winter abroad
Hi looking at going to Spain in the January 2019, i know its early but never been abroad before with the caravan so will have plenty of questions, first one would it be better to get the ferry to northern Spain or drive through France would be looking at making our way back towards the end of March thinking maybe drive back through France when the weather is getting warmer taking about a month to get back any advice would be more than welcome,we will have a dog with us if this makes any difference
Thanks
Comments
-
That's a hard question.
If I recommend the ferry to Spain and if you have a horrendous rough voyage across the Bay of Biscay in January you won't thank me.
But if I recommend you drive across France in midwinter, with a limited number of sites open and short hours of daylight, for what you say is your very first visit overseas, you might wish you had gone by ship.
Good luck.
0 -
Firstly I would take the ferry. It's your first time abroad and it's a long way. Then travelling through France in January could be tricky, both weather wise and finding sites that are open. There are some but in comparison to other seasons the number is relatively small.
We've driven to the south of Spain in January and were luckier going down through France, staying near the west coast, than coming back 3 months later.
Do some research on whether the sites you hope to go to are full of not. Many Europeans like to spend winter in Spain and Portugal. Let us know where you intend heading for. As David says it can be packed in January and emptying in April.
Good luck and please don't t think these comments from seasoned European travellers are meant to be negative. You need a balanced reply.
0 -
WTG that was a good post I'm sure the OP will value your information.
We have just returned from Spain and while the daytime temperature was great mid 20's every day, the nights were getting decidedly chilly.
On another forum I use the members are reporting back that there is snow in Northern Spain although the roads are open, the temps in the North are below freezing and even further down Murcia and beyond the nights are getting colder.
We have not yet been in January/February so couldn't comment on the weather in those months. I do know that the sites were already getting very busy in mid to late November with lots of pitches roped off as more travelers were working their way down having already secured their pitches. As said there are thousands of Europeans who over winter in Spain/Portugal.
0 -
Although we are seasoned caravan travellers in France this is our first trip to Spain. I asked for lots of advice on here and another forum and the replies I got back were that February would be the worst time weather wise to travel. When we came over in late October on the Bilbao ferry people were sitting out on deck outside the kennels to keep their dogs company although I believe they do have some dog friendly cabins.
For information I found John's blog about wintering in Spain really helpful as he has been doing it for years.
https://jondogoescaravanning.com/2015/10/06/welcome-to-my-blog/
We have been here for six weeks doing the historical sites and when we started in November temperatures were in their mid 20s in Andalucia. Yesterday further north there was frost on the ground at 10am in the shade.
I am not looking forward to the snow further north that Tammygirl mentions but everyone assures me that the Spanish keep the roads open all the time so not to worry about that aspect.
0 -
we do a similar journey to WTG, and this spring we left home in the last week of January, and were away for 9 weeks....
although we used aires for our stop overs (not an option for the OP) WTG has mentioned some viable stopping sites.
taking the long crossing or not depends on how good a sailor you are, how happy you are with the cost and iff the ferry places you where want to be...a Santander crossing places you 100km further from the fastest route to (say) the sun in Valencia....
it womt necessarily save you any elapsed time, either, as the crossing is usually 24 hours or so....
a crossing to (say) Caen, St Malo or Cherbourg might be as convenient, timing wise.
we normally use Poole-Cherbourg and arrive in port just after lunch, 4 hrs sees us to an aire on the south side of Nantes, and then to Irun (close to Urrugne as mentioned by WTG) before cutting over to Valencia in one (7hr, with breaks) trip.
the thing is, the roads are great, no traffic and quick, steady progress is not hampered by others.
if you are from the eastern side of the uk and favour the short crossings. its likely to add another travelling day, which may influence your decision.
good luck.
PS, LTC the roads were fine in January and the previous trip back in mid December were cold, clear and brilliant sunshine.
1 -
Hi Hallagather, with RyanAir flights being so cheap - £32 return from Stansted to Malaga in January 2018 (yes return) it might be be worth you going down there for a week, renting a car, using Airbnb, and exploring the campsites to see what you think. If you like what you see you can haul the caravan down there as you plan for 2019.
1 -
hi thanks for all your reply's its given m plenty to think about, we live in the north west of England,not the best of sailors,it is a long term ambition to do this trip looking to tour round the British coast for 12 months then go abroad for the winter open to suggestions as where to go for the best weather in Spain would that be the south?or would Portugal be to far?
Thanks
0 -
Portugal is not too far. If you are retired then you can take your time. We went a few years ago now. As others have alluded to the weather can be variable but almost certainly warmer on a more consistent level than over here. You have to remember that inland Spain is set on a plateau and there are large mountains in various parts, for example near Granada and choosing to sightsee in Winter at Granada, for example, could be a very cold but ultimately rewarding experience. The coastal areas from Portugal around to Cadiz can be be very windy but we've spent a month travelling from Portugal to Seville and Cadiz area and enjoyed sun most of the time. This was January.
If you are heading to SW Spain and Portugal then maybe spend some time at Aranjuez, near Madrid. A decent stopover point and chance to draw breath and see a town that has been well used by their royalty, so prosperous.
The Spanish do tend to keep the motorways clear of snow but it is not an unknown phenomena.
I've tended to avoid the more touristy Costas so others will be probably be able to help more with those.
0 -
for example near Granada and choosing to sightsee in Winter at Granada, for example, could be a very cold but ultimately rewarding experience.
About 10 days ago we went up to Granada from Nerja, the difference in temp was very noticeable, around 23c on the coast about 10c in Granada, then we went for a drive up the mountains (Sierra Nevada) to the ski resort where they had their first snowfall of the season. At the time not ready for skiing but everyone was getting things ready, it was very chilly at probably just above freezing. Beautiful drive up though.
0 -
TG, we knew someone who actually booked a site near Granada, in the hills, in January without realising that it could snow. The Ampage on site wasn't sufficient to keep them warm and they skiddadled to the coast after 3 nights of a 14 night booking.
0 -
We passed a campsite on the way up the mountain and wondered if it would be open over the winter, guess the answer is 'yes' 
we did the drive in a car but the road was good and would be perfectly doable for M/H's there are a few areas that we suspected would be used for 'wilding' but not by us in winter 
0
