Feb to May in Spain ?

[Les Bunce]

I'm considering this as a trip covering inland Spain and Portugal but having trouble finding out what the weather/temperature may be like. The weather information I've found tends to be only coastal, Madrid and Barcelona. I'm aware that Iberia is mostly high plateau and so may be cool. My second unknown is the availability of open campsites at these times. A quick glance through the Caravan Club European Travel book indicates that many sites are closed through February and March. Does anybody have any information that would help ?

[johnsandywhite]

:-D Hi Les Bunce. Inland Spain can be pretty cool especially in the evenings/night. Portugal can have quite a lot of rain. That's why it is so green. We once went to Portugal from Altea in Spain in a February and it was absolutely the best weather all winter. Temp up to 23 decrees. Not a spot of rain. The best weather is around Benidorm and the Costa Blanca north of Alicante. April can have a LOT of rain and thunderstorms just as you can in the UK. :'( :-D Luck of the draw as they say. There are never any guarantees. (lol)

[Peter B]

Hi, Agree with johnsandywhite, the temperature in February an be more than cool. I have crossed Spain twice at that time of year, once from Malaga to Irun (on the French border0 and once from the Algarve to Bilbao, both via Aranjuez. On both occassions I hit snow and sub-zero temperatures. Luckily, the Spanish road authorities were prepared and driving was no problem. I have not travelled inland on other occassions but would expect very warm weather in May, and possibly in April. I hope to do a similar journey as you next spring ('07), so would be interested to hear how you get on. Good Luck. Peter B :-S

[Go Motorhoming]

I know its hard to imagine, but Spain does get snow and you can ski in the south. If you consider Jan-March to be like Autumn and April-May to be like spring/early summer in UK you wont go wrong. Some roads inland will require snow chains, but not if you stick to the coast. As for campsites, these tend to be busy Jan-mid march and then start to empty out. There are plenty open so after mid march you should be able to travel freely, but before that you may wish to book just to be sure. Oh, the sea will be absolutely freezing in Feb!

[Mel E]

To answer the question you actually asked - about INLAND Spain, then yes, as has been said, it will be quite cold at night in Feb thru to early April. There are sufficient open camp sites to meet your needs, but expect inland ones to be almost empty, with very limited facilities during Feb to Easter, which is when Spanish camping comes alive. The exceptions are camp sites near major tourist attractions such as Salamancar and Madrid, which will have lots of space, but a good smattering of campers. As to the coastal regions of Spain, I'm afraid there is a bit of misinformation above: the dryest and warmest part of Spain over winter is, according to Spanish meteorological records (and personal experience) the province of Almeria with Murcia. Malaga and the Costa del Sol tend to get a lot more rainy days, especially when a west wind brings weather thru the Straights of Gibraltar from the Atlantic and Benidorm is a tad too far north to get really warm weather. Portugal, at least in the south, tends to be wetter and also windier than Spain, tho' the Costa de Luz (Coast of Light) can be warm and sunny but there are probably too many windy days for comfort. At Tarifa, at the southern end of the Costa de Luz, for example, over 75% of days thru the year have a wind of Force 4 or greater (and it's usually greater) which is why it's a wind surfer's paradise (and probably also why it's the suicide capital of Europe!). But don't be put off inland Spain. If your van has adequate heating for the nights, the towns and villages around there are beautiful.

[mom]

G'day! From your question it seems you are travelling for the exploration and not the sun, which I applaud! My wife and I do half of our European touring (in our little VW T4) during the 2 weeks of Christmas and early New Year and we travelled Portugal and some of Spain at that time a couple of years ago. I remember being camped near Salamanca and waking to find the clothes on our makeshift line frozen solid. So yes, inland Spain can get very cold, but with a gas heater and/or electric fan heater, and a comfy, we thoroughly enjoyed every moment. Few cars, unstressed site owners, everyone relaxed. We used the Caravan Club European book for all our sites and although we don't usually pre-book, we found some sites closed, so we would ring ahead at lunchtime just to check. We were never without. The facilities ranged from just OK to not OK, but that didn't bother us, but be prepared for the men and ladies to share the same toilet and shower block - most sites close half their facilities for maintenance. Oh, and be prepared for the front gate to be opened only when the site manager has finished breakfast, which could be after 9 am!!! Sorry if you already know most of this! mom

[derek500]

[QUOTE]Les Bunce - 2006-06-13 8:38 PM I'm considering this as a trip covering inland Spain and Portugal but having trouble finding out what the weather/temperature may be like. The weather information I've found tends to be only coastal, Madrid and Barcelona. [/QUOTE] I use http://www.wunderground.com/global/SP.html You will find the current weather and five day forecasts for most large towns. There is also historical weather details for the last few years. For example you could find out what the temperature/wind/humidity/rain was in Albacete on 13th March 2005 at 7pm!! What more could you want?

[NickandChris]

We've got a place about 30 minutes North of Granada. Weather in February is VERY hit and miss. January is warmer than February and it doesn't rain as much. Inland Andalucia in February is wet at times and cold at night though generally two to four days of wet weather at a time not like the UK with a week or two consecutively. I was out there two weeks ago and we had a lot of SNOW. Having said that daytime temps can be plus 20 degrees as long as you're not on the north side of a valley.

[NickandChris]

I find the best and most reliable site for seven day weather forecasts for ANYWHERE in Spain is certainly the spanish site www.ibercultura.com as you can search for (El Tiempo) the weather in all provinces right down to any local centre of population, by that I mean each village. It's a brilliant and accurate site (as much as weather can be!)