Chasing the sun and the perfect road for cycling

Just booked Irish Ferries with a 20% discount, Vouchercloud don't seem to have any offers that would be useful to me at the moment but thanks anyway.

Edit:
Sorry Nordkapp you asked about the route I'm taking this time, I haven't fully decided which route at the moment but will probably go down the motorway that runs down the east of France and Spain like I did on the last trip purely because its a quick and direct route.
 
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As some of you might have guessed from my last post I have decided to back to Spain for some winter cycling (" Eat, Sleep, Ride, Repeat") and to avoid the Irish winter but also I wanted to finally decide on whether or not to buy a property in the area that I'm staying in.

Firstly the trip down was the same as last year Dublin, Holyhead, Folkestone, Calais, Reims, Lyon, Nimes, Barcelona, Valencia, Murcia and finally Lubrín (motorway all the way). The cost was slightly dearer then last year, ferries, tolls and petrol dearer but hotels and food cheaper. Few things of interest (well at least to me).
I renewed my Passport last year and opted for the CC version as well thinking it was a great idea for traveling around Europe but luckily I brought my full Passport with me as neither UK or French Passport control would accept the CC version on its own.
Petrol in France is expensive €1.55 to €1.62 compared to Spain €1.21 to €1.32 but I've noticed two things about my car, petrol consumption improved when I didn't use cruise control and the A/C so much so that I reckon on the full trip down I could have saved a minimum of 50 litres but probably up to 70 litres at a steady 120kph, compared to last year and discovering this half way down I used 30 litres less.

I'm staying in the same place as last year and if anybody is thinking of doing a winter training break in the sun I would highly recommend this place or this part of Almeria as a destination, some of the professional teams are now spending more time here for winter training in this area, the Belgium national team has relocated itself here. The men’s team passed by me a couple of weeks ago which was exciting to see but when the women’s team passed me it took it to another level, is it just me are are women athletes now so much better looking than the 70s or 80s. I met a Belgium guy the other day while out for a spin, turns out he's the area manager for a Belgium cycling tour company and he brings 60 riders a week from Belgium for winter training and he's only one of several big companies like that.

On a different note some of the car and motorbike manufactures have testing bases down here, Porsche and VW must be releasing new versions of the Macan and the T5 van as not a day has gone by that I don't see a convoy of at least six of them out on test drives, last year it was Jaguar, Range Rover and both BMW and Kawasaki launch new motorbikes here last year as well and invited all the press to review them.


With regards to the property side of things, I've had a lot of discussions with people living here and estate agents in the area and at this stage I'm hammering in the final nails in the coffin with regards to purchasing a property here. There are many reasons for this and this really only applies to inland property rather than coastal resorts.

The main 3 ones are:

Property is overvalued here in my opinion, it might seem like great value compared to prices back home but when you start digging you find that the "property" for 250K has been on the market for the last 5 years and though there are lots of buyers out there many of whom have viewed the "property" and put in offers they feel reflect the true value, the vender won’t budge on their selling price.

Title is a big problem with village houses, a lot of Spanish property is handed down from one generation to the next and the further down the family tree it goes the more owners it collects and each of these owners has to agree to sell the property but more often than not family politics and greed stop the sale and its one of the main reasons why you see a lot of abandoned houses in the country side.

I keep coming back to the realization that its cheaper to rent then buy, there is a house here for sale for 350K but it's also up for rent as well at 600pm. I have always loved the idea of a holiday/second home in Spain and though I'm enjoying the Spanish lifestyle here and the cycling at the moment, in a few years I might think Thailand, India or even USA might be nice for a change and renting gives you that freedom to pick and choose where you want to go and spend some time rather than being tied down to one place or area.

Sorry for the long post but I know some of you are cyclists, some like myself love driving holidays and in another thread here we had a discussion about purchasing foreign property
 
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I came to a similar conclusion about buying a holiday home abroad -- it makes no sense compared to renting. The purchase price is typically decades worth of rental costs, not to mention a whole lot more complexity plus maintenance, taxes etc. I could maybe see purchasing making sense for a family with young kids who will visit several times a year and don't mind the inflexibility of going to the same place over and over.
 
Cheers Cervelo for the update. Just wondering, would the Cork to Santander ferry save on the car wear and tear, tolls and fuel cost? I would much prefer to bypass UK and France and wander freely down through Spain
 
My sense is that AirBnB is transformational; our long-term plan would be to rent places for 2/3 months at a time in different places with a view to sampling what the world has to offer.

