Lyndsay was back. We scooped her up from Valencia airport, had a lovely quiet evening together as a family, and then the next morning pointed the van two hours north to Peñíscola. What followed was two very different nights: one very basic, very memorable park-up by a hilltop village, and then one of the best campsites we have ever pulled into. Here is what happened and what it cost.
Where we stopped
Peñíscola (small aire/camper park, 1 night): We tried Camping Eden first. Lovely atmosphere, great pitches, the pool looked fantastic. But at €120 a night for less than 24 hours, it just did not make sense. We ended up at a small aire-style stop nearby at €26.50 for the night for our 7.12-metre van. Bare bones: two showers, two toilets, nothing more. But we were not there for the facilities. We were there to walk down into the town.
The walk took about 105 minutes, which nobody tells you when they describe Peñíscola as a quick stroll. It is a busy beach, a hot climb up to the old town, a visit to the church (lovely and cool inside), drinks on the way up, and then dinner on a terrace right under the lighthouse. We had wine, beer, Coke, water, and food that did not arrive until gone 9 o’clock at night because that is Spain and you just have to get into the rhythm. The views over the Mediterranean were absolutely gorgeous, and a proper summer storm was rolling in from the distance while we ate. We made it back to the van just about intact.
One practical note: we were charged €14.50 rather than €16.50, which is what the van’s length technically warranted. The man running the place was lovely, so we were not about to make a fuss over €2.
Playa Montroig Camping Resort (2 nights): About an hour south of Peñíscola. The pitch came to €327.92 in total (£277), which is not a number that sits easily. But this is a five-star resort and it earns the description without trying.
What Playa Montroig is actually like
We arrived to a genuinely impressive reception: three separate maps highlighting available pitches in different areas, premium seafront spots at €350 for two nights, and everything else at around €230–250. We weighed up the beach-facing pitches (beautiful, but a long walk from the main pool) against the central area with direct pool access, and chose the pool area. With a family who essentially live in the water, that was the right call.
The pool complex is exceptional. Multiple pools, a beach that takes about seven or eight minutes to walk to, lifeguards who take their jobs very seriously (whistles going constantly), and a toilet block that is, genuinely, the nicest I have ever seen on a campsite. I went back to film it. Loads of sinks, loads of showers, spotless decor, and a space so large it barely feels like a campsite facility at all.
The supermarket on site deserves a mention on its own. Fresh bread and pastries every morning, a proper deli, not wildly overpriced for what it is. I went down for an early workout and came back with a bag of pastries instead, which probably tells you everything you need to know. The site also has a gymnasium (more cardio than weights, for what it is worth), a kids’ club area, an amphitheatre stage with morning exercise classes, Zumba, mini golf, a diving centre, and restaurants and bars dotted throughout. You genuinely do not have to leave.
Electric scooters are banned on site, which was a slight disappointment given how big the place is. They have clearly had problems with them in the past. We made do on foot.
One thing worth knowing: someone we spoke to on site was paying around £4,000 for 11 nights in one of the Eurocamp units, and a follower on Facebook mentioned paying approximately €5,000 for 20 nights on a premium seafront pitch. Those are peak-season figures. We would expect off-season rates to be significantly friendlier. If you can go outside school holidays, it is probably worth looking into.
Sang Gully campsite, just up the road, came highly recommended by site staff as well. We will put a link below for both. Between the two of them, this stretch of coastline has some serious options.
Practical bits worth knowing
A couple of things came up across these two days that are worth passing on.
On paying by card abroad: at the supermarket after leaving Peñíscola, the terminal offered us the total in pounds at just over £124. We selected euros instead, Monzo did the conversion, and it came out at £120. That is over £4 saved on a single shop by just pressing the right button. Always, always pay in the local currency.
On pitch selection at aires: never take the pitch closest to the service point. Grey water smells eggy and sulphury at the best of times. In Spanish summer heat, it is on another level entirely. We dropped our own grey tank on departure, and even we were relieved to get away from the smell.
On the van’s ongoing problem: for anyone following the breakdown situation, the van has continued running but still loses power on hills, dropping to about 35–40 mph at its worst. It has not been as dramatic as the original 20 mph crawl, but the issue is still there. The plan is to get home and get it looked at properly. A few of you sent over ideas via the comments, which we do appreciate, but we are not diagnosing it roadside in the middle of a Spanish heatwave.
And the three-way fridge: it is going. Replacing it with a compressor fridge when we get home. No more warm meat.
Questions people ask
How much did Camping Eden cost and why did you not stay? Camping Eden in Peñíscola was quoted at €120 per night. We were only there for less than 24 hours before needing to move on, which meant it was not worth the price. The atmosphere looked great and the pitches were solid, but the maths did not add up for a single-night stop.
How much did Playa Montroig Camping Resort cost for two nights? We paid €327.92 in total (£277) for two adults, the kids, and the van. Premium seafront pitches were being quoted at €350 for two nights, and the Eurocamp units were significantly more expensive. These are peak-season prices. Out of school holidays the rates will be lower, and if anyone has stayed there off-season we would love to know the nightly rate in the comments.
Is Playa Montroig worth the money? For a couple of nights as part of a longer touring trip, yes. The facilities are genuinely exceptional: the pool complex, the beach, the supermarket, the attention to detail on the pitches. It is not cheap compared to an aire or a small campsite, but if you are mixing in some budget stops around it, a blowout night or two at a place like this makes sense. We do not regret it.
Are electric scooters allowed at Playa Montroig? No, they are banned on site. Steve had planned to use theirs to get around the site, which is large enough that scooters would have been useful. The site has clearly had issues with them in the past. Worth knowing before you pack one.
Watch the full video to see the Peñíscola hilltop dinner, the storm rolling in over the Mediterranean, and a full look around Playa Montroig’s facilities. If you are thinking about Spain more broadly, our motorhoming in Spain guide covers routes, ferry options, and the aire versus campsite question in a lot more detail.
Watch the full video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZ4A7nlBpbQ