portugal for another time, maybe a car trip, as we have already covered over 2300kms and we still haven’t seen any sun!!!!! unlikely to be home earlier than planned but just going to try for some sun on the med rather than the Atlantic.
Friday 25th
Fabulous day today !!!!!!
Traveling south from Seville to Port Santa Maria just north of Cadiz and two things happened that we have not seen on this holiday.
Temperature = 14 degrees.
Dark shadows across the road = sun came out.
Unfortunately - neither lasted very long.
Pulled into a Carrefour mall just outside Port Santa Maria to stock up as we planned to stay on the campsite for at least 3 nights. But first things first, coffee and cake or as we now call it 2nd breakfast.
Arrived at the campsite to find that the rain had been so bad that they had closed off large areas of it, in particular where the motorhomes normally go. So it has cost us €19.70 to park in an area just behind reception with no electricity. Lots of other vans here – managed to find a free hook up so if they don’t spot it we won’t pay.
Friday pm the aim was just to sort out the van and do the washing. The washing we managed to get done – it took several long walks in the torrential rain to cycle the washing through the machine and dryers in two different areas – we were literally soaked by the time we had finished.
On top of all this the water taxi to Cadiz has been closed due to the weather so the main reason for coming to this campsite is no longer a reason to stay here, and at this price for where we are we definitely are not stopping more than one night.
So, tomorrow, Saturday, we heading across to the area just south of Marbella to see if we can find a campsite for 3 or 4 days.
Saturday 25th
Its Monday just after lunch, I am sat in the sun in shorts and singlet with the laptop on my knee. Lorraine is sat in shorts reading. What a difference, very, very pleasant.
On Saturday we set off from port Santa Maria heading towards Jerez before heading south east across the national park and then south towards the coast and Gibraltar where we turned up the coast towards the Costa del Sol.
There has been the odd mention of rain in this blog and some of the rain has been pretty heavy but the drive across the National Park beat it all. From Jerez until we could see Gibraltar it pounded down. It was only a 2hour drive at most but I don’t think I went above 60mph. as we headed down towards the coast it cleared and the sun came out – at last.
Stopped to catch our breath at a Mcdonalds – coffee and food – and to pick our next campsite. We found one called Bella Vista that looked great – all you needed, bar, restaurant, next to the beach etc etc. they could only offer us one night. Not what we were looking for so we headed off to another site – Camping Tropical. Not quite at the same level as Bella Vista but beggars can’t be choosers. We really need to settle down for a couple of days to rest and recover.
So here we are at Camping Tropical, heated indoor pool, which looks quite nice, built on tiers (the campsite not the pool), we are on the middle level – the bottom level was pretty wet when we arrived and it rained heavily on Saturday night. We were helped to find our pitch by a Brit and his wife who come here every year for 3 months – same site, same pitch. We must be missing something cos’ it ain’t that good – if it was we would be staying.
After a slow start on Sunday we set off on shanks pony to try and find a bar/restaurant. Lovely walk along the seaside on a purpose built walkway. Past all the very nice apartments that were gated and fenced off – only for our owners!! – and no bars or restaurants. We eventually crossed back over the dual carriageway and meandered around an urbanisation until we came across exactly what we were looking for.
Walked up to the bar and were immediately offered 2 pints – how can they tell we are British and why do they think everyone drinks pints!! – we took them anyway after our long walk to find the place.
Sunday lunch consisted of; stuffed peppers and rice followed by bbq sea bass and cheesecake for Lorraine and ravioli, chicken kiev and ice cream for me. Most of it was great unfortunately, the kiev was pretty poor. This was followed by a long walk alongside the dual carriageway back to the campsite.
What I haven’t mentioned is that before we set off I managed to trip over a cable and fall about a foot, landing on gravel on my knees. I was also carrying a chair at the time and managed to batter and bruise my right ribs and I have a lovely gravel rash on both knees. So the walk to the restaurant and back is probably in line with anything Sherpa Tensing managed to do on Mount Everest.
Today, therefore, is a day of rest. Sat in the sun, about to demand wine from my loved one and hopefully, with a good intake of drugs it will pass in a dream.
