# Stepping into Spain - touring with a motorhome



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

Hello Everyone,

I wonder if i am going to be following in anyone's footsteps, I am sure I will be and would welcome all advice and guidance.

What I am planning is:

12 to 24 month motorhome tour of the coast of the UK (I currently live in Wigan, lol)
Then over the channel, with the motorhome, to meander about and tour Spain.

Looking for may place to settle (Currently, I love Alicante City but also like the Cave House thing)

Find a suitable area, rent or motorhome there for a while and finally buy but keep a motorhome for regular Spanish Bimbles (Wine festivals etc...)

Has anyone done this, or doing this, in full or in part? 

Advice and guidance would be most welcome. 

My living/travel budget should be about £1.200 (1,700 Euro) a month. Realistic?


----------



## jojo (Sep 20, 2007)

EdofWigan said:


> Hello Everyone,
> 
> I wonder if i am going to be following in anyone's footsteps, I am sure I will be and would welcome all advice and guidance.
> 
> ...


A lot depends on your age, will you need private healthcare, income, how many of you there are????

Jo xxx


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

Hi Jo, 

Thanks for the reply

I will be 52 in March.

I will need private health care, as I am under retirement age.

I will get about £1,200 (1,700 Euro) a month, income from my rented property here

There is just me but no doubt I will be joined by the odd friend for a week here n there from the UK.


----------



## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

EdofWigan said:


> Hi Jo,
> 
> Thanks for the reply
> 
> ...


:welcome:

How long are you planning to stay in Spain - there's a bit of a red tape issue with motorhomes, foreign (non-spanish) plated vehicles in general, & residency (which kicks in at 90 days)


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

Well after my tour of the UK, the intention was to mooch down to Spain and tour about there for a year or two, hopefully finding a nice place to settle.

I do like Alicante City but thought a motor-home, nomadic period, might be a better way.

I understand, from reading this excellent forum, I will need to register it (Spanish Plates) within 80 days of registering myself.

It may be a far to simplistic plan, therefore asking you folk here


----------



## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

EdofWigan said:


> Well after my tour of the UK, the intention was to mooch down to Spain and tour about there for a year or two, hopefully finding a nice place to settle.
> 
> I do like Alicante City but thought a motor-home, nomadic period, might be a better way.
> 
> ...


I'm not sure where the 80 days came from, but yes, any vehicle you bring over would have to be put onto Spanish plates. 
The big problem will be doing that with a motorhome - it's reportedly just about impossible - if not actually impossible - something to do with vision issues.

(can you tell I don't drive?) 

We do have some members here who know quite a lot about this though, & I dare say they'll appear.

I'm going to edit the title of your thread so that those interested see it.


----------



## Tracey W (Oct 24, 2014)

If your motorhome is NOT left hand drive, you won't be able to re-register it on Spanish plates. It's the same for RHD vans - they can't be changed over either, so you need to make sure your motorhome is left hand drive.


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

I will by a LHD motorhome, I think the vision problem is with RHD ones


----------



## emlyn (Oct 26, 2012)

EdofWigan said:


> I will by a LHD motorhome, I think the vision problem is with RHD ones


There is a website , "Motorhome fun " might be worth you googling ,lots of posts re long term motorhoming .


----------



## gus-lopez (Jan 4, 2010)

emlyn said:


> There is a website , "Motorhome fun " might be worth you googling ,lots of posts re long term motorhoming .


& many who stay 9 +months of the year & plenty who have pitches on sites that they maintain yearly. Up in Benidorm there are hundreds who stay anything form 2 weeks to 6 months.


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

I think , at the moment I am looking at a tour of the UK, then Spain and adjacent bits. Finally finding an area, community and home of bricks but keeping the motorhome for trips.

So I like the new title 'touring with a motorhome but that is just part one and two ofhe planned trilogy 

If that makes sense

I am sure folk have done it or similar before


----------



## Guest (Jan 1, 2016)

Tracey W said:


> If your motorhome is NOT left hand drive, you won't be able to re-register it on Spanish plates. It's the same for RHD vans - they can't be changed over either, so you need to make sure your motorhome is left hand drive.


Not true. We painlessly matriculated our motorhome from UK to Spanish plates. There are a lot of scare stories about this but it most definitely is possible.


