Road Trip - France, Spain, Portugal

[willwander]

How has the van been…?

Good. The abs sensor fault is intermittent. Some days we have cruise control, some days not, but it’s not causing any real problems.
After almost 30 days in the van, it actually feels bigger inside, which is weird ha

 

[Azteccamper]

Good. The abs sensor fault is intermittent. Some days we have cruise control, some days not, but it’s not causing any real problems.
After almost 30 days in the van, it actually feels bigger inside, which is weird ha

It’s a brilliant van isn’t it? We love our 6 week breaks touring Europe a couple of times a year. Real feel good factor. But ……….. I’m still tempted to go bigger!

 

[willwander]

Day 29
São Martinho do Porto. Nothing happened today. Weather’s a bit sh!t.

 

[willwander]

Day 30
Évora. Couple of hours drive to Évora, with a small detour to a hardware store to pick up a fresh 907 gas bottle, 14€ for a refill ! Amazing, I pay nearly £50 at home.
Mooch around Évora, historic town surrounded by big castle walls, nice.
Bit of a milestone day, we’ve reached the most westerly point of our journey and are now heading back east, I guess the first stage of our journey home, although hopefully still a few adventures yet to come.

 

[kurienp]

most westerly point of our journey

Is that not Cabo da Roca? Awesome!

 

[kurienp]

I pay nearly £50 at home.

That extra £36 is for the plastic net around it that you get in the UK

 

[willwander]

Day 31
Córdoba. Staying at c. Los Villaires, 20mins from Córdoba, nice site, rural. 4.5hr trip from Évora today, long straight boring road, scenic tho, I like driving days. Bit sad we didn’t make a couple of places, but we have our reasons. Feels good to be back in Spain.

Tilly, sad we didn’t go to Cádiz

 

[CaliforniaCylus]

What are the lights you have around the roof area?

 

[willwander]

What are the lights you have around the roof area?

Just some cheap fairy lights.

 

[GillianC]

But other people’s holiday pics are a bit boring haha,
I’ll try do better. This was the nice cake thing which did have an interesting name, which I’ve forgot. It was delicious.
View attachment 129587

Border Terriers love cake

 

[CaliforniaSeb]

Day 31
Córdoba. Staying at c. Los Villaires, 20mins from Córdoba, nice site, rural. 4.5hr trip from Évora today, long straight boring road, scenic tho, I like driving days. Bit sad we didn’t make a couple of places, but we have our reasons. Feels good to be back in Spain.

Tilly, sad we didn’t go to Cádiz
View attachment 129746

Beautiful dog. We miss Ben our labradoodle. He made it to 17! but we got our first van at the time when he couldn't travel. So never got the chance to enjoy travelling in the camper with him. His favourite toy, "hedgie", a chewed up stuffed hedgehog travels with us.

Enjoy making memories with your pets.

 

[willwander]

Day 32
Spent the day in Córdoba, nice enough, weather turned bad. Decided to push on towards Malaga, by the time we arrived it was late, tried 3 aires all full, ended up in a dodgy trailer park just outside Torre del Mar, with a permanent population living in ramshackled caravans. You wouldn’t want to spend a week here.

 

[GillianC]

Day 32
Spent the day in Córdoba, nice enough, weather turned bad. Decided to push on towards Malaga, by the time we arrived it was late, tried 3 aires all full, ended up in a dodgy trailer park just outside Torre del Mar, with a permanent population living in ramshackled caravans. You wouldn’t want to spend a week here.

Watch the terrier!!!’

 

[Azteccamper]

What sort of route are you taking back?

 

[kurienp]

What sort of route are you taking back?

C'mon, let them enjoy! Its too early to ask. They are on day 32 of 90. 58 days to go!

 

[willwander]

What sort of route are you taking back?