Wednesday 29th
What a good decision !!!!
Heading up the med has at last provided us with some sunshine. Phoned ahead and booked 4 nights at this camp site – after the disappointment of Bella Vista – and we are now set up practically on the beach. The beach of course is not golden sands – even though google maps shows it as such – it is a fairly dirty, scruffy black sand with lots of pebbles thrown in for good measure. But we are not disappointed, definitely going to work on our tans as the weather is set to be pretty good all week.
After a slow start and a steady drive on Tuesday morning we arrived at a Carrefour for our 2nd breakfast and a much needed replenishment of food and drink. Arrived here at about 1430 and after setting up we realised that we hadn’t filled up with water, which we desperately needed to do, so sorted out and drove round to the one water point on the site. There are approximately 200 pitches and they are filled with motorhomes and caravans so why only one water point??
Heading back to the pitch a couple said hello to me from their motorhome and asked if I was just leaving. Just arrived I said, so have we, come and have a drink when you are set up. Too good an offer to refuse. Went back to the pitch and got ourselves sorted out and then sat down and had a G&T to recover and to enjoy the sunshine.
Headed round to accept the invite and met a couple from Hull who had been out here since December and were not due to go home until end of March. LRM was offered a G&T which she was happy with until it was placed in front of her. Ice, lemon and about 6 or 7 tots of gin with a normal tin of tonic to go with it.
She seemed very outgoing after a while – can’t think why.
We just had the one drink (lol) and headed back to the van for steaks and all the trimmings. I cooked – couldn’t let her near a naked flame.
Today, Wednesday, we actually got the bikes off the back of the van at last and headed along the coast on the main road for about one and half k’s before heading towards the sea. We found a dedicated cycle path that ran the full length of the town and then on to the small port at the far end. Found a nice restaurant and sorted ourselves out with the menu of the day. Paella followed by roast chicken and chips and then ice cream and coffee, oh and a beer to start. Lovely.
On the return journey I actually remembered to set Strava up. 4.5 miles back, so a total of 9 miles – hardly the Tour but a start.
We passed at least two other campsites that were full of motorhomes and also went past at least two separate areas where motorhomes were parked up – one of them was actually next to the prom – so assuming the campsites are similar to this one ie 200+ pitches we reckoned that there were around 6 or 7 hundred motorhomes within about a 3km radius. We are just north of Marbella so multiply that lot by any figure you want for the Costa Del Sol and I bet you still cannot get close to how many motorhomer’s are on this stretch of the med coast of Spain.
Just to give you an idea. there are 4 more lanes like this on our campsite.
We are the van just passed the black one on the left.
Spent the late afternoon just lounging in the sun reading. Nice day.
Sunday 2nd Feb
Well what a let down. Haven’t been attacked, my license is still ok, the world is still turning and we are at last out of the EU. A friend of mine, Fil Jenkins, who is totally blind as is his wife, has sent me some total rubbish he found on social media about a leavers poem going on and on about us being free at last. Accused me of being a “baby boomer” – really cannot help when I was born, and telling me my grandchildren and his grandchildren will never forgive me for voting Leave. Cite’s a 2% victory in the referendum as being inconclusive – he wants another vote, clearly heavily into Democracy as long he gets the result he wants – also I definitely do not want Jonny Foreigner over here, he really does not know me. I was very surprised and very sad.
Onto brighter things – literally.!!! The sun is out – permanently.
The last 4 or 5 days have been lovely – lots of sunshine.
Last Thursday we didn’t move off the site, had Jeff and Linda round for a drink and a chat. A very pleasant evening. Friday saw us getting the bikes out and heading to Torre del Mar to have a walk around the shops. Secured the bikes near the motorhomes on the prom – hopefully they would be considered part of a motorhome and left alone. Had a good walk around town and found a nice beach bar to quench our thirsts. The beers came with a small bowl consisting of some olives and 4 large prawns – they were lovely. Back to the bikes in the aire to find the police going around and moving certain vans on – they clearly had a list of who had been there and how long. So not quite the lovely spot it seemed to be.
