6 weeks in Spain over Xmas, where?

[Longy00000]

Looking to do the above leave UK early to mid December and return late January
Im driving and wife is likely to fly.

Im looking for a reasonable place to stay.
So far im thinking Mojacar Playa as the weather is prob the best for this time if year.

Chatgpt seems to suggest a lot if places are still open and the place isnt deserted like some spanish areas can be over winter.
Have I missed anything before I go looking for an apartment/villa with heating and booking something?

Anyone got recommendations of specific places to stay?
Cheers

[markymarkthree]

I would consider Nerja.
Beautiful little ish place, which is still alive over Christmas.
Mrs can fly to Malaga which is a beautiful town.

[mart 63]

Ive travelled all over the costas in the winter, can't think of any large towns closed down in the winter. There are quite a few places in Mojacar closed down for the winter. Been there quite a few times, but gone off the place. The beaches are not the best, and it's quite expensive. As the the OP said Nerja is a lot nicer, everything in one place, not like Mojacar, which is spread out over a couple of kms.

[omniflow]

markymarkthree said:

I would consider Nerja.
Beautiful little ish place, which is still alive over Christmas.
Mrs can fly to Malaga which is a beautiful town.

On Tripadvisor (yeah I know, but it has SOME uses), 4 out of the top 10 recommended restaurants in Nerja are Indian Restaurants (or they were when I looked about 18 months ago).

That should give you some idea of the people that frequent Nerja.

We spent 5 nights there as part of a much longer roadtrip. We won't be going back.

[cliffords]

We did this last year and stayed in a small area called Elviria , it's about 6 km from Marbella.
It's a typical quite smart urbanisation with a small shopping area . We were in an apartment but did eat out 4 or so times a week. For that period of time you need a car as you will get bored anywhere you go.
The beach is very nice and in January I walked a lot on the beach in shirt and Jumper. There was a huge amount of rain in January all along that coast. Don't think of everyone sunbathing, every day . We did sit in warm sun a lot with longer daylight days and significantly better weather than the UK . We looked at rain too.
We did a fair few trips out in the car and it's less crowded than the summer and some stuff is closed .
On a trip that long I think it's about rhythm . When we got there I was a bit pissed off ,after a week I I was getting used to it .After that I felt like an expat and quite at home . After a few more weeks I got bored as hell and decided much of that coastline is all the same and a bit of a dump . So I kind of went full circle. We actually came home a few weeks ahead of our planned date , but that was boredom and the rain I think, not the location.
On the beach walks we met a lot of couples from the UK who did the same place every year for 12 weeks or so , often with their little dog.
I don't think I am the right mind set to spend that amount of time away but we are giving it a go in January for 8 weeks.

We are looking now for a different location perhaps another country all together for January and February now .

[markymarkthree]

omniflow said:

markymarkthree said:

I would consider Nerja.
Beautiful little ish place, which is still alive over Christmas.
Mrs can fly to Malaga which is a beautiful town.

On Tripadvisor (yeah I know, but it has SOME uses), 4 out of the top 10 recommended restaurants in Nerja are Indian Restaurants (or they were when I looked about 18 months ago).

That should give you some idea of the people that frequent Nerja.

We spent 5 nights there as part of a much longer roadtrip. We won't be going back.

What a strange post. Indian food is not our cup-of-tea, or are you saying that there are a lot of Asian folk there ?
Sounds to me that Benidorm, Tossa and Marbella is your thing, so best you don’t go back to Nerja.

[MarkJS]

We go to Nerja virtually every year for Christmas & New Year. It s a lovely town and is a great base for exploring if you have a car (but you don t need one). Malaga is only 40 minutes away and is fantastic.

You know it s Christmas in Spain but it s subtle & there s none of the ridiculous, rampant commercialism that we have here.

[omniflow]

markymarkthree said:

omniflow said:

markymarkthree said:

I would consider Nerja.
Beautiful little ish place, which is still alive over Christmas.
Mrs can fly to Malaga which is a beautiful town.

On Tripadvisor (yeah I know, but it has SOME uses), 4 out of the top 10 recommended restaurants in Nerja are Indian Restaurants (or they were when I looked about 18 months ago).

That should give you some idea of the people that frequent Nerja.

We spent 5 nights there as part of a much longer roadtrip. We won't be going back.

What a strange post. Indian food is not our cup-of-tea, or are you saying that there are a lot of Asian folk there ?
Sounds to me that Benidorm, Tossa and Marbella is your thing, so best you don t go back to Nerja.

What a strange interpretation.

