Spanish Road Trip 2024 Index and Tips - Please note this page is under construction
When you live in Benidorm a question you often get asked is where do you go on holiday? Well, we enjoy discovering Spain and this year will be our 6th road trip. In the past we have always taken these trips during the summer months, but as we are getting older we have found the heat too much for sight seeing. This year our road trip started on 2nd October and we decided to discover the South of France and even spent one night in Italy and drove through Andorra.
The idea of these road trips is to discover the real country areas, therefore, we always set the Sat Nav to avoid ALL Motorways and Toll Roads, by doing this you never quite know what you are going to come across and we have found so many wonderful surprises on our previous journeys.
Road Trip 2019, Spain, France and Andorra.
Road Trip 2020, Spain and Portugal
Road Trip 2022 - Murcia, Riopar, Jaen, Antequera, Guadix, El Ejido, Puerto Lumbreras, Villafranca de los Caballeros, Cuenca, Nogueruelas.
Road Trip 2023 - San Pedro del Pinatar, Mojacar, Cala Mijas, Tarifa, Ronda and Granada
Spanish Road Trip 2024 - Index
Let the road trip begin.....
Check this out.October 3rd, Day 3. Follow us on our journey from Pals, Catalonia, on the Costa Brava, Spain to Perpignan, situated in the Occitanie region, Southern France. 173km travelled.
Check this out.Before heading towards Montpellier for our next overnight stop we decided to explore Perpignan. Perpignan’s location near the Spanish border means the cultural connection between the two regions is very strong, with many locals speaking and considering themselves both French and Catalan.
Check this out.One of the problems of a road trip this time of year in France is the weather, and we woke up to a wet and miserable morning and headed straight to Marseille.
Check this out.Day 6 - Marseille to Saint Tropez 162km. A visit to the medieval village of El Castellet and a wet, depressing and incredibly expensive Saint-Tropez.
Check this out.Our first stop of the day was Cannes - Located on the French Riviera, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Famous for its annual Film Festival, but it is also home to beautiful historical districts, luxury yachts, and vibrant cultural attractions, glamour and Mediterranean luxury....
Check this out.Its not often that you get the opportunity to visit 3 countries in one day.......France, Monaco and Italy.
Check this out.After enjoying our night in Italy, it is now time to start heading back home to Benidorm, we really did not plan to travel this far into France and certainly did not expect to make it into Italy, but that is the joy of a road trip, you can plan, places to see and stay as you go along on a day to day basis.
Check this out.Time to start heading even closer to home (Benidorm) and nothing really exciting along the way this time, no unexpected Medieval towns, just a couple of coffee stops as we head towards Avignon and our overnight stop just outside Nimes.
Check this out.Heading closer and closer to the Spanish boarder each day, this will be our last night in France, but we discover another wonderful Medieval town, a fantastic restaurant and the perfect place for our last nights stay in France......
Check this out.Sunday 13th October and this was our final day in France, and as we had already driven in Spain, France, Monaco and Italy, we thought why not add another country to the list and drive through Andorra to get back into Spain.
Check this out.After last nights stay in Lleida and thinking we would come straight home, but not wanting to cut our holiday short by a day and with such a disappointing end, we scoured the booking sites for somewhere to stay tonight and found what looked suitable in Terul, but before going there we visited a place that has been on my list for quite a few years, Albarracin.....
Check this out.*Note any maps posted are just a guide, as we do a lot of extra sight seeing along the way*
This year we travelled a total of 3,218km and stayed in 14 different places, and visited many other towns and tourist attractions along the way.
Total cost of 14 nights' accommodation - 775.49€ (including tourist tax in some areas). Average coast per night = 55.39€
Additional car parking expenses - 17€, most places we stayed offered on street, or private FREE parking.
Total Diesel cost - in the region of 200€
Tips for a stress-free Road Trip
1. Make sure your car is fully serviced before you travel.
2. Make sure you and your car are correctly insured.
3. Update your sat nav or any other interactive maps you will be using.
4. Make sure you know the rules of the road, especially if driving in a different country.
5. Keep an eye on the fuel gage at all times and fill up, when necessary, you never know how far the next petrol station may be, even some that are pinpointed on the sat nav can be closed.
6. Make sure you have enough cash on you for your journey, not everywhere accepts credit cards, especially in the small towns and villages. But don’t keep all of it in one place and make sure it’s safe and hidden.
7. Be flexible. Have a rough route planned but be prepared to change direction if you cannot get last minute accommodation exactly where you want, or need to change direction due to the weather.
8. Drive during the daytime, obviously the whole idea of a road trip is to see as much of the countryside as possible.
9. Take regular breaks from driving.
10. To get the best out of your road trip, avoid motorways and toll roads. Most Sat navs can be programmed for this.
11. Avoid unpaved roads unless you have a 4 x 4 or are a very competent driver.
12. Keep a close watch for any localised weather reports, especially if going into remote places or up mountains.
13. Make sure your mobile phone is always fully charged, you never know when you may need it.
14. Take photos of informative signs when you enter a city/town. Keep these in handy in case you get lost and need to retrace your path.
Road Trip 2024
15. Have a first aid kit handy in the car and always have a few bottles of water.
16. Learn some basic Spanish, we are far from fluent but always manage to get by but once we leave Benidorm hear very little English spoken for the rest of the journey.
17. Understand Spanish mealtimes. This caught us out for the first couple of years, when you live in Benidorm you take it for granted that you can eat any time of the day or night, this is just not the case in other towns, villages or even the main cities.
18. If you have neck or back problems, take your own pillow with you to make sure you get a comfortable nights sleep.
19. When booking always check if the property has parking facilities, either on site or at least nearby, and check the fees as these can soon add up.
20. Pack one large suitcase with everything you need, bring a few smaller bags and transfer what you need for each new day into these, that way you are not dragging a large suitcase into each new nightly accommodation, but if you forget anything its always close at hand in your car anyway, also keep a bag for laundry, so you are not constantly picking through dirty clothes.
Most of all enjoy your Spanish Road Trip.
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