Friday evening we had a return match with Jeff an Linda at their van – Bailey Autograph. They run an over 55 group which meets at a local pub on Tuesday in Hull. Don’t think we will be following it up as it seems to rely heavily on Karaoke – definitely not our thing.
Left the campsite on Saturday morning and headed up the coast towards Motril, had a few stops in mind but couldn’t get in to them. So had a lovely drive through the hills(mountains) and found a nice spot to have lunch and empty the grey waste. As soon as we set off the air from the waste water tank was flushed back into the van – the tank was full and there was no waste point on the last site – so it was a fairly smelly drive.
We are now at La Herradura. Quite a nice site on a lovely bay with lots of restaurants and bars. Spending two nights here before heading up the coast past Motril. We had intended to take a detour to Granada but the site pricing was(is) extortionate so we are giving that a miss.
La Herradura bay
On Sunday we had another slow start – getting good at these – and then walked out on to the beach and along to the first restaurant/bar that we found. Managed to get a table for 2 on the beach facing the lovely bay. Spent a couple of hours having our Sunday lunch and drinking wine – what a life.
Tuesday 4th Feb
Now at Castillo de Banoes not too far west of Almeria. Quite an expensive site but we are hoping to get a discount when we settle the bill as we are Camping and Caravanning members and there is a large winter rally here. They organise walks, shopping trips, bike rides, quizzes, meals and happy hours, and I guess lots more. Tonight is a happy hour in the bar so I think we are going to go along and have a drink and a chat.
Not sure i would want to stop here for a month, just seems hard to justify it when there are so many places to go and visit. I think you would need some form of transport, not the van, to stay here that long as it is a bit isolated.
Spent yesterday afternoon just sunbathing - 25deg - brilliant. This morning woke up to a cool sea mist blanketing the place and it still hasn't burnt off and it is now 2:30pm.
Heading further east tomorrow but will still be short of Almeria. Hoping when we get past Almeria that the beaches will start to get a bit more sandy and less stones and grey dirt. We will see.
Friday 7th
Roquetas de Mar – camping on an industrial scale !!!!!
We are booked in for 3 nights, hoping to find an aire in Almeria for Saturday and spend the night in the town.
Check out the site plan, there are 731 plots, not counting other areas – it is huge. Everything is nice and clean, shower blocks are good – always a bonus – wifi not too bad and access to Roquetas and another small village in the other direction.
We managed a walk to the small village along a very good cycle and pedestrian path the afternoon we arrived and yesterday jumped on the bikes and cycled in the other direction to Roquetas. Locked the bikes up near the market and had a slow stroll through the stalls and on to the shopping precinct and then town centre. Got a few funny looks – we are in shorts and t-shirts, sunglasses and hats, as are most of the tourists. The Spanish are in trousers, jumpers, gillets, padded coats etc.
Today we are in jeans etc the wind has at last disappeared but so has the sun however it’s not going to stop us cycling down to the far end of Roquetas to the port and then finding somewhere nice for lunch.
Later;
Well we actually managed to do what we said we would do – must be a first for us.
Good cycle past the Port, on the totally dedicated cycle path all the way along the prom, and found a nice bar to have a beer in. We had passed a place that was clearly English and had decided to return to that for lunch.
Tapas, tapas, tapas. Well not really cos it was a Brit place and the menu had good old stodgy English food on it – fish and chips and peas for the girl and steak and kidney pie with chips, mushy peas and gravy for me.
Bloody Luverly !!!, all washed down with a nice Rioja, well what else goes with that lot ??
Managed to get back without crashing the bikes – just under 10miles.
Monday 10th
Just booked into Los Galados for two nights. It’s just 10mins for where Colin Crouch lives on the golf estate Val de Este. Just texted him to let him know we are here and invited him over for a meal in the restaurant tomorrow night. About 2 years ago I was staying with Colin for a golf holiday and we came here for their Fish and Chip night which was pretty good so hopefully tomorrow night will be ok.
We left Roquetas on Saturday morning for the short trip to Almeria and managed to find the motorhome camping on the Port – about 5 minutes from the city centre. It cost €6.50 for 24hours – right next to the centre, fantastic.
