Wintering in Spain on the Costa Brava with a caravan or motorhome

When people think of wintering in Spain with a caravan, they usually picture the far south: Andalucía, Murcia or the Costa Blanca. The Costa Brava rarely comes up, yet for anyone driving down from the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium or Germany it has one big advantage. It is the first stretch of Spanish coast you reach, about 40 minutes after crossing the French border.

This guide is about what a winter up here is actually like, what to plan for, and how to combine time on the road with storage so you are not towing back and forth across Europe every few months.

What winter on the Costa Brava is like

Be realistic. This is not the Canary Islands.

• Days are often bright and dry, and pleasant for walking, cycling and sitting outside at lunchtime.
• Nights are cool, and inland in the Empordà plain they can drop to around freezing on clear nights. You will want heating in the caravan.
• Wind is the thing that catches visitors out. The Tramuntana blows from the north, sometimes for several days, and it can be strong enough to make awnings a bad idea. Check your pitch is sheltered and be ready to take things down.
• Rain comes in spells rather than every day, and it can be heavy.

If you want reliable warmth, the far south is the better bet. If you want a milder, quieter winter within easy reach of home, with towns that stay open all year, the Costa Brava works well.

Campsites in winter

Many of the large coastal campsites on the Costa Brava are seasonal and close for part of the winter. Some stay open all year or open early for spring. Opening dates change from year to year, so check directly with each campsite before you set off rather than relying on last year’s information or a guidebook.

It is also worth checking:

• whether the pitch has electric hook-up and what amperage, because heating uses a lot
• whether facilities such as the shower block are heated
• long-stay rates, which are often lower in winter

If you have a motorhome, aires and motorhome areas are another option, but rules on overnight parking vary between municipalities. Look for signs and check locally.

Paperwork for longer stays

Rules on how long you can stay depend on your nationality, and they do change, so check the official sources before you travel.

• Irish citizens are EU citizens and can move freely within the EU.
• UK citizens can generally spend up to 90 days in any 180-day period in the Schengen area without a visa, and time spent in France on the way down counts towards that total. The EU’s Entry/Exit System, which registers non-EU travellers at the border, has been phasing in since October 2025. See GOV.UK’s travel advice for Spain for current requirements.
• Dutch, Belgian and German readers have no time limit as EU citizens, but should check their own health insurance and vehicle insurance cover for long stays abroad.

Whatever your nationality, check that your vehicle and caravan insurance cover the full length of your trip, and that your breakdown cover includes towing a caravan abroad.

A split winter: stay, store, fly home

The 90-day limit for British travellers, and simply wanting to be home for Christmas, lead a lot of people to a split winter. It works like this:

1. Tow down in autumn and spend a few weeks on a campsite.
2. Leave the caravan in storage and fly home. Girona airport is about 45 minutes from our yard.
3. Fly back in late winter or spring and pick up where you left off.

This is exactly the arrangement our yard in Vilasacra suits. We are two minutes from exit 4 of the AP-7, so dropping the caravan off on the way to the airport is easy. We can collect it from a number of campsites in the area and bring it back when you return; see transport services for zones and prices. We can also arrange airport transfers from Girona.

For caravan and motorhome storage in Spain between stays, see our storage pricing. Monthly and yearly rates are both available.

Things to do in winter

Winter is the time to see the region without the summer crowds.

• Figueres, 10 minutes from the yard, has the Dalí Theatre-Museum and a busy market town centre.
• Girona old town and cathedral are worth a full day.
• Aiguamolls de l’Empordà natural park, near Castelló d’Empúries, is a wetland reserve that is at its best for birdwatching in the cooler months.
• Roses and Cadaqués are lovely on a calm, clear day, but leave the caravan behind; the road to Cadaqués is narrow and winding.
• Walking and cycling in the Alt Empordà are far more comfortable in winter than in July.

For more ideas, see our list of places to visit with your caravan on the Costa Brava.

Looking after the caravan through winter

If you are living in the caravan, keep an eye on damp. Cooking, showering and breathing put a lot of moisture into the air, and cool nights turn it into condensation. Keep vents clear, open a window a crack when you can, and air the bedding on sunny days.

If the caravan is going into storage for part of the winter, drain the water system even if the forecast looks mild. Our winterising checklist covers everything to do before you leave it.

Motorhome owners will find details of what we offer on our motorhome storage page.

Plan your winter

If you are thinking of a winter on the Costa Brava and want a space for the weeks you are away, send us your dates and your caravan’s length through our contact page and we will confirm availability.