Argentina, Brazil, Chile, South Africa, Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, the Alps, France, Mainland Italy, Sicily, Greece, etc.

I’d much prefer to rent a nice place in each destination rather than do the cliched thing of committing capital to (say) Quinta do Lago and spending the rest of my days paying €4 for a cappucino.
 
Excellent post from Cervelo who for the past 12/14 months kept us truthfully advised of his bicycle travels in the south of Spain. He supplied some hints on property value in Spain and describes the area well. Spain has not recovered from the recession in the price of property like we have in Ireland. Inland property in Spain never was as expensive as its counterpart on the coast (you could buy property there at cheaper prices than a shed here provided you were prepared for renovations). Anybody chasing the winter sun in the province of Almería, the coast is much warmer and drier than inland (even just a few miles inland).

There has been an extra interest in Irish people purchasing property in Spain because of the apparent low prices there. I am in touch with real estate agents in the area too. Good property in good locations (even within a coastal resort) have risen 5% in the past year. Brexit is keeping such prices from more gain. The Spaniards have had an increased interest in holiday home property too. Rental prices in the past year have risen 15% on average.

I throw my hat in too with those who recommend renting in the off season. Why tie up a huge amount of capital? Why take any risk? Renting is the way forward and there is plenty of property available. You will get the investor who will splash out on purchase and when the time is right he will sell at a profit hoping in the meantime rentals will keep him in good financial nick.

Cervelo makes a point that the Belgian cycle team has set up base in the area for training. The Dutch Cycling team has been there for years. Last year I met our Robert Heffernan while he was there for his training (not only for the Walking . . . . I gave him my vote last night in Dancing With the Stars).
 
Nordkapp said:
Cheers Cervelo for the update. Just wondering, would the Cork to Santander ferry save on the car wear and tear, tolls and fuel cost? I would much prefer to bypass UK and France and wander freely down through Spain
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I'm guessing by taking the Cork > Santander ferry you would save the car at least 1500k of wear n tear and save yourself the 20~ hours of driving and probably cost about €200>€250 for an economy sailing of 26>34 hours.
The UK, France route is obviously going to cost more, a lot more. Irish Ferries €170, 1 UK Tolls €6.78, 1 UK Petrol Stop €60.25, EuroTunnel €107, 4 French Tolls €108.50, 3 French Petrol Stops €210 and 2 nights in hotels UK €60, France €48 giving a whopping total of €770.53 to get you to the Spanish border.
For me the Cork>Santander route is not an option as it's only going to be a summer sailing, it is something I'm thinking about for the return journey as I'm staying here till the first week in May but I'm also thinking of getting Mrs Cervelo to come down here for the last week as there is a festival in Lurbrin that week and then take a week long road trip back to Dublin together but dropping her off in London as she wants to meet an old friend of hers.

Gordon Gekko said:
My sense is that AirBnB is transformational; our long-term plan would be to rent places for 2/3 months at a time in different places with a view to sampling what the world has to offer.
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I couldn't agree more with this, I think though you have to do a good bit of research to sort the "Chaff from the wheat" because there is a lot of, lets call them dodgy places and hosts who couldn't give a crap about you but with a little time and effort you can end up in a stunning location with great accomadation and hosts that take an interest in you and probably will end up staying in contact with, all for a fraction of the cost of a proper hotel.
 
Rather than starting a new thread or adding to the many threads that about spending winters in Spain and that this thread hasn't been updated in over three years, I'll resurrect this one as an update to my Spanish travels.

Since I last updated this thread a few things have changed one is my intention now is to spend six months in Spain November to April, I'd like to spend eight months October through to May but for because of my car insurance and other insurances that I have six is the allowable max.
The other is because I'm now traveling earlier than before I can now avail of the ferry direct to Spain this has made the traveling cheaper and shorter time wise which is always a bonus.

In 2019 I made the trip from Cork to Santander and what should of been a forty eight hour journey turned into a seventy two hour journey due to bad weather off the Irish coast which delayed and slowed the sailing meaning I had an unexpected overnight stay in Spain but having said that It still cut the cost of the traveling in half, cut out driving through England and France and just made the whole trip down easier on the mind and body not that the other way wasn't enjoyable in itself as a journey.

This Friday I'm catching the eleven o'clock sailing from Rosslare to Bilbao which is even better for me as it's closer to home and all going to plan I'll arrive in Bilbao on Sunday morning at eight am and 973 km later I'll arrive In Lubrin in the late afternoon.