What I am saying is that people that frequent Nerja are the type of people that like a familiar cuisine when they're on holiday. Nothing to do with race - Indian restaurants in the UK are not solely frequented by Asians.

Also very strange is you figuring out that because I don't like Nerja, I must like Benidorm etc. Nothing could be further from the truth.

[Longy00000]

Thanks for the posts so far very helpful.

This is our first time trying the snow birds thing and we too aren't 100% its for us but im happy to give it a go. Trying to get my mindset into " I'll watch TV over there as much as do at home BUT when I want to go out i probably can without getting soaked everytime "

Looking at Booking.com, Airbnb and a few local agencies renting costs seem a bit pot luck and vary widely.
Booking.com prob the higher for costs but everything usually included. Whereas the local agencies often appear cheaper but then you pay electricity costs at the end plus some cleaning costs etc (some of which are very high! €150 )

Any tips on which rental platforms are best?

[MarkJS]

omniflow said:

On Tripadvisor (yeah I know, but it has SOME uses), 4 out of the top 10 recommended restaurants in Nerja are Indian Restaurants (or they were when I looked about 18 months ago).

That should give you some idea of the people that frequent Nerja.

We spent 5 nights there as part of a much longer roadtrip. We won't be going back.

What time of year were you there? I’ve only ever been in December/January and don’t see any ‘brits abroad’ culture (for want of a better word). If I did, I wouldn’t go. I do notice quite a few Scandinavians and many of them have a get together on the beach for a bottle of fizz & a swim at noon on Christmas Eve - it’s fantastic.

Benidorm makes my skin crawl.

[omniflow]

MarkJS said:

What time of year were you there? I ve only ever been in December/January and don t see any brits abroad culture (for want of a better word). If I did, I wouldn t go. I do notice quite a few Scandinavians and many of them have a get together on the beach for a bottle of fizz & a swim at noon on Christmas Eve - it s fantastic.

Benidorm makes my skin crawl.

We were there in June - it was part of a 6 week roadtrip where we circumnavigated the Iberian peninsula. Nerja was very definitely our least favourite place on the whole trip

[cliffords]

Longy00000 said:

Thanks for the posts so far very helpful.

This is our first time trying the snow birds thing and we too aren't 100% its for us but im happy to give it a go. Trying to get my mindset into " I'll watch TV over there as much as do at home BUT when I want to go out i probably can without getting soaked everytime "

Looking at Booking.com, Airbnb and a few local agencies renting costs seem a bit pot luck and vary widely.
Booking.com prob the higher for costs but everything usually included. Whereas the local agencies often appear cheaper but then you pay electricity costs at the end plus some cleaning costs etc (some of which are very high! 150 )

Any tips on which rental platforms are best?

We booked on Airbnb. First time we ever have done so. We had no experience, eventually found a listing that had other listings too with the same person. Turned out to be an English lady with three or so properties of her own and access to some others. All had top reviews , literally full marks. We had a small apartment that I also rated as full marks in every category. Except rain

We subsequently booked an apartment in Málaga town for a week through Airbnb. Not the same lady. Despite the reviews it was not that great .

It's not consistent I believe. Looking again recently it's more expensive than last year . For something very nice not super flashy it's £5k plus for two months.

[MarkJS]

Longy00000 said:

Thanks for the posts so far very helpful.

This is our first time trying the snow birds thing and we too aren't 100% its for us but im happy to give it a go. Trying to get my mindset into " I'll watch TV over there as much as do at home BUT when I want to go out i probably can without getting soaked everytime "

Looking at Booking.com, Airbnb and a few local agencies renting costs seem a bit pot luck and vary widely.
Booking.com prob the higher for costs but everything usually included. Whereas the local agencies often appear cheaper but then you pay electricity costs at the end plus some cleaning costs etc (some of which are very high! 150 )

Any tips on which rental platforms are best?

We stay in a hotel but I know people who have used Eurosur in Nerja to book self catering accommodation and said they were very good.

[Longy00000]

I think Mojacar is probably best for us as we don't mind things spread out a bit. We like walking and we will have a car too.

So given rhe comments made i tjink im happy to stick with Mojacar.
Now to finding a property......its surprising how many are already booked.
I feel a bit late to the party

[Rob 131 Sport]

Longy00000 said:

I think Mojacar is probably best for us as we don't mind things spread out a bit. We like walking and we will have a car too.

So given rhe comments made i tjink im happy to stick with Mojacar.
Now to finding a property......its surprising how many are already booked.
I feel a bit late to the party

We had 5 nights in Murcia this summer followed by 9 nights in Mojacar. Our hotel was the last on the resort line, so with the heat in August we’d often take the bus into the main restaurant area.
We’ve stayed in many Spanish resorts over the years and Mojacar would rate as one of the best. There are many walks and the restaurant choice and quality were great.

