Camper Vans and Vera Playa - Page 2

As one who lives in a village which has recently adopted anti-camper van measures, I can see both sides of this one.  I should say from the beginning that I was and am a keen camper, although mainly in tents.  Until three or four years ago, we regularly used to get 5-6 camper vans in the car park in our village in the winter months, and I and other villagers used to feel good about this - new people in the village which was otherwise pretty dormant in winter as well as a bit of extra trade for the bars and shops.  But from 2019 the numbers dramatically increased, particularly in 2020.  The car park now became full, regularly hosting up to 25 vans.  Many were huge and the increase in numbers felt weird in a village with roughly 100 winter residents.  As Covid appeared rampant  our unease increased, not helped by the fact that a number of the vans were converted military vehicles or lorries.  We noticed more people in the streets but the shop-keepers didn’t seem to get much extra trade as the vans would disappear during the day and do their shopping at Mercadona and Lidl.  There was also resentment that our rubbish bins were getting overloaded by people who weren’t paying the charges for basura.  On top of that, guests of locals couldn’t park their cars easily, and the school bus couldn’t drop off the kids and turn round in the car park.  The local neighbours’ WhatsApp group went hot with rage.

In the end, a height barrier was installed in the entrance to the car park and the rage died down.  We still get the odd van, but they park in smaller numbers on the outskirts of the village so people don’t care so much.  But one thing I do feel strongly is that there should be proper sites for them at the edge of villages.  We do in fact have an abandoned site in the middle of the village - attractively laid out and with facilities, but the rumour is that the ayuntamiento couldn’t continue with it because local campsite owners objected that  it was taking the business over from them!

One day in conversation I did ask one camper why they didn’t use the sites that are available and he said he thought they charged too much - while speaking in front of a very expensive van!  Certainly the view he would have had from our over-crowded car park would not have attracted me in our camping days.  The attraction of wild camping for me would have been to get away from things and be with nature, not parked in a car park with 24other semi-lorries,staring at gravel not grass.  

For me the moral of the story is that a few vans are well accepted and tolerated, whereas too many seems like an invasion

EM68, Largely, I agree with much of what you have written. And just to add most of us campervan owners also have a holiday home in France or Spain. I'm new to vanning, but I am keen to get out and about and not to be confined to mobile home parks. Furthermore, I've learnt to share the little I know with other vanners and they have reciprocated. Therefore, the trip to Spain is generally organising itself. I can accept that vanners who park their vans indiscriminately may lead to some local concern. But, most of us are caring people and don't wish to offend anybody.

San Juan de Los Terreros has become an area of interest to us and Palomares again looks good. Vera Playa is of little interest to us (too many Tories and Brexiteers there). Oria is sticking out as a friendly place and almost all of our shopping would be done there. I believe the locals would welcome us. We'll be cycling (I know of the hills there), but nonetheless most of us are fairly fit people. 

Some good points here and you make a good answer at the end, that there is a good way to deal with overcrowding and too many in any one point. I read a good article this week about tourism on certain popular beaches being rationed, a little like they were during Covid_ Too many of something in one place doesn go. The benefits will depend on whether it is a destination or a hopping point. The lake where I lived before was like this as many converted army vehicles or ṕosh' vans would overnight they didn visit the campsite but would have not stayed anyway because it was too much like a resort, very busy and noisy. I think the measures you took were sensible but it emphasises how much the Spanish Tourist authorities have to realise not everyone comes for the beach by plane and how they should plan to make the most of it.

The problem with bins is that you pay for your immediate locality rather than accepting the more general approach. Supermarkets provide the standards for packaging requirements for food and should provide the bins, they would then change their attitude to less packaging.

However, these are problems for anyone living in idyllic spots, too many people, overrum services_ In the UK provisions to some areas are made for this inevitable burden.

Campsites in Spain can be silly prices. It used to be the low cost option but from my few camping trips even out of the way places charge for every little thing resulting in prices close to a BnB price which is defeating the purpose of the object, especially as I was one person, one small rtent. At one site I left my car in the outside car park so I didnt have to pay to have it on site, ten euros saved.

Excellent post Shay123 and well written. One of the UK guys I met yesterday informed me that he and some others experienced some hassle from the local police while vanning in Provence (south of France). The police rid the whole area of campervans and suddenly the roads became speedways and more people were fatally injured. The following year the vanners were welcomed back to Provence and given carte-blanche to park and stay overnight almost anywhere they wished. It'll probably be the same in Vera Playa, Mojacar Playa etc but let's hope the vanners won't have moved onto North Africa as Jenni suggested and that not too many people were killed on their roads in the meantime. You don't miss the water until the well runs dry.

Just for any Irish Vanners looking in:- There are no decent outlets for campervan accessories in RoI. But, there are several in the UK. You could do worse than driving your campervan through the UK and fitting out with what's available there. 

I have a holiday appartment in Palomares and am glad to here that the EXISTING NO camping restrictions aare now being enforced.

The roads in and around Vera Playa don’t really lend themselves to becoming speedways anyway.  Campervans were never an issue in Vera Playa - only put it in this forum as that’s where I am now - but right on the border of Palomares, and that’s where the campervan issue really arose

I was only here the last two winters as a home hunter and as a frequent visitor due to not being able to move permanently and I never saw so many vanners as after Christmas this year. It has to be the same effect as after the first lockdown, when people rushed to the coast - hills to break out, surely. Of course it might create problems but I expect the same with travel throughout the summer, including me who has retired wants to travel and been restricted for two years. Note Australia is open again today.

For reference, since Christmas all the coves along north of Villaricos are crowded not just Palomares and Vera. Part of the reduction will be due to the fact that spring has started and the migration north can begin with the climate, as usual. I have just been up that way to visit Aldi and there are still many but only 30% of what was there before.

I read three articles this week explaining how the UK and Spanish house markets have been booming as people search for a better life than they had before is the message the authors of those articles.

When I was looking to buy a base vehicle last year to make my own brew of van it was the same story. Customising companies had a backlog of months, 6 to 8 in some cases. The same message everyone exploring a better life in some way.

It will be interesting to see what happens next year.... if any one has fuel for the journey

apologies for punctuation and smilies missing. me upper case has gone!

I'm sure you meant ". . . to hear . . ." and you are entitled to your opinion. We have targeted Palomares to spend a few days vanning there. We are clean law abiding people and I'm sure Palomares will be all the better for our stay.

No problems with Palomares - it has facilities for camper vans; it’s only the beachfront area where there is now regular patrols and a distinct lack of camper vans where there used to be dozens

I don’t think any enforcement is taking place between San Juan de los Terreros and Aguilas; there are dozens of campers on all the beach parking areas   How can these beaches keep their blue flags when they are being contaminated?