FAQs

We've set out the most frequently asked questions about Vera Playa together with our answers - we hope you'll find this page helpful. If you can't find the question and answer that concerns you, contact us and if we know the answer to your question we'll consider putting your question and our answer on this page. Likewise, if you think one of our answers is wrong, incomplete or could be improved, let us know. See foot of page for contact details.

FAQ:  Where exactly is Vera Playa?  Vera Playa is located at the south-east corner of Spain, on the Costa de Almeria, near the well known Moorish hill-top village of Mojácar. Literally, it is "the beach of Vera" - Vera is the attractive small town around 10 kms away. The municipality of Vera runs down to the beach. More

FAQ:  Is it in the back of beyond?  No, it is conveniently close to several small towns (the nearest is the small port of Garrucha (5 kms), Vera (10 kms) and Cuevas del Almanzora (12 kms) and the fishing village of Villaricos (5 kms). Regular bus services run to and from Garrucha (and Mojacar) and to Vera town.

FAQ:  What's the weather like?  Vera Playa has a superb climate - the warmest winters in Europe and hot summers which are relieved by sea breezes, and (generally) very settled weather with dawn to dusk sun as normal. The dry atmosphere is excellent for sufferers from arthritis and other complaints which are aggravated by a damp atmosphere. More

 FAQ: Is the whole of Vera Playa naturist? Vera Playa means, literally, "The beach of Vera". Vera is a town of 10,000 or so population about 10 kms inland but the area of the municipality extends to the Mediterranean sea and around 5 kms of coast and beach. Until the 1990s much of this coast was undeveloped but now almost all of it has been developed (and there are plans to develop a vast area roughly equivalent in size to Madrid - but since the Credit Crunch etc that is not likely to happen any time soon). Most of Vera Playa is textile but around 2.5 kms of the beach is designated as naturist and there is a naturist "zone" roughly one kilometre long and somewhat less than half a kilometre deep where there are 12 urbanizacions (or developments with communal facilities) comprising a couple of thousand apartments in total, a few individual houses and a large hotel. Each urbanizacion is a self-governing community of owners and all the apartments and houses are owned by individuals, around 80% by Spanish people who use them primarily for long summer holidays and some of the Spanish fiestas (bank holiday periods). Some properties are the full time homes of their owners and some are the winter homes of northern Europeans escaping the colder winters of their homelands (similar to the "snowbirds" from the eastern states of the USA and Canda who winter in Florida). Only the beach and promenade and the area where the naturist urbanizacions are located is naturist - but this is a muc\h bigger area than any other naturist resort in the World (we believe). The streets in the area of the naturist urbanizacions are "de facto" naturist - whether all of them are officially designated as such is unclear.

FAQ: How big is the Naturist Zone? The naturist beach is around 2.5 kms long and the naturist urbanizacions front approx 1 km of the naturist beach and extend back about 400 metres.

FAQ:  Is only the beach naturist? No - everywhere within the zone is naturist - including the streets.

FAQ: How will I know I am in the naturist zone?  In the summer it will be quite quickly be fairly obvious, but the boundaries of the naturist zone are not well marked or signed. The naturist zone immediately adjoins textile residential areas and, quite frankly, it is almost impossible to say where the exact boundary is. In practice it is no big deal. You are not going to arrested for straying outside the naturist zone by a few metres - you'll soon get to know what's "naturist zone" and what isn't.

It is worth noting that there are two urbanizacions which appear to be in the naturist zone but which are actually textile (Playa de Baria 1 and Vera Mar 6). Vera Mar 6 actually has notices now saying "no nudista" as, presumably, some owners and renters have tendencies to go naked within this urbanizacion (some naturists who have non-naturist familes own apartments in Vera Mar 6).

Plan of Naturist Zone - click here

FAQ: If the naturist beach is 2.5 kms long and the naturist zone is only 1 km long what fronts the remainder? It used to be nothing (salt pans/desert/scrubland). Now it is textile developments. But the status of the beach has been upheld (by the Andalucian Ombudsman) as naturist despite illegal attempts by the local council to sign this southernmost 1.5 kms as textile. So you can use all 2.5 kms of the beach as naturist - and many Spanish people do just that, whether they are "naturists" or not. Some of the textile developments have sold themselves partly on the basis that they have the naturist beach for people to use. Of course, many textiles use it as well, but there doesn't seem to be the same exclusivity of either naturists or textiles that seems the case in, say, the UK.

