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Hi everyone we are considering taking the van to spain over christmas,are we mad ? or are there plenty of good sites and weather to be had

your help would be appreciated

Tim51

I'm definately up for it, but I'm struggling to convince the missus. I've suggested fly drive (I drive from home, she flys and we meet over there), but no joy yet.

Never see a christmas tree in TT before....

Well worth the effort but, as Voyageur says you need to be well south of Barcelona to avoid the colder weather. Mind you, we had frost in Benidorm 3 years ago.

You might want to consider booking ahead as it can be very busy. Most of Germany and Holland seems to go there for the winter. First time we went we got into a site on 22 Dec without booking. Next day there were around 40 motorhomes wild camping down the road outside waiting for pitches. But don't let that put you off, it's well worth the effort.

Hi Tim,

We are currently in Spain, and I'm sitting in the awning using WiFi (1 Euro per day) to catch up as I've been suffering Forum Withdrawal for the last few weeks.

We are going to winter over here. Lots of sites open. It really depends what you're looking for lively, quiet etc. Ceertainly I would agree that further South is better. However, the Costa del Sol tends to be overcrowded on the sites with facilities not as good as other areas unless you go inland.

Travelling through France to get down a lot of sites are closed and you need to pick and choose your stops in advance ideally.

If anyone is interested in meeting up over Christmas (sort of unofficial mini meet I guess) I can always arange things from here. I am picking up email fairly regularly.

Nice to be back on line

Nick

I think we're on. Undecided on our destination as yet though.

Couple of questions: (having not been abroad at Christmas before): Can you buy Christmas trees over there, like here, or do I strap one to the side of the roofbox? (!) AND how do you do Christmas pudding on a Cobb?

Also 4yr old needs to know if Santa can handle zips as easy as a chimney...

Its all got to be answered.

TT

Hi Tim,

We are down in southern Spain, just outside Malaga, as in the UK the winter weather can go either way, but the Costa del Sol is renoun for its good weather so there is more than a fair chance you will get sunshine on Christmass Day.

But fear not, even if it's raining, Spain is a great place to be.

Drive Safe.

1949.

The weather can be very variable in winter, and you may be lucky- or not! We had 10 days of lovely sunshine on one trip, followed by 4 days continuous rain, which was miserable.

Some campers drive down and then look for a cheap apartment to rent, there are almost more bargain apartments than pitches available in winter, and the cost is comparable. We met a motorcaravanner who had done this - and his wife was flying out to meet him!

   We are thinking of going down to have xmas as we have in the past , but I feelit might be to busy on the sites to get on. We did not want to be too far away from some resturants and shops , but we did not want to move the motorhome. We would go as far as the costa blanca or a bit further south. Any suggestions on where to stay/ which sites, would be apprieciated.     kiev          

La Marina at Alicante is close to the facilities, but is a bit Hi de Hi 'ish.and we find the pitches a bit close together and the whole site has a bit of a cramped feel

La Manga near Cartagena has a lot more room and is right on the beach. It's not too far to La Manga Strip and some of the smaller places around like Los Belones but definitely too far to walk.

Both these sites offer restaurants,shopes,entertainment on site.

I'm sure there are plenty of others but these are two in the area you're looking at that we have stayed at. We're at La Manga at the moment.

Nick

Nick, we have stayed at La Manga, and have certainly been among the many folk who walk along the beach to do shopping or visit cafes/restauants on the strip. It doesn't take long (30 mins?) and when you're on holiday, there is no need to rush. Same thing with Los Belones, we tended to cycle there, but always passed lots of fellow campers walking there and back. The cake shop cum cafe is a big draw!! 

Quote: Originally posted by kiev on 19/9/2006

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   We are thinking of going down to have xmas as we have in the past , but I feelit might be to busy on the sites to get on. We did not want to be too far away from some resturants and shops , but we did not want to move the motorhome. We would go as far as the costa blanca or a bit further south. Any suggestions on where to stay/ which sites, would be apprieciated.     kiev           

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