I've decided this year to go back to the same area as before but am not staying with the same rental/family as before, two reasons for this one is covid even though I'm vaccinated and I believe they are as well and Lubrin has had a very low exposure to covid I don't want to take a chance by surrounding myself with to many close contacts especially unvaccinated school going kids etc etc.
The other reason is just to see if I can do this sort of thing on my own, which would then presumably lead me to explore other parts of Europe where I've dreamt of bringing my bikes to.

The last three times I was here I stayed in Cortijo Grande on an all inclusive deal for €200 a week which included a cooked evening meal.
This year I'm staying in Casita Jardin in the village of Lubrin itself at a base rent of €375pm + utilities.
Utilities which will include Gas, Electricity, WiFi, Water, Wood and Rubbish collection should depending on usage come in around the €170 mark
After that there would only be my food, petrol and social spending which should be somewhere in and around €300 a month
So I will probably end up spending about €850 a month all in or €900 if I treat myself to an hour an a half of deep tissue massage

Cycling wise, this will be the first time that I'm arriving to Spain with a huge level of fitness or as Garmin has informed me "Peaking"
So I'm really looking forward to the next six months and what the roads are going to throw at me
I've a few goals that I'd like to tick off this time if possible
1. Cycle 40Km in under an hour, currently just under 1:04 so should be easy enough
2. Cycle 160Km and complete that in under 5 hours, this will not be easy given the terrain(200Mtr of climbing avg every 10Km)
3. Improve on my times up and down Velefique and include Calar Alto as well
4. And the biggie, have a go at Pico de Veleta (oh boy, that's gonna hurt :oops: )

If anybody here on AAM is interested in spending a week or two out here cycling, drop us a line and I'll give you all the info you'll need regarding accommodation, bike hire and transport etc etc.
It's not the easiest place to get to in terms of aeroplanes, Malaga and Alicante airports are the closest during the winter season so car hire would be recommended or if you're just nosy and would like to see what I get up to on Strava contact me on PM for details.
 
Cervelo said:
Rather than starting a new thread or adding to the many threads that about spending winters in Spain and that this thread hasn't been updated in over three years, I'll resurrect this one as an update to my Spanish travels.

Since I last updated this thread a few things have changed one is my intention now is to spend six months in Spain November to April, I'd like to spend eight months October through to May but for because of my car insurance and other insurances that I have six is the allowable max.
The other is because I'm now traveling earlier than before I can now avail of the ferry direct to Spain this has made the traveling cheaper and shorter time wise which is always a bonus.

In 2019 I made the trip from Cork to Santander and what should of been a forty eight hour journey turned into a seventy two hour journey due to bad weather off the Irish coast which delayed and slowed the sailing meaning I had an unexpected overnight stay in Spain but having said that It still cut the cost of the traveling in half, cut out driving through England and France and just made the whole trip down easier on the mind and body not that the other way wasn't enjoyable in itself as a journey.

This Friday I'm catching the eleven o'clock sailing from Rosslare to Bilbao which is even better for me as it's closer to home and all going to plan I'll arrive in Bilbao on Sunday morning at eight am and 973 km later I'll arrive In Lubrin in the late afternoon.

I've decided this year to go back to the same area as before but am not staying with the same rental/family as before, two reasons for this one is covid even though I'm vaccinated and I believe they are as well and Lubrin has had a very low exposure to covid I don't want to take a chance by surrounding myself with to many close contacts especially unvaccinated school going kids etc etc.
The other reason is just to see if I can do this sort of thing on my own, which would then presumably lead me to explore other parts of Europe where I've dreamt of bringing my bikes to.

The last three times I was here I stayed in Cortijo Grande on an all inclusive deal for €200 a week which included a cooked evening meal.
This year I'm staying in Casita Jardin in the village of Lubrin itself at a base rent of €375pm + utilities.
Utilities which will include Gas, Electricity, WiFi, Water, Wood and Rubbish collection should depending on usage come in around the €170 mark
After that there would only be my food, petrol and social spending which should be somewhere in and around €300 a month
So I will probably end up spending about €850 a month all in or €900 if I treat myself to an hour an a half of deep tissue massage

Cycling wise, this will be the first time that I'm arriving to Spain with a huge level of fitness or as Garmin has informed me "Peaking"
So I'm really looking forward to the next six months and what the roads are going to throw at me
I've a few goals that I'd like to tick off this time if possible
1. Cycle 40Km in under an hour, currently just under 1:04 so should be easy enough
2. Cycle 160Km and complete that in under 5 hours, this will not be easy given the terrain(200Mtr of climbing avg every 10Km)
3. Improve on my times up and down Velefique and include Calar Alto as well
4. And the biggie, have a go at Pico de Veleta (oh boy, that's gonna hurt :oops: )

