I’m currently parked up in a pizzeria just down the coast from Almeria, scoffing my first decent meal in 24 hours.

I had planned to get the Balearia boat last night, to arrive bright and early to the Spanish enclave at Melilla, just next to Nador. Unfortunately a knackered regulator/rectifier put paid to that idea, as I was riding to the port. All things being well, I cross tomorrow night instead.

Almeria isn’t the most well known of the southern Spanish Med towns but it is a pretty good place to stop before crossing, particularly if you’ve travelled some way to get there. It’s a medium-sized place that’s well served by various amenities, making it relatively quick and simple to get stuff done.

Here’s why:

1. Flexible boat bookings. I’m not sure if its the case at other Spanish ports, but if you need to change the date/time of your sailing with either Balearia or Transmediterranea, you can do this last minute at the port ticket office with no admin fee, even if you’ve booked through a third party like Aferry. Just be aware that sailings do get booked up, for example tomorrow’s sailing was the earliest I could get. There are daily/regular sailings to both here and Nador, and the boat to Melilla helpful leaves at 11.30 and gets in at 6.30.
2. Mechanics. There’s a whole bunch of motorbike mechanics spread throughout the town, if you need to have any last minute help with your bike. Many of these are small one or two-man outfits who, whilst often busy, are generally willing to fit you in for smaller jobs without an appointment. It’s often first come, first served so get there when they open or straight after the usual afternoon siesta. With a lot more older bikes on the road in southern Spain than in Northern Europe, they’re generally pretty happy to work on any bike too. Just be aware that getting parts in may take a day or two for bigger jobs, but certainly the smaller outfits tend to talk to one another to help you out if they don’t have it in stock. That’s different to bigger cities like Malaga, where bike shops tend to be bigger and more spread around the larger town. I’ve used a number of these in the past – Google Maps is your friend, in terms of using the reviews and ratings to find the best mechanic for your particular bike. Palomares Motos is a particular favourite of mine.
3. Supplies and parts. There’s a huge Leroy Merlin hardware store (think UK B&Q but better, easier to navigate and with actual stuff in stock!) in a big out of town shopping centre, and two Decathlon stores as well. If you’ve not had time to get something before leaving home, there’s also the usual network of UPS pick-up points in tobacconists too, which tend to be open until 8pm or so and that you can post orders to from online. I had some stuff posted on Friday from Sweden, which was ready to collect by Monday – it wasn’t cheap (£30) but you get the service you pay for.
4. Food & accommodation. There’s the usual range of hotels and hostels and hostals in the town centre, and that in itself is a nice enough place to chill out for a day or two if you fancy a rest before crossing. One small downside is that many of the hotels are in the old town centre which means you’ll either have to park on the street or find an underground car park, but I’ve always been assured by locals there shouldn’t be anything to worry about. Alternatively, just outside of town is Camping La Garrofa which can serve as a good base for prepping for the trip ahead.
5. Accessibility. Last but not least, whilst Almeria does not have the same flight access (for Brits at least) or bike storage options as Malaga, it is only a couple of hours away by motorway. That opens the possibility of storing/freighting your bike in/to Malaga and then riding to Almeria, where the regular ferry times are a little more annual holiday friendly, organisationally speaking.