Travelling through Spain

peanuthead

Hi all

I'm currently working on planning a trip to Spain this summer.

We will be going in our own van, converted to a camper by ferry.

The length of time is about 6-8 weeks or so, between mid June to mid August.

We obviously have a lot of time and will factor France and Portugal into the itinerary but at the moment, Spain is our main focus.

We basically plan to do a round trip of Spain, with my plan starting Clockwise from Catalonia.

I will update as I make decisions, but basically at the moment, I'm working my way through an AA road map, a travel book and a '501 places you must visit' to work out what is worth seeing.

I'm writing here to see if anyone has any suggestions, ideas or advice about what to do or what not to do.

About us and our reasons for going:

I speak Spanish and am very interested in travelling the country to get to grips with the culture as well as the language.

My OH loves driving, scenery and is mad about architecture.

So basically, nothing is off limits. We want to cover as much ground as we can, including the Balearic Islands if possible.

Any tips at all would be great and I am totally open to all suggestions, nothing at all is set in concrete, not even the plan of travelling down the east and up the west coast (Portugal)


Edit: I should mention that cash is kind of an issue. While we are not totally broke, we're not rich either. We would like to keep costs down as much as possible, we are budgeting 3k or so. I don't even know how realistic that is to be honest, we could double that budget by saving now if we needed to so if anyone has any ideas on whether that would be enough or not that would also be good.

Thanks
Peanuthead.

theyearof2010

While I can't offer alot of advice, I can say it sounds like its going to be some trip! I'd love to do this too, currently studying Spanish myself and I'd say theres so many hidden treasures!! Might try interrailling throughout Spain myself

cailinoBAC

I’m living in Spain 9 months now. Quite close to the costa del sol, but not on the costa itself (ugggh). Before I moved here, I would never have thought of coming here on holiday, because I didn’t think there was much apart from beaches and ugly developments. Obviously I was mistaken.
Anyway, highly highly recommend Cabo de Gata - The most unspoilt beaches I’ve come across so far in Spain. We drove to Carboneras, left the car there and walked along the coast to Cabo de Gata village for 3 days (then bus to Almeria, bus back to Carboneras). Wish we’d spread it out a bit more. Had to rush past the hippy commune at San Pedro as it would have been dark before getting to Las Negras and had to skip some beaches at the end. Anyway, you don’t have to walk, you can drive from place to place, but some of the best beaches you’ll have to walk to.(Also on our way back we went to mini Hollywood near Tabernas, where they filmed spaghetti westerns like The Good the Bad and the Ugly – tacky but fun!)
Sierra Nevada
Hoping to go back here for skiing some time this winter, but have been there in the summer twice. We went to Capileira, which is one of the higher villages. Not sure I’d like to be driving up in a camper van, but some do. In May there was still some snow up there. In September we climbed Mulhacen, which is the highest mountain in mainland Spain. I say climbed, but it’s quite easy. A bus leaves Capileira at 8.30 and 11 to go some of the way into the national park (you can’t go yourself). You have to put your name down for it though as can be busy. Also, further down in the Alpujarras, there’s a hotel called Alqueria de Morayma, which is just fabulous and not expensive at all. They make their own wine too and it’s great.

Seville, Ronda and Granada obviously….haven’t been to Cordoba or Cadiz yet, but supposed to be great. Also I liked Jerez too!

The walk of La Concha near Marbella (start at Refugio de Juanar)
The valleys of Gemal and Guadiaro and all the villages there among the natural parks of Alcornales, Grazalema, Ronda etc. I wouldn’t like to do the road between El Colmenar and Cortes de la Frontera in a campervan though, actually I don’t think I’d do it again in a car. There are prehistoric cave paintings in the cave of Pileta, but I haven’t been there just yet

Tarifa (and you could make a daytrip to Tangiers – it’s only 35 minutes away, though shamefully I haven’t done it yet. And the beach at Bolonia – heaven! You could try out kitesurfing while at Tarifa too (not at Bolonia though, that seems to be kitesurfer free, the wind must not be right-better for sunbathing though)

I wouldn’t bother with Gibraltar unless you’re really curious. If you do want to go, leave your van in La Linea and walk across. The traffic at the border is terrible.

Castillo de Castellar. A white village in a castle on top of a hill. Taken over by hippies in the 70s. A nice afternoon sidetrip if you’re in the area.

killbillvol2

I'll echo what cailinoBAC said and add that Cadiz is an absorbing place to spend a few days in and Cordoba is a must see for the Mezquita.

I've spent a few years now exploring Andalusia and surrounding areas a week or so at a time. There's years of things to see in that relatively small area so the whole of Spain is a lifetime's work!

In general roads are excellent but tolls are expensive (although easily avoided with a bit of planning).

The Falcon

Sounds like a great trip. I've dreamed of doing something similar ever since reading Laurie Lee's 'As I walked Out one Midsummer Morning' - (Written following his walking trip through Spain in the 1930s) - Read the book about 20 years ago but never got to live the dream.
Good on you and I hope it works out!:)

peanuthead

killbillvol2 wrote: »

I'll echo what cailinoBAC said and add that Cadiz is an absorbing place to spend a few days in and Cordoba is a must see for the Mezquita.