FAQ: Do you have to be naked all the time? No - nudity is permitted, not required. Most naturist urbanizacions require users of their swimming pools to do so naked (i.e. bathing costumes are not allowed), but otherwise many owners and visitors only go naked to sunbathe and to swim in the sea. It's a good place for first time naturists as there's no pressure - but most soon discover how good it is to go naked. When the weather is warm enough you can be naked 24/7 within thenaturist zone - but if you are staying at the hotel you will be expected to be clothed after 8pm and when using the restaurant.

FAQ: Do you need to have an INF card to visit or stay at Vera Playa? No - There are no barriers, Vera Playa is just part of the wider world.

FAQ: What about voyeurs and weirdos? Vera Playa is open. Some of the urbanizacions (residential developments) are locked behind perimeter fences, but this is to preserve their facilities for use only by their own residents as much as anything. Some people do come into the naturist zone to look - but they are mainly the curious rather than the weird - though there are undoubtedly sometimes some of those. Pretty certainly some of the curious become naturists in the sense that they try out being naked on the beach and in the sea and find out it's good. The local and national police do patrol the naturist zone and beach (as they do everywhere) and there seems to be no greater a problem of undesirables on the naturist beach or, for instance, overtly sexual or other inappropriate or illegal behaviour on the naturist beach than any other beach (in fact quite possibly less). It is not a problem of any significant scale and most unlikely to affect or spoil your day on the beach.

FAQ: What is the legal position about nudity in Spain these days? The Vera Playa naturist zone and beach are officially designated as naturist so no worries there. But as a matter of interest mainly, the present Spanish Constituition gives Spanish citizens the right to be naked in any public place - so sunbathing or swimming naked on any beach is, these days, not illegal (though you might not feel very comfortable doing so!). Things are very different from what they were in the days of General Franco and nowadays Spanish people - of all ages - seem much more relaxed about being naked to sunbathe or swim or play on the beach, though no doubt most would not think of themselves as "naturists".

FAQ: What facilities are there in the naturist zone? The main one is, of course, the 2.5 kms of naturist beach. In the main season you can hire sunbeds and umbrellas on the beach and pedalos, sailboats, canoes etc. There is a large 4 star hotel, and about a dozen residential developments or urbanizacions within which are a total of around 2,000 privately owned apartments and houses of various sorts and sizes. Each urbanizacion has its own swimming pools.

For food shopping, there is a substantial size branch of the Consum supermarket chain just outside the naturist area within easy walking distance (about 200m from the Torrema Natura and Bahia de Vera naturist urbanizacions - see area plan). If you have a car, there are also two branches of the Mercadona supermarket chain within about 4 kms of the naturist zone.

There is a small supermarket in Hotel Street (only open at the times of year that the hotel opens, which is roughly Easter until end of October).

There are a number of bars/eating places (chiringuitos) on the beach (most are seasonal), several bars/cafes near the main entrance of Bahia de Vera and Torrema Natura and even more in Hotel Street (near the Vera Playa Club Hotel) - most of these are seasonal. See our Facilities page for more information. There is an absolute profusion of supermarkets, shops, bars, cafes, restaurants and clubs in the vicinity (2 - 20 kms away) - more, obviously, in the summer than in the winter.

FAQ: Where can I stay? If you want hotel accommodation, the only hotel within the naturist zone is the Hotel Vera Playa Club, part of the Playa Hoteles group - a number of package holiday companies use this 4 star hotel and this may be the cheapest way to stay there. But, of course, you can book direct with the hotel.

If you want self-catering accommodation there is plenty available from basic to luxurious. Some apartments are listed on this website - click here. Try an internet search for others. The busiest and most expensive periods are July and August.

