When I drove by yesterday afternoon I counted thirteen parked up. One couple were relaxing next to their vehicles on sun loungers, enjoying the Winter sun whilst another couple were sitting at a table eating their lunch. Many had satellite dishes attached to the roofs of their vans and I even saw one with solar panels propped up against the side of his vehicle! They certainly looked as if they were settled...

 

The undeveloped plot belongs to the council and has no services such as sewage, water or electricity on it - yet that doesn´t seem to deter those that are there. The main reason for that is because they do not have to pay any rent to stay there... and the nationality of those parked there - mainly Dutch and British!

 

The president of the local campers association, Fransisco Delgado considers it a "lack of supervision on the part of Alfaz town hall resulting in unfair competition to the many legal campsites in the municipality". In the current economic crisis the situation is only likely to get worse unless something is done about it. The president said that over the last year the number of illegally parked vehicles in the vicinity has tripled.  

 

There are also a number of illegal camper parks which have sprouted up, which have no permits or licenses to operate yet are charging those parked up to stay there. Maybe many of them do not realise that they are not legitimate sites but the price should be a clue. They charged as little as 6 or 7 euros per day whilst a fully licensed and regulated site can cost anything between 15 to 25 euros per day! 

 

I spoke to the British owner of a local purpose built camper park - Orange Grove. She told me that it costs tens of thousands of euros to obtain all the relevant licenses and the paperwork involved is unbelievable. There is sewerage which needs to be laid and utilities need to be properly and safely connected. It is particularly frustrating for those of us that have jumped through hoops to do everything legally and are also paying substantial taxes to the town hall. There is certainly enough choice, whether you want a small family run park like we offer or a larger livelier one!

 

New camper park just before the Medieval castle in Albir

The problem with the illegally parked vehicles, apart from being an eyesore is that some are disposing of their waste incorrectly. They see the water channels running alongside the roads and throw the waste water into them.... these are actually irrigation channels and used to water the fruit trees growing in the fields. The water contains chemicals and can be detrimental to the vegetation.  

A spokesperson for the Town Hall confirmed that they will be working together with the Ministry of Tourism to regulate the problem and deal with the issue of illegal pitchers on council owned land but acknowledged that at present, there is a "boom" of caravans in Albir and it may prove "very difficult to control". I say differently - send the police to knock on each one, issue an on the spot fine for illegally parking and move them on! Simples, as the Meerkat would say....