I've spent a few years now exploring Andalusia and surrounding areas a week or so at a time. There's years of things to see in that relatively small area so the whole of Spain is a lifetime's work!

In general roads are excellent but tolls are expensive (although easily avoided with a bit of planning).

Good point about the tolls, will have to work out where they are.

Yes, I agree with you about Andalucía, I've gotten to that part of the travel guide and Oh my God, I don't know how I will leave if I get there!!

The Falcon wrote: »

Sounds like a great trip. I've dreamed of doing something similar ever since reading Laurie Lee's 'As I walked Out one Midsummer Morning' - (Written following his walking trip through Spain in the 1930s) - Read the book about 20 years ago but never got to live the dream.
Good on you and I hope it works out!:)

Sounds like an inspirational read! Might try and get my hands on it, would be very interesting to read about what it was like in the 30s compared to now!

dub7_2010

Hi Peanuthead

I lived in Sapin many years and have seen most parts although not all.

Working around the coast

Starting in Barcelona i wasnt very impressed however the harbour area is quite nice. Keep clear of Las Ramblas as its full of new age travelers, addicts and pick pockets.

Not much to see in Castellon.

Valencia is worth a few days of your time and also take in Gandia.

Not a lot to see from Benidorm to Torrevieja (Elche might be worth a visit) as its pretty much like any tourist resort.

Nothing special at La Manga which is over rated.

South of Cartegena/Mazzaron is a little quite but has some great remote beaches.

Grenada is beautiful and you should definetly vist the Alhambra which is amazing.

Marbella,Mijas and Malaga are nice for a few days.

Avoid Gibraltar.

Cadiz is a must.

Id advise you take in Jerez and then onto Seville.

Cordoba and Toledo before getting to Madrid.

Leave a few days for Madrid and surounding areas as there is so much to see.

Never been to Galica but have heard is a very nice area.

The Basque country for me is the best part (not Bilbao) and you must go to San Sebastian.

Let me know if u need more detail info and il try help. I have been to all the above places (and more) except Jerez and Galica.

Best of luck

M5

If you are near Malaga you have to go to Ronda, spectacular. About a two hour drive from Malaga IIRC



+1 on Grenada too

southsiderosie

You should definitely try to swing through the Basque country, especially if you have a camper van - the scenery in the north is rugged and spectacular. There are lots of nice nature reserves both in Pais Vasco and Navarra. In addition, some of the best places in the region to visit are the small towns where the feast day celebrations are legendary, and Euskera is still the first language.

If your OH loves architecture DO NOT skip Bilbao - the Guggenheim museum is an AMAZING building, inside and out. Plus Bilbao is a really interesting case of post-industrial urban renewal, with a mix of old and new. There are also excellent pintxos (although San Sebastian is better for food).

San Sebastian is a beautiful town, and the old barrio has the best pintxos in the world. The best places are the ones where you just grab what you want and there are no plates or stools. Be sure to take a stroll down the beaches all the way to Chillida's "Wind Comb" sculptures embedded in the rocks and the sea.

Because you have a camper van you may be able to save money on hotels (which are expensive and crowded in the summer), but I'd argue for setting aside 80-100 each to splurge on one of the truly great restaurants in the region.

Have fun!

PS - Just a note on the feast days in Spain - be sure to check the calendar. Although festivals, especially in small towns, are fun, many places will be crowded and overbooked, and a lot of stores will be closed. People in Spain take these pretty seriously, especially in small towns, and there are national, regional, and town holidays. Just something to be mindful of.

Zebra3

If you get down to the tip of Spain, you could do worse than take a trip (even just a day trip) to Morocco for a bit of a cultural change.

homer simpson

Hi there OP there are loads of places i could send you to go and see in costa blanca region, First i recommend is Alicante castle. its a bit of a nightname to get into but most defiantly worth it, here is a pic i took there last summer link the views from the top will take your breath away, and best of all its free!

Second place i recommend you go to see is the small village of Bocairent its about an 1hr 45mins inland from alicante would recommend taking this route click as we stumbled across this pass (near xixona) by accident its is great especailly is you OH likes driving and the views at the top over 1000 feet up as great too, here is a few pictures of the village itself its better to walk around though when you get there steets are very very narrow in places.






If you want any more info on that area gimmie a PM i'll gladly help ya out!

peanuthead

Hey all

thanks so much for all the replies on where to go and what to do! Once I start to get an itinerary sorted I will most definitely be PMing some of you!

We are due to be leaving in June, second week of June. The camper van is in actual fact a van which is being converted into a camper. We were hoping to be almost finished the conversion by now, but the engine completely gave out a month ago and we have had to get that fixed first.

Nightmare!

The van is now wired for electrics but that is it. It's not even fully running yet which worries me. We are also 2K down on our budget which was pretty small to begin with.

Do you guys know on average how much campsites cost in Spain?