FAQ: Is there a naturist camping and caravanning site? There used to be a site which was partly textile and partly naturist but sadly there is now no camping or caravanning site at Vera Playa (It is believed the former site has been sold for redevelopment as textile apartments). The nearest site is a textile one on the edge of Palomares about 2 kms north of Vera Playa (on the road towards Palomares and Cuevas (turn left at the roundabout by the Repsol petrol station and go about 250m towards Palomares)

 FAQ: Night life - and nudity at facilities and in the evenings/night: The Vera Playa naturist zone is NOT a clubbers' paradise - it is basically a family orientated residential area. There is only one nightclub actually in the naturist zone (if it is still open which is in some doubt) and that is textile and frequented mainly by people from outside the naturist zone. There are a few bars/cafes including those on the beach which are naturist but most such facilities are actually outside the naturist zone and you will need to be clothed to use them. The Vera Playa Club Hotel has a dress code which is that you need to be clothed in its bars and restaurants except (during the day) the poolside bar. Everyone is expected to be dressed in the hotel after 8pm. The hotel bar and restaurant are only open to non-residents after 8pm. The bars and cafes/restaurants in "Hotel Street" and between Torrema Natura and the Consum supermarket (and within the Consum/ Hispania Centro building) are all textile. You can, obviously, be naked 24/7 in your own hotel room or in and around your own apartment if you are staying in one of the dozen naturist urbanizacions but it should be noted that it is rare to see anyone naked on the public streets after dusk and also useful to note that most Spanish naturists are not 24/7 lifestyle naturists, and are only naked (a) when the weather is hot and (b) to swim and/or sunbathe at the pool or on the beach. Northern European naturists are often naked when Spanish naturists aren't for the simple reason that the Spanish perception of when it is warm is rather different from that of northern Europeans to whom winter in Vera Playa seems remarkably like summer in the UK, the Netherlands, Germany or Scandinavia.

FAQ:  Who owns Vera Playa? Thousands of people who own their own properties, which are nearly all in a dozen urbanizacions (mutually owned developments with communal facilities such as swimming pools). In addition there is a hotel and bars, cafes, shops etc.

FAQ:  How can I get there? 3 airports are within easy reach by motorway - Almeria (85 kms), Murcia San Javier (185 kms by motorway, 150 kms by mountain/coastal road) & Alicante (210 kms). You can be here in as little as 6 - 7 hours door to door from the UK ! The easiest way to get from the airport to Vera Playa and vice-versa is by car - although not as cheap as public transport it is cheaper than fully commercial / legal airport transfer services (if you have friends who are willing to pick you up and take you back that is obviously cheaper, as are the many services operated on an unofficial basis and which in Spanish law are illegal and, should you be involved in an accident, could prove to be uninsured). The advantage of renting a car is convenience and having personal transport readily available throughout your stay for shopping, sight-seeing etc. At the low weekly rates which normally apply, especially in the shoulder and low seasons, it is possible to rent a car for a week for less than the cost of a couple of airport transfers. See below for more on car rental

 FAQ: Which airport should I fly to? Answer: Almeria, if you have the choice, but only a few UK airports have flights to Almeria airport (e.g. Ryanair from Stansted, Easyjet from Gatwick, Monarch from Birmingham and Manchester). Some of these do not fly there in the winter. If you can get a flight to Almeria it is very convenient as it is only 85 kms or 50 mins away and is a small airport which is easy to use.
    Second choice airport is probably the present Murcia airport which is actually adjacent to the Mar Menor at San Javier, about 40 kms from Murcia city. The airport is 185 kms or 2 hrs (or 1 hr 30 mins on the new AP-7 toll motorway, cost = approximately 24€ for return trip).
   UPDATED! Alicante (212 kms, 2 hrs 30 mins) is a major airport with lots of flights from most parts of the UK. Its huge new terminal opened in March 2011 and, impressive though it is, the distances you have to walk are now considerable.Alicante airport has a reputation for crime, especially in and around the car parks, and some of the car rental companies remove wheel hub covers, car aerials, luggage covers, etc to avoid them being stolen - but also making them look horrible and very obviously rental cars, thus increasing the risk of car theft, crash mugging etc. So our advice is - if you can find an alternative - avoid using Alicante airport.
   Malaga is also a possibility - but a very long drive (300 kms, 4 hours) and not all on motorway (which the other airports are - except for the last 15 kms or so).
   Allegedly, there will be a new Murcia airport in a new location close to the E15/A6 motorway, south of Murcia city, in a few years time (but this has been claimed for the last 5 or 6 years). If it ever happens, this new airport will be much nearer Vera than the present, so-called, Murcia airport at San Javier (The new one will be about 130 kms or 1 hr 20 mins from Vera Playa).

