12 November 2022 - Back on the Costa Del Sol

Miles driven today = 98

Total Miles to date = 3,156

I got a pleasant surprise this morning when I went to pay for our 3 nights at Camping El Sur.  Not only did we get the anticipated  discounts for our second and third nights but also an extra 10% off for having the ACSI card.  So the total bill was €72 or €24 a night which I thought was pretty decent value in the end.

Our journey back to the coast from Ronda was nowhere near as hairy as our drive up there was on Wednesday and even involved some stretches of dual carriageway as we approached Malaga, much to Lisa's relief.  

The scenery was equally as spectacular but with zero opportunity to pull off the road for photos you'll just have to take my word for it.  We also passed some of the most monumental wind turbines I've ever seen, which were making productive use of the gusty conditions.

We skirted around Malaga before hitting the coast at La Cal Del Moral.  I spent a bit of time last night compiling a list of no less than 18 different campsites and aires which I liked the look of between Malaga and  Motril.  But we also had to find a supermarket with sufficient room for us to park, which isn't always easy, especially on a Saturday.

We followed the N340A road along the coast through a succession of low rise resorts.  It was slow going with so many pedestrian crossings, roundabouts and speed humps but it was nevertheless interesting as neither of us have previously spent any time here.

Shortly after Torre de Benagalbon we pulled into a lay-by for a sandwich.  We could feel the spray from the van and I commented on how high the tide was, before remembering that there is of course very little discernable tide in the Med.

After an aborted attempt to squeeze ourselves into an Aldi we found a Lidl with a huge carpark at Algorrobo-Costa, so with shopping out of the way the search for a stopover intensified.  

I had no less than 3 Aires on my list in Torrox Costa so we continued to my top pick of these at Paradise Beach.  Reception is usually closed between 2 and 5pm and we arrived a little after 2 but we were spotted loitering at the entrance and the girl in charge kindly opened the gates and let us in.

We have a sea view spot, one of only two available when we arrived.  They charge €13.50 but €1 less for the second row without sea views.  Hook up is available and unusually they charge €0.80 per kW rather than a flat daily rate.  We're doing without for tonight at least.

The coast road does pass between us and the beach but it's not particularly busy and the sound of the wind and the waves drowns out all but the noisiest of vehicles.

Nerja is only about 4 miles to the east so we might have a pedal in there tomorrow.  Or we might just chill on the beach here.  There's a fella doing fresh fish on an open olive wood fire over the road, which smells fantastic so we may have to pop over there for a spot of lunch at some point.

13 November 2022 - Nerja and grilled fish