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Anyone who has been around Almería city recently will have noticed the proliferation of large campervans and motorhomes parking in and around the provincial capital, even outside of the summer high season.

 

Spots like the vast car park between the Parque de las Familias and the auditorium, where a weekly market is held on Saturdays, are starting to fill up with campers year-round.

 

That’s why Almería City Council is preparing a new ‘general transport ordinance’ that will set out specific conditions for caravans and motorhomes using public parking areas.

 

The draft bylaw will define where these vehicles are permitted to park and how long they’re allowed to stay there. The idea behind it is to prevent large numbers of motorhomes and caravans gathering in locations that are not officially authorised for overnight stays.

 

Under the proposed regulations, the council will spell out in detail what is and is not allowed. For instance, motorhomes and caravans must remain fully within their designated space and will not be permitted to lower stabilising legs, extend windows or awnings beyond the vehicle’s footprint, or place outdoor furniture such as tables and chairs on public land.

 

Discharging water onto the street, generating excessive noise, operating generators or engaging in antisocial behaviour would also be prohibited.

 

In reality, all of these things are already enshrined in national laws, but by reinforcing the local nature of these decisions, the council presumably hopes that people will pay more attention to the existing rules.

 

Where Almería’s own local proposals differ from pre-existing camping laws is in the creation of designated overnight areas, which will be clearly signposted with both vertical and road surface markings. Where bays are marked out, vehicles must be positioned entirely within the painted limits and cannot overstep this boundary.

 

Drivers who fail to comply could face fines ranging from €80 to €200. The lower penalties would apply to less serious breaches, such as parking outside authorised areas. Parking in official zones will also be subject to established fees and time restrictions. Failure to pay the required charges or respect opening hours would be classified as a serious offence, carrying a €200 fine.

 

The fines are quite small, really, and the overall scope of the ‘new’ laws is not exactly broad, so it will remain to be seen whether they will actually go any way towards regulating the sprawl of motorhomes in the city.

 

Right now, the two main camping grounds around Almería city are the Camping La Garrofa, which so far out of the city it is almost in Aguadulce, and the large car park to the east of the city just beyond the Parque de Andarax towards Costacabana, which is also quite out of the way and far from major facilities.

 

It might be argued that what is really needed instead are several new campervan and motorhome parking grounds where campers can pay to pitch up legally, with full services such as electric charging, running water and grey water disposal, among others. That would really help to ease the congestion of these types of vehicles in the city as camping tourism grows.