Sorted ourselves out and headed into town, first stop a nice coffee watching the world go by, we are getting very good at this. Lovely central pedestrian area with fountains and palm trees, very wide boulevard, a pleasure to stroll along on.
Lorraine fancied climbing the hill to the Moorish fort that overlooks Almeria but there was no way I could have climbed up there and even if I had managed to get up there I would never have been able to walk around it. So instead we headed back to the centre and found somewhere to have a nice cold beer AND watch the world go by. Lorraine thought I was a bit down in the dumps because of the limitations my butt injury was putting on me – so she bought me a really nice Panama hat to make me feel better. She was right as usual and you can never have too many hats.
Back to the van for a siesta before getting sorted and heading back into town for a meal. Had a beer and then meandered around waiting for the restaurant to open at 8pm. Had a nice Italian meal with a bottle of wine and coffee to finish before heading back at about 10pm – really nice evening.
Sunday dawned nice and sunny with no wind – great. Didn’t have a particularly good night’s sleep due to kids running around on bikes and skateboards until the early hours.
Heading further up the coast to a site in the hills just above Carbonaras. A new site and the receptionist was keen to show us both all the facilities. Setup, chairs out, settled in for some serious sunbathing – it was glorious. Only 1 night here though as it is a bit isolated and severely downhill for 2km to the town.
The thing about vanning is that you have to shop every two or three days, particularly if you don’t have access to mains electricity. So the first thing this morning we left Carbonaras for Los Galados but went past the site on the motorway to Vera, which was the easiest place to get to a Mercadona to do the shopping. We are now loaded up with lots of sugary stuff and lots of “lets get fat quick” stuff. Bit of a disaster though – managed to pick up some non-alcoholic beer – bugger!!!
Friday 14th – Valentines Day
Nice cards for each other and a big bar of caramel chocolate – mmmmm nice.
Los Gallardos, Monday. Managed to get booked in for two nights. The site was full of Brits doing long term stays and the site was owned by Brits as well. A strange site really, average age of the campers must have been over 65 – I’m being kind – and it was like being in a refugee camp. They had all settled in and fenced off their own areas with windbreaks and bits of canvas etc really looked very poor. There also seemed to be no control over people encroaching on adjoining plots, either parking their cars there or just extending their own site as far as they wanted. The toilet block was probably the worst one we have seen on this trip. The upside ? the restaurant and bar attracted people from all over, the two huge bowling greens, the big swimming pool, the kids play areas all 5 star. Overall the best you could say was 2.5 stars, it really needed some TLC.
Colin picked us up at 1pm on Tuesday and we went to Valle de Este for lunch. Before we went there he took us to see a brand new motorhome site in Vera – if only we had known! back to Valle de Este and Karen’s bar for an easy lunch sat on the terrace overlooking the first tee box. After lunch we walked over to the hotel and sat overlooking the 18th green while drinking coffee and watching half a dozen groups finish their rounds – very pleasant. Dropped off about half three and settled in for a quiet night.
We decided it was time to jump up the coast a little bit to reduce the overall driving time for me for the next week. Headed for Los Alaczares and booked into the site behind the one we booked into last year – ON THE SAME DAY – unbelievable but true.
Los Alcazares – home of the Spanish Red Arrows.
The end of the runway is about 500m away – fortunately they don’t fly at night. Plenty of jets flying on the day we arrived so I thought – no problem I will get some photo’s tomorrow – no flights at all.!
as you can see they are pretty low !!!
Got the bikes off and cycled along the coast towards the far end of the runway, found a nice beach bar and sat with a coffee looking out onto Mar Menor, which is the enclosed bay formed by the La Manga peninsular.
Thursday we set off walking in the other direction towards Los Alcazares, all the way along the prom to the far end near the barracks and then stopped for our 2nd cup of coffee. A slow walk around the town before we found a small outdoor shopping area with lots of restaurants and sat down for a well earned lunch. A little bit of shopping – we had to carry it back so nothing much – then headed back to the site. A total of about 6.5 miles. The furthest I have managed to walk for over 3 years. Drugged up before we started and more drugs at the second coffee stop but never the less a vast improvement – getting better or just drugged up – who knows.
