Winter sun.

Golden winter sun in La Zenia (Torrevieja).

Hey guys, finally a new post on here. So, a few weeks back D and I were discussing our favourite season for a Spanish holiday at the dinner table (essentially we were practicing sobremesa – spanish for “over the table” it means talking among friends and family after a meal for an extended quality time). Within a year we’re travelling about 4 times to our second home to spend time there and normally it would be once every season: spring in April, summer in July, autumn in October and winter in December/January.

Winter season x Costa Blanca.

From Germany, through France, to Spain.

Spain is known to be among the top travel destinations for summer holidays for its sunny weather, lovely Costas and beaches and the nearly guaranteed sunshine and hot temperatures. But did you know that the other seasons are quite tempting, too?

Today we wanted to tell you a bit more about the winter season. Over the years we started to spend the Christmas holidays in Spain, and we love it more and more. This Christmas was the first in the new house and it was very special to us. Also the spanish Christmas spirit is very different from what we know from home – and we love it!

So back to this winter discussion and why it’s so great. 

We’re not really the snowy and skiing types, we appreciate the sun and warmth way more and sometimes do a little poorly over extended times of grey weather and the wet and cold as is common in northern Europe. So a few years back we decided that a little break in Spain would help with the winter blues we were experiencing. 

Change of scenery.

Normally we’re driving by car from Germany to Spain, which in the winter time is quite impressive because you notice the change of the scenery much more accute. The farther south you get, the more green the lanscape gets because there are less plants that loose their leaves in the winter. Everything looks green and un-wintry, citrus bearing fruit, palm trees, cypresses, blooming bougainvillea. It’s a jarring difference to our home in Germany where everything lays dormant. And then you see the mediterranean shimmering gold and blue for the first time – game over. If you don’t look a the temperature displayed in the car and squint your eyes just a little bit, you would never guess it’s not summer or spring.

Typical snacks at the bars.

So here you have the first part: it looks like spring or summer and during the daytime it oftentimes feels like it, too. Temperatures between 15 and 25 degrees celsius are no rarity. Evening and nighttime are different stories, it can get quite chilly, so packing t-shirts and pullovers and a coat are definitely advisable (also if you decide to spend some time on the Costa Blanca make sure that wherever you are staying has some kind of heating or you might be freezing very quickly).

So now we established the weather and landscape we come to the next thing in our long list: sightseeing, exploring and sitting in sunny little bars or cafes are so much more fun in these temperatures than in the boiling hot summer where laying on the beach or floating in the pools is always the better plan. 

Hike. Eat. Chill. Repeat.

Churros, what else?

We climbed mount benacantil in Alicante to explore Santa Barbara Castle after a yummy Pizza lunch in the oldtown, visited the Sunday market at Campo der Guardamar, hiked the Calblanque nature reserve to the beach and sat outside in the sun enjoying our lunches at restaurants and bars. We spent cozy evenings at home on the couch, watching movies or playing board games, cooking dinner. If you like sightseeing this is definitely your season to explore. 

Winter season is also perfect for enjoying freshly squeezed orange juice and churros con chocolate. I know, I know, “churros can be eaten all year round, what are you talking about“ . Yes. True. But it’s way more cozy in winter because the churros are warm and are dipped in hot, thick chocolate sauce (and you won’t be wearing a bikini for a few months). So there, no more arguments needed why winter time is churro time in my book.

Calblanque nature reserve.

Golf course in Algorfa.

Salinas de Torrevieja.

Work & vacation? Workation!  

We also did a bit of a workation as we were working for our normal day jobs for a few days while in Spain. Lunch break with a quick walk through the orange groves anyone? I started very early, as usual, so by three in the afternoon I was able to jump on the sun lounger for an hour until it got to chilly because the sun sits lower this time of the year and we were getting ready to go out for a bit. 

Enjoy some of the impressions of our winter adventure in the following. 

PS: To answer the question we asked ourselves at the beginning of this little story: D’s favourite season is winter time, I’m torn between summer and autumn. Let us know in the comments what your favourite season is!