[E-bmw]

Longy00000 said:

I think Mojacar is probably best for us as we don't mind things spread out a bit. We like walking and we will have a car too.

So given rhe comments made i tjink im happy to stick with Mojacar.
Now to finding a property......its surprising how many are already booked.
I feel a bit late to the party

If going to Mojacar, I personally would go to Pueblo rather than Playa, we go most years, there are many excellent restaurants, which I believe are open all year round & everything is in walking distance.

[croyde]

I did a winter escape when I had my Alpine A110, but a little further afield.

Tenerife. It was warm and sunny and the drive down through Spain meant stopping off at some interesting places.

Then the boat from Huelva to the Canaries, it was a great way to arrive. Takes nearly 2 days mind

[Fastchas]

markymarkthree said:

omniflow said:

markymarkthree said:

I would consider Nerja.
Beautiful little ish place, which is still alive over Christmas.
Mrs can fly to Malaga which is a beautiful town.

On Tripadvisor (yeah I know, but it has SOME uses), 4 out of the top 10 recommended restaurants in Nerja are Indian Restaurants (or they were when I looked about 18 months ago).

That should give you some idea of the people that frequent Nerja.

We spent 5 nights there as part of a much longer roadtrip. We won't be going back.

What a strange post. Indian food is not our cup-of-tea, or are you saying that there are a lot of Asian folk there ?
Sounds to me that Benidorm, Tossa and Marbella is your thing, so best you don t go back to Nerja.

That's the way Trip Advisor works though, surely?
Customers leave good feedback when they are very happy with their meal/service. So it ranks highly along with other cuisine.

It doesn't mean that Indian restaurants are more represented in Nerja. I could recommend 5-6 restaurants easily. Never ate Indian in the times we've been to Nerja.

[markymarkthree]

Fastchas said:

markymarkthree said:

omniflow said:

markymarkthree said:

I would consider Nerja.
Beautiful little ish place, which is still alive over Christmas.
Mrs can fly to Malaga which is a beautiful town.

On Tripadvisor (yeah I know, but it has SOME uses), 4 out of the top 10 recommended restaurants in Nerja are Indian Restaurants (or they were when I looked about 18 months ago).

That should give you some idea of the people that frequent Nerja.

We spent 5 nights there as part of a much longer roadtrip. We won't be going back.

What a strange post. Indian food is not our cup-of-tea, or are you saying that there are a lot of Asian folk there ?
Sounds to me that Benidorm, Tossa and Marbella is your thing, so best you don t go back to Nerja.

That's the way Trip Advisor works though, surely?
Customers leave good feedback when they are very happy with their meal/service. So it ranks highly along with other cuisine.

It doesn't mean that Indian restaurants are more represented in Nerja. I could recommend 5-6 restaurants easily. Never ate Indian in the times we've been to Nerja.

I have never used TA to guide me where to eat so i thought i would have a look at the site.
There is only one Indian restaurant in the top ten and only 2 in the top 30.
I use my senses to guide me and it looks like we have eaten at 5 of the top ten. So i must be doing something right.
I have jotted down the names of a few to check out when we return Feb, March, April for 10 weeks to get away from the grotty English weather.

[JEA1K]

MarkJS said:

We go to Nerja virtually every year for Christmas & New Year. It s a lovely town and is a great base for exploring if you have a car (but you don t need one). Malaga is only 40 minutes away and is fantastic.

You know it s Christmas in Spain but it s subtle & there s none of the ridiculous, rampant commercialism that we have here.

We're relocating to Nerja this week, so I have to agree. Your comments are spot on re Xmas and New year ... hardly any homes with decorations, shops and restraurants not ramming the whole thing down your throat ... its subtle and enjoyable.

We spent the whole of December 25 there ... we we're due to be living there by November 25 (our house sale fell through in Oct 25), we couldn't stand another Xmas in the UK. We had such a great trip ... rode the bikes most days (15 - 19 degrees, even though they had the coldest Xmas in 15 years), managed a couple of days snowboarding at Sierra Nevada (-15!) and went to most of our favourite restraurants (including an Indian on one occasion) which in the main are all open during the festive period. Ignoring the previous comment regarding Indian restaurants, Nerja has some of the best selection of food in any town I've every been to ... its well known for its wide range of cuisine with almost 400 restraurants from great tapas (our favourite id Redondo) to Michelin starred Oliva.

As others have said, 40 mins by car from AGP and plenty of flights from almost every UK airport, so you cannot go wrong.