Cadiz and southern Portugal

We set off and drive to Cádiz, a truly beautiful city that I visited a few years ago.

There, too, we follow Martín's tip to a nice, guarded parking lot with Womo spots, which is quiet and yet central, and we are fortunate to get a spot right on the harbor wall.

From there, we stroll through the beautiful city in pleasant temperatures, eat very delicious food, and later enjoy the view of the sea with a cold beer on the harbor wall.

As announced, it starts raining at night and we continue driving towards Portugal early in the morning.

We drive past Seville, Huelva, and Faro in bad weather and head to a wild parking spot near Porches.

Since 'wild parking' in Portugal has been significantly restricted since 2018 - and given the antisocial behavior of various campers, this is understandable - we cannot yet assess the situation well, especially since there are very different statements from other travelers.

But everyone agrees that it is unwise to visibly set up tables and chairs, etc., and we plan to fold up our step ladder in the evening as well.

The spot is right on the beach, which is unfortunately quite muddy, but the bay is otherwise very beautiful. However, we stay above with the car in the afternoon and only drive down to the beach in the evening when the last bathers leave, because we don't want to upset anyone… since the path down is quite sporty, we stay there alone.

Another German couple with a child and without all-wheel drive does not dare to do it and stays slightly above - also because it is supposed to rain heavily at night and then it becomes slippery.

The next morning we set off quite early and clean up the bay again... the path is quite challenging after the rain and it would certainly not have been easy for the other couple's van.

We drive to Lagos, which is supposed to be less crowded with tourists... we are probably not objective anymore, but for us it is too crowded - great landscape, but after a few photos and a short visit to the beach, we want to leave.

A friend of mine, whom I haven't seen in almost 20 years, emigrated to Arrifana 11 years ago and I contacted him in advance and we at least want to stop by.

Arrifana is beautiful and the majority of the coast is in the Parque Natural, so it is much less developed (allowed) here - absolutely stunning landscape with high cliffs and great beaches in between.

Therefore, wild camping is not allowed along the coast and will probably be strictly controlled and punished - not yet as much as in high season.

Various signs prohibit the entry into many streets for motorhomes and caravans - but this mainly applies to high season and especially to the fully integrated motorhomes over 6m, which get stuck in narrow streets or take up too much parking space on the beach.

We meet Colin and he gives us a great overnight tip on the cliffs, which he believes is tolerated and not well known, and we drive there on a dirt track.

The spot is absolutely breathtaking on a high cliff... for the first time we regret not having a drone with us, because it goes straight down 112m on the left and right.

We spend 3 nights here, always driving away in the morning and back again in the evening, and everything is relaxed.

During the day, we drive to a dreamlike surf beach, not crowded at all and absolutely idyllic with a small river inlet, and so flat that you can drift towards the sea there, which some Portuguese people also do with air mattresses or similar - perfect for Mia, who doesn't want to leave the water anymore.

In the evening, we eat very delicious food and use the tips we get from the locals here - we feel like we are here at the right time, because from July onwards it will get much busier here and then spending the night with a camper will be almost impossible; especially since there are hardly any alternatives like campsites or official parking spaces here, and the police specifically monitor the illegal options.

However, if you listen to how things went here for a while, it was unfortunately only a matter of time... because at peak times, up to 600 campers (many buses, including many Spaniards) stood on some spots, who were not self-sufficient and have soiled and littered the immediate surroundings, played loud music and forgot that they are only guests.

We also see toilet paper flying around here and cannot understand at all what is so damn difficult about taking your shit with you or at least making your way far enough into the wilderness so that it doesn't happen on or next to a hiking trail... a recurring issue that we encounter while traveling.

One morning, there is a nice, older angler on the cliff, who stands way too close to the edge for my fear of heights and holds his fishing rod into the abyss 😱.

We offer him a coffee, but he declines very kindly and we have a very nice conversation. Like so many people here, he speaks excellent English.

He gives us the tip not to drive closer than 50m to the cliffs with the car, because the police don't like that, so we move and keep a safe distance in the next night.

Let's see how things go for us here in the next few days, but the region is really great - it reminds us in many ways of Cornwall... just with warmer temperatures and different food 🤣.