Spain

[32squirrels]

Any advise on driving from Santander to Almeria in mid December would be appreciated, including routes, Motorhome sites, etc

 

[ivorantony]

I find the planning of a route and research of my intended destination most gratifying, there is a wealth of information available using the resource button on top of the page,

 

[Twogirls]

Any advise on driving from Santander to Almeria in mid December would be appreciated, including routes, Motorhome sites, etc

We've done that exact drive at same time of year, how long do you want to take to drive down to Almeria and do you prefer campsites or Aires? Let me know and I'll be able to pass on our route and recommendations

 

[32squirrels]

Thank you, we are looking to leave Santander on 18 December and arrive Almeria on 21 December so 3 nights. We would prefer camp sites which we can pre-book but would not rule out Aires. We are then going to spend 2 months travelling the Iberia peninsula so any suggestions for that part would also be appreciated

 

[Guigsy]

When we travelled that route in February 2019, we arrived at Bilboa and planned to wander down the centre of the country via Madrid. We got to Burgos before changing our plans. It was frequently below freezing overnight in the hills. Instead we headed east for the Barcelona and then along the coast where it was several degrees warmer. We followed the coast as far as Jerez over the next few weeks. By the time we got to the return leg, it was considerably warmer, so going up the centre was much more comfortable. There's fewer places to visit though, so it only took about 10 days to get back to the north coast.

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[Twogirls]

Thank you, we are looking to leave Santander on 18 December and arrive Almeria on 21 December so 3 nights. We would prefer camp sites which we can pre-book but would not rule out Aires. We are then going to spend 2 months travelling the Iberia peninsula so any suggestions for that part would also be appreciated

Totally agree with Guigsy, avoid driving through central Spain at that time of year. After consulting my extensive notes I can see that we actually rarely stopped on campsites but tended to use free aires, however have stayed at 3 places which might suit your purposes and which I can recommend:
Carinena- free official aire with services in a nice little town, on the A23 route as you head south out of Zaragoza. It was quiet and felt very safe when we visited.

Valencia Camper Park - great little site, all facilities, cheap as chips and only 6 mins walk to the metro into the city which is well worth a visit

Camping Cartagena - another good site, all facilities, cheap, very close to bus route into the city.

We never used toll roads and we never pre booked anywhere unless we wanted to stay on a site at Christmas.
Hope this helps. We've toured all southern Spain and Portugal, only ever in winter, it's easy to find great aires and sites if you get the apps (camper contact, search for sites, park4night). I would say though that we found on our last trip that police had started clamping down on wild parking in the popular coastal areas all down the east coast and along the south coast of Spain. If you stay away from the most popular spots you'll probably be ok and if you stick to official sites or aires you'll have no issues. There are folk on here who live in Spain who'll know much more than I do about the current situation.
Lastly...I don't actually know where the Iberian peninsula is...if you give a few hints about where you want to see I can prob give more recommendations.

 

[Twogirls]

32squirrels, sorry I forgot to say, I LOVE your username, best one on this forum

 

[32squirrels]

Thank you, the Iberian peninsula is Spain and Portugal. The plan was to travel around the southern coast of Spain into Portugal, then head up to Caceres/Extramadura and even over to the Portuguese coast between Lisbon and Porto before heading back to Salamanca and then Santander. I am a bit concerned that as the trip is to be done in January and February then after leaving the southern coast it may be quite cold as we leave the coast and head north!?