A second option is to take the bus into Alicante city to the train station and go by train from Alicante to Lorca and then take a bus/coach from Lorca to Vera, then taxi to Vera Playa. There is now a regular bus service from Vera via Vera Playa to Garrucha, but after a long journey and with luggage you may feel it is easier to take a taxi from Vera bus station to Vera Playa (10 kms).

from Murcia (San Javier) airport: We have no details but it is pretty certainly possible to take a bus to Cartagena, then to Vera OR to Lorca and then to Vera OR take a bus bus to Murcia, then either train to Lorca and coach to Vera or direct coach from Murcia to Vera (final destinaton of coach - Almeria).If anyone has used public transport from Murcia (San Javier) airport to Vera please let us know the details and how easy and practical a journey you found it to be.

2. Around the local area: The Vera Playa naturist zone is now better served by public transport than was the case. There is now an hourly service to both Vera town and to Garrucha and beyond to Mojacar Playa (service no.2). Buses pick up and set down on the edge of the naturist zone, near to the Consum supermarket and at the recently built roundabout on the main Garrucha-Villaricos road where a new dual carriageway towards Vera is now open. The bus fare is 1€ to either Vera or Garrucha. The timetable for Linea 2 (and detail of other local bus services in the area) are available on the bus company's website - www.autocaresbaraza.com/ . Also, see our Forum for the latest on public transport. (Important note - the bus timetable says "Vera Natura" but the bus doesn't actually go to the Vera Natura urbanizacion - the stop is near the roundabout adjacent to the Consum supermarket)

In the summer there is a little road "train" which runs between Vera Playa and Garrucha town. The fare is €4 per person for a return trip and the service starts around 1730 hrs and continues until the last "train" from Garrucha at about midnight. You can hail and ride at any point on the little train's route (within the naturist zone it goes down Avenida Tortuga Boba and along Calle Naturaleza past Vera Natura and then up to the big roundabout on the main road). Its timing seems rather variable, although nominally hourly - you could be waiting around for it for some time. But it's a good option for an evening out in Garrucha and avoids drinking and driving (don't forget that the Spanish drink drive limits are considerably tougher than in the UK and just one drink can put you over the limit!).

It used to be the case that without your own car or a rental car you were effectively confined to the naturist zone and immediately surrounding area. Obviously if you do have your own vehicle things are easier and you have more flexibility but you can now get out and about to at least the main local towns by public transport even in winter. In high summer a tourist "motor train" operates in the evenings which you can join and rejoin as you wish - this may be useful for going to Mojacar Playa to sample its bars and restaurants.

Updated!  FAQ: What about car rental? If you have no car, the other option for getting around locally, other than on foot, is by taxi. Of course, you do not necessarily have to leave the naturist zone at all and on a short holiday, say one week, in good weather, you probably won't want to. But for longer visits, or in winter, or if you are unlucky enough to have some poor weather (unlikely in summer) you may well want to get out and around a bit . Car hire prices in in Spain used to be very cheap but in 2009, due to the Credit Crunch, they increased greatly and availability at busy times declined. In late summer 2010 prices suddenly dropped and now, for winter 2010/2011, prices are probably lower than they have been for several years - around £60 to £70 per week for a small car with air conditioning - but take out your own policy for excess insurance (wheels, tyres, glass, roof, underbody - i.e. most things!) otherwise the rate will be bumped up at the desk when you collect the car by several Euros per day or you will have to leave a substantial deposit (If you have your own excess insurance you may still be required to pay a deposit).

The best way to book a car is to go to one of the internet brokers for car rentals such as www.drivespain.com, www.carjet.com or www.allinclusivecarhire.com. (Please note: we used to recommend www.doyouspain.com but after a bad experience with them recently in connection with which they failed to answer any of 5 emails, we no longer do so)

If you book direct with one of the major the car rental companies you are very likely to pay more and get less good conditions (e.g. extra charges for extra drivers or less good conditions re insurance excess). If you are hiring for more than about 3 days you will probably find your rental is only available on a full tank to empty tank basis, which s a bit of a racket as is the charge you will be made for the initial full tank. Look out also for extra charges for insurance cover for tyres, wheels, glass, roof and underside (i.e. nearly everything!) - you are likely to get charged up to €3 per day for this cover and if you go abroad more than a couple of weeks per year it can be cheaper to have an annual policy with a UK insurance company to cover these risks (an annual policy costs around £50 - e.g from www.insurance4carhire.com).