We’re never going back haha

Going home has not yet been mentioned.
(We are travelling up the Spanish coast towards Barcelona, until we decide otherwise)

C'mon, let them enjoy! It’s too early to ask. They are on day 32 of 90. 58 days to go!

That’s the spirit ha

 

[willwander]

Day 33
Great day in Nerja, nice little holiday town, the ‘Feria’ was on which gave the place a real buzz, lots of people in traditional costumes and lots of horses parading about, it was great. Nice place we liked it here.

Staying about an hour further down the road, at ‘Camping mar azul’ nice big new site, packed full of Germans, nothing much around mind, just acre after acre of plastic greenhouses.

 

[willwander]

Thinking about a bigger van

 

[willwander]

Day 34
Drove through Almería’s ‘sea of plastic’ huge areas of plastic greenhouses, so big it’s visible from space. Also know as ‘Europe’s dirty little secret’, it supplies most of Northern Europe with its fruit and veg. Quite a sight and worth a google.
Now visiting family at their apartment in Murcia.
Sleeping on their drive in the van.

 

[Kev56]

Day 30
Évora. Couple of hours drive to Évora, with a small detour to a hardware store to pick up a fresh 907 gas bottle, 14€ for a refill ! Amazing, I pay nearly £50 at home.
Mooch around Évora, historic town surrounded by big castle walls, nice.
Bit of a milestone day, we’ve reached the most westerly point of our journey and are now heading back east, I guess the first stage of our journey home, although hopefully still a few adventures yet to come.
View attachment 129722
View attachment 129729

The gas prices in the uk don't make any sense

 

[Ch1pbutty]

The gas prices in the uk don't make any sense

One reason is that Spain is currently one of the largest importers of cheap Russian gas, some is used for consumption, rest is stored and then sold to other European member states. It’s one of the benefits of being in the EU, whether is morally correct is a different matter.

(Not intended as a holiday thread hijack!)

https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/russian-lng-accounts-quarter-spanish-gas-imports-march-2024-04-10/

https://www.chathamhouse.org/2024/06/eus-continued-dependency-russian-gas-could-jeopardize-its-foreign-policy-goals

 

[willwander]

Day 35 & 36
Visiting family at their apartment in Murcia

 

[willwander]

Day 37
La Villa Joyosa
Small seaside town between Alicante and Benidorm, still retains an old town with pretty coloured houses and a small beach, somewhere we’ve visited many times before, it’s a nice little place , we like it here.
Weather is good. 26 degrees.
Full on Costa-Blanca now, fat Brits and fat Germans.

 

[CaliforniaSeb]

Day 37
La Villa Joyosa
Small seaside town between Alicante and Benidorm, still retains an old town with pretty coloured houses and a small beach, somewhere we’ve visited many times before, it’s a nice little place , we like it here.
Weather is good. 26 degrees.
Full on Costa-Blanca now, fat Brits and fat Germans.

We are very close by . In Pinoso. Between Alicante and Murcia. Lovely weather.

 

[Barbara]

Day 37
La Villa Joyosa
Small seaside town between Alicante and Benidorm, still retains an old town with pretty coloured houses and a small beach, somewhere we’ve visited many times before, it’s a nice little place , we like it here.
Weather is good. 26 degrees.
Full on Costa-Blanca now, fat Brits and fat Germans.

If you are staying for a while the fiesta in Calpe is worth a visit. don't take a dog as very noisy. main parade on Saturday 19th but the children's parade which is usually on Sunday about 6pm will have less visitors mainly locals. This link should help. Get there early to park.

Fiestas in Calpe: Moors & Christians (October 2024) | Calpe Fiesta Guide & Calendar 2024 in Calpe

Fiestas in Calpe: Moors & Christians (October 2024) | Calpe Fiesta Guide & Calendar 2024 in Calpe Here are full details of the 2024 Moors and Christians Fiesta Program in Calpe, Costa Blanca, Spain, the main events of which take place from 18-22 October 2024.

www.calpeonline24.com