Advice on when to travel to Spain in Winter

Due to unforseen circumstances I travelled back from Spain early Jan this year

1. we came via Burgoss, some snow on the mountains after Madrid but roads perfectly clear

2. temperarature  in Burgoss on arrival minus 10C

3. Santander ferry booked for 8th Jan cancelled until 9th Jan due to rough seas in the Bay

4. sailed on the 9th, I was last on with caravan, knew thinks were not going to be great when they considered chaining the caravan down , I am ex RN but boy was it rough, not pleasant for approx the first 10 hrs

We used to leave just after twelfth night but found our travel preparations conflicted with hosting for Christmas and New Year.  So we now choose to leave the UK in late January as the weather for the Valencia/Murcia coast starts to warm up in early Feb (although it's a lot better than the UK).

For us, how long to stay for is determined by :

• the EU visa limit of 90 days - you can plan your trips to maximise your time "over there" using the EU visa calculator.
• the unoccupancy limit on our Home Insurance.  Ours is 60 days - I know other policies have longer limits,  but our policy provides wider cover than most.
• the any one trip limit on our Annual Travel policy (66 days)

As for when to return home, we love our garden and try to return by the end of March in time for the end of the spring bulbs and to get our greenhouse plants and hanging baskets started.  If our return to the UK is later than usual, we have even been known to take our tomato seeds with us (with compost and pots as well) and sow them in the warm spanish sunshine. 

Hi, from our recent overwintering way down in the coastal area Desert status region of Northern Almeria we concluded after latest 2020 & 2023 trips we’d now just avoid January and even early February. Both were generally cloudy, some rain and often chilly. France overland was the usual wet, grey & dreary. 
Maybe think about arriving late February onwards ??
M 

March is a better month to go, most of the overwinter outfits will be heading for home and it is much easier to obtain pitches.

peedee

Having travelled to Andalusia for wintering for over 20 years - the coastal weather reflects the sea temperatures- about 16 degrees. Sometimes higher, sometimes (if the wind is off the mountains lower. March can be unpredictable- this year locals were complaining of Summer temperatures (25) and it was one of the warmest on record. By contrast March 2022 was colder, cloudier and least sunny for 50 years! But it was still warmer than the UK.