A few words of warning:
    1. Years ago most of the car rental companies at Alicante airport removed hub-caps, radio aerials, luggage area covers, and anything else removable because these were always getting stolen in the Costa Blanca area. Gradually this practice died out but now at least one company, Record RentaCar, is doing so again. Cars without hubcaps are very clearly rental cars and so they are an invitation to car thieves and crash-muggers, so our advice is avoid Record RentaCar and if your internet car rental broker allocates you a car from this company, tell them you won't accept a booking with this car rental company and ask to be allocated a car from another company.
   2. Some of the rental companies put their company stickers on the outside of the cars - our advice is to rip these off before you leave the car parking area - up until about 2003 rental cars used to have different registration numbers from ordinary cars - the Spanish government changed this to reduce the incidence of thefts etc - perversely, some of the car rental companies then introduced company stickers absolutely advertising the cars as rental ones and likely to have good pickings for thieves etc.

FAQ: What's it like in Winter? Weather, typically, is fine with midday temperatures in low to mid 20's, good for sunbathing. Sea OK for hardy, outdoor pools too cold, covered/heated pools best. Evenings can be chilly. Be sure to get apartment with good sun and some heating. Quiet time - good for exploring locality. And very cheap! There's not a lot open (in terms of shops, bars, restaurants) within the naturist zone in winter - though there's more than there used to be and it would be possible to survive without leaving the naturist zone - but without a lot of choice as to where to shop or eat. But there's plenty of everything just a bit further afield.

FAQ: Can you swim in the sea all year round? The sea at Vera Playa in mid-winter is not much different in temperature to the sea around Britain in mid summer (around 14 - 15C), so the answer is if you swim in the sea in the UK in the summer you'll be able to swim in the sea at Vera Playa in the winter without any hardship. Spanish people tend to think the winter is cold and certainly too cold for sea bathing, but in fact for northern europeans it is fine every month of the year though obviously it is much warmer in summer (when it is wonderfully warm, around 24C).

Outdoor swimming pools in the urbanizacions are generally not heated and are definitely colder than the sea in winter and most people would say they are not swimmable between late October and mid April. A few of the urbanizacions have heated indoor pools which are generally maintained at around 28 - 31C which is very warm and obviously fine for swimmming at any time of the year. One urbanizacion (La Menara) has a small outdoor pool which is heated.

 FAQ: Are there Internet facilities (e.g. to send & receive e-mail)? If you are staying at the Hotel Vera Playa Club, there are now some coin-operated internet machines in the reception area. There is internet access at the Bar Trinidad (to the right of the Vera Natura Reception/Lettings Office). Outside the naturist zone (but only just), the next nearest internet access is now in the coffee shop above Consum at €1 for 30 minutes. We believe that wi-fi access is available here too. Next nearest is the Internet Cafe is at the Esquina del Rey commercial centre at Puerto Rey (about 2.5 kms from the naturist zone - south of the naturist zone, on the way to Garrucha - you pass it as you drive to Garrucha from Vera Playa, it is clearly visible from the main road). There are also plenty of internet cafes etc in Garrucha and along Mojacar Playa.
There is said to be free wifi access in the vicinity of the Hotel Mexico and some people are now using broadband services from the cellular phone companies such as Vodaphone.

FAQ: Can I buy or rent a house or apartment in one of the naturist urbanizacions? Yes, you can do either. There are very few houses but many apartments. Some of these can be rented for holidays at reasonable rates (see the properties listed on our apartments page, or do an internet search), some for longer lets, such as long winter periods at significantly lower rates (but be aware that EU/Spanish law now regards a stay longer than 3 months as requiring "Residencia").

There are also plenty of properties for sale and now seems a good time to buy as the Spanish property market is seriously depressed and there are bargains to be had! Within the naturist zone, small/older/poorly oriented apartments are available from as