Today, Friday, we jumped on the bikes and cycled down to the barracks then had 2nd breakfast – toast, butter and jam with orange juice and an Americano. A glass of orange juice was €2.40. The toast was €1.40 and came with free orange juice ????
Cycled back past the campsite to the bar at the far end of the runway and sat with a cold beer for 30 mins and then cycled back to the campsite. Just under 10miles. Spent the afternoon sat in the sun reading and waiting desperately for 4pm so we could break out the G&T, the problem here is that the sun is always over the yardarm lol.
Lots of jets flying today, hopefully one of the photos will come out.
Tomorrow we are heading to Alicante to see if we can get into the motorhome park in the city, if not there are a couple more sites a little further out that we will aim for.
Wednesday 19th
Our Anniversary !! more cards and chocolate.
We managed to get into the site at Alicante which was 100m from the promenade. Had a good walk along the prom and stopped for a glass of wine. It was very busy, Saturday late afternoon early evening, lots of people on the beach and lots of families walking up and down. Really nice atmosphere and a nice area. Sunday morning we did it again – had to get that 2ndbreakfast in – and we were surprised how many people were on the beach playing volleyball, football and just training. Definitely needed that 2nd coffee and toast having watched all that.
The plan was to go to Benidorm and spend our last 4 nights there, soak up some sun and visit the old town for long lunches. Unfortunately, having spent about an hour phoning and trying to book on line, we just could not get booked in – no room at the inn !!
Plan B. head for Calp and do the same. Unfortunately, we had exactly the same problem. Having driven around Calp to loads of campsites we gave it up as a bad job.
Headed over the hill towards Moraira where Merv and Mas live. We were here last year and had spotted that motorhomes were parked next to the main car park so we managed to find it and settled in.
Merv doesn’t leave the key to the villa under the front door mat so we couldn’t sneak in and make use of the facilities!!!
Headed down town to find somewhere to eat and found a nice restaurant on the front facing the port. Had a nice meal with a nice bottle of Rioja and staggered back to the van for a fairly early night.
Drove to Jeava/Xabia to do some shopping and then headed for a campsite called Los Pinos – and managed to get booked in for 3 nights – at last.
Went for a walk along the prom which is next to a totally pebbled/rocky beach, absolutely no sand at all. The prom had clearly suffered during the storms, lots of barriers up to stop people falling onto the rocks, viewpoints totally decimated.
Looking along the coast towards Denia
Tuesday got the bikes off and set off along the prom to Denia, about 4m and had nice walk around the town. naturally with coffee stops. Cycled back and settled down for a read and a siesta.
Los Pinos area
Today is not only our anniversary but the last full day of our holiday. Aptly it rained. However we were sat in a restaurant having a nice long Spanish lunch. We had walked to another restaurant and had a coffee but the options on the menu were a little expensive to say the least - €60 per person for one of the menus. Headed back past the campsite to another restaurant and settled in for lunch.
The waitress came to take our orders and we had both picked a starter and main course of off the €19 menu. It took us a while to realise that she was saying that you did not pick a starter, you got all of them!!
Bread and olives, big salad, potato croquets, fried fish, 4 large prawns and mussels – all separate dishes, all followed by a meat and veg paella for two. Two deserts, coffee and then a small cake to finish. Totally stuffed but really enjoyable.
Rolled back to the van and had a two hour siesta to recover. How do the Spanish do it ? they would probably have a meal in the evening as well.
Going to try and get this uploaded tonight as tomorrow we start the long haul home.
So Thursday heading for Zaragosa for one night, then into France on Friday, just above Biarritz, probably for 2 nights depending on the weather and the state of the aire. Sunday up the coast to St Gilles Croix de Vie again for two nights and then Tuesday morning 3 hours upto St Malo.
We can park on the Britany Ferries dock and walk into the old town for the afternoon. The ship sails at 2030 and gets in to Poole just after 7 in the morning. So all being well we should be back in Peterborough just after lunch.
Looking forward to catching up with you all.