----------



## Guest (Jan 1, 2016)

We did the whole "drive around Spain to find a place to settle" thing. To a certain extent, the costs are under your control, e.g., campsites are far cheaper in the winter than in the summer, target areas you specifically want to visit, stay away from motorways with tolls. We bought food locally and cooked over a gas BBQ. We had a brilliant time but instead of one long trip we did several 3 month stints over a period of a couple of years, which allowed us to take time out and indulge in a little comfort before hitting the road again.
Unless you're an experienced motor homer you may find you have unanticipated costs and decisions to make which you haven;t anticipated. I'm sure I won't be the only motor homer willing to offer advice.
My strongest piece of advice - avoid urban myths, of which there are many. You can indeed change a RHD drive motorhome to Spanish plates. There is no mass gassing of motor homers as they sleep. Trafico are not scouring the highways looking for motorhomes to impound. Of course there is the occasional incident but do you want to avoid the trip of a lifetime because a tiny minority had bad experiences?
We are now happily settled in Spain and would not have found the area in which we live without our motorhome.


----------



## emlyn (Oct 26, 2012)

EdofWigan said:


> I think , at the moment I am looking at a tour of the UK, then Spain and adjacent bits. Finally finding an area, community and home of bricks but keeping the motorhome for trips. So I like the new title 'touring with a motorhome but that is just part one and two ofhe planned trilogy  If that makes sense I am sure folk have done it or similar before


What Motorhome do you have,does it have solar panels? giving you the option of wild camping and reducing your costs.


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

I have not bought one yet. I am still forming ideas on which one. I am drawn to a 1990's Hymer but this is very flexible, based on among other things advice from more experienced campers, like your selves.

I do like teh look of the swing down bed of the Hymer or a fixed bed. This is based mainly on utilised space and a quality bed for a good nights sleep.


----------



## Guest (Jan 2, 2016)

If you do indeed live in Wigan you are well placed to visit the motorhome dealership in Huddersfield, as we did. They carry a huge range of motorhomes, one of the best in the country, and were incredibly helpful in guiding us towards the right make and model. I can't remember its name but a google search will provide that information.


----------



## emlyn (Oct 26, 2012)

EdofWigan said:


> I have not bought one yet. I am still forming ideas on which one. I am drawn to a 1990's Hymer but this is very flexible, based on among other things advice from more experienced campers, like your selves. I do like teh look of the swing down bed of the Hymer or a fixed bed. This is based mainly on utilised space and a quality bed for a good nights sleep.


There is a small family run firm in Mansfield who seem to specialise in Hymers,I found them helpful in the past, also have a look at the La Strada range who do drop down beds +fixed ,good economical use of space.


----------



## Jumar (Mar 14, 2012)

As someone has already said search for MotorhomeFun. The members on there, collectively, know all there is to know about motorhomes and motorhoming and many of them have an extensive knowledge of travelling in abroad.


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

jaws101 said:


> As someone has already said search for MotorhomeFun. The members on there, collectively, know all there is to know about motorhomes and motorhoming and many of them have an extensive knowledge of travelling in abroad.


Yes, I have found that also, thanks but lots of great tips here also


----------



## Calas felices (Nov 29, 2007)

Just a thought but your 1200 a month will not necessarily stay at that figure as there are tax implications (that's if you stay legal).


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

Calas felices said:


> Just a thought but your 1200 a month will not necessarily stay at that figure as there are tax implications (that's if you stay legal).


Yes, that is something I am looking at. I better do a Forum Search first to see if it has been previously discussed


----------



## Calas felices (Nov 29, 2007)

https://www.gov.uk/renting-out-a-property/paying-tax


----------



## EdofWigan (Jun 28, 2015)

Calas felices said:


> https://www.gov.uk/renting-out-a-property/paying-tax


Thank you for the link , the UK tax I am OK with it is the requirements to pay Spanish tax, on UK earnings, that I need to understand in more detail. 

I have been reading up, through teh forum to give me the basic gist. 

It might change my initial stages of my big adventure. 

As always all advice most welcome. 

Thanks again CF


----------



## caromac (Nov 16, 2008)

EdofWigan said:


> Hello Everyone,
> 
> I wonder if i am going to be following in anyone's footsteps, I am sure I will be and would welcome all advice and guidance.
> 
> ...



For all things motorhome related including blogs and articles from people who have done just this CLUBMOTORHOME is worth a look.


----------