If anybody here on AAM is interested in spending a week or two out here cycling, drop us a line and I'll give you all the info you'll need regarding accommodation, bike hire and transport etc etc.
It's not the easiest place to get to in terms of aeroplanes, Malaga and Alicante airports are the closest during the winter season so car hire would be recommended or if you're just nosy and would like to see what I get up to on Strava contact me on PM for details.
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A lovely way too avoid the nice Irish winter.
Have fun and take care
 
Some nice weather around Lubrin at the moment. Your trip certainly will shorten the winter for you. Best of Luck. If you see me cycling in the south of Spain please forgive my city bike complete with front wicker basket.
 
Enjoy Cervelo, do let us know the temperature by day and night and general weather in middle of each month as that is a similar plan for me.
I'm back from 3 weeks in Spain having been on the coast in Granada drifting into the Almeria grow house region. Boy do I miss the simple life there and the weather!
 
Cervelo. Sounds great. I had a look at both properties. The one you previously stayed in looks very nice but I guess it is located out in the countryside a bit? Did you stay with a family on a rent a room type basis? The second property for next year....is that a more stand alone property with more private facilities?
 
Bronco Lane said:
Cervelo. Sounds great. I had a look at both properties. The one you previously stayed in looks very nice but I guess it is located out in the countryside a bit? Did you stay with a family on a rent a room type basis? The second property for next year....is that a more stand alone property with more private facilities?
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Thanks Bronco Lane,
The first property Cortijo Grande has two types of lettings, the first is a ensuite bedroom in the main house that is disable friendly
The second is or was a three bedroom two bathroom annex to the side of the house and that is where I stayed most of the time
It's located about ten minutes drive from the village so yes in the countryside but only a twenty minute walk through the olive trees
It's very peaceful and quite and apart from Sarah running around in her car collecting the kids you'd be unlucky if you saw or heard more than a couple of other cars a day, total bliss in my opinion.
The deal that I struck with Sarah was that she would cook me an evening meal, this led me to joining her and her family at the dinner table which was great fun as they are two of the nicest people I've met in a long time and were great craic to be around and well liked in the locality

The second property is in the middle of Lubrin and from what I can tell talking to my new host Samantha is a kind of annex off their house
I think beside my front door is steps that lead up to their front door, I know for sure when I arrive on Sunday

Facilities wise apart from the pool and land surrounding the first property I'm expecting that both the properties will be very similar
one plus, a big plus for me is the village property now has fibre BB with similar speeds to home so my PS4 will be coming with me this time
and there is a proper HD TV for streaming Netflix and Prime
 
Sounds lovely. However you will be out on the bike for most of the day. I would imagine that it might be too quiet for someone who might not be a cyclist?

Is it far from Mojacar or other inland larger towns?
 
It's about a forty minute drive to the coast/Mojacar either going two sides of a triangle on straight roads or up and over the mountains on lovely twisty winding roads, the one side of the triangle, if you get my drift.
Lubrin and by default Mojacar is about 100Km from either Almeria or Lorca the two closest towns, it might sound like a big distance and it is but in a car it's about a hours drive as there really is very little traffic down this part of Spain and the road network is excellent
I've often driven to both and been quicker than driving a quarter of the distance here in Dublin

Yes I'm out most mornings till early afternoon on the bike and I do seem to enjoy a more solitary lifestyle in recent years compared to my youth
but it's one of those places that you get out of it what you put into to it.
There is a great mix of locals and blow ins all of who are very friendly, even to me who hardly speaks a word of Spanish hasn't stopped me or the locals getting to know each other. There is a great social life at the weekends where everybody from all around gather in one of the four local bars/restaurants but I would highly recommended having a car because that give you access to so many other places and attractions as the local transport system is even more basic than ours
 
Just in case anybody was worried about me ;), arrived at 18:45 last night, was delayed by at least two hours on departure
which meant only disembarked at 10am in Bilbao in stead of 8 and two petrol stops later I'm in Lubrin

On a side note when did Android auto start to inform us of speed traps, I've never noticed this before and it's a nice feature
On the map you get a both a fixed camera and a mobile camera icon and about 500mtr to go you get a audio warning
Is this a new feature or one that I never knew it had??

Now it's 20 outside in hazy sunshine and I'm going for an easy 50k just to break the legs in :)
 
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