Awaycation Summer 2024 - España

With the weather being so awful recently, my attention has turned away from the two Staycations we have planned for November and December, to looking at Northern Spain for this trip. It's 200 days away as I type!

Once we arrive in Bilbao, at around 8am (estimated), we have quite a few hours to travel to an overnight stop. After being on the boat for around 30 hours (!) I am sure we will all want to stretch our legs.

Do we stay nearby? Or do we move west a little?  I will be hitting Search4sites hard to find a stop.

We have only a single journey booked so far, so I need to look for a return crossing to the UK! The options will be P&O with the pet lounge or Eurotunnel!

I had a quick look online and the difference between both services is only about £20 for the single journey Calais to UK. That's including the dog levy. 

We need to decide what date to come back and I can get it booked and out of the way. It also means booking well in advance that it's all paid for long before we travel.

Of course, we will have to drive back from Spain through France to the channel port.  As we have done this three times in the last twelve months we do know the pitfalls of places to stay! 

At the moment the idea in my head is to head west until we hit the Galician coast, and then loop back further south towards the French border.  I have an idea that we would need around 21 days minimum to achieve this and have the three days to plug up through France included.

Of course there is the Pico's de Europa to pass through.

Back in 2014 we did some of it when we rode back from Madrid to Santander via the Parador at Cervera de Pisuerga and Potes.

For some reason I am drawn to Santiago de Compostela. Have to idea why!

On the way back it would be nice to go further east across the Pyrenees rather than last year's coastal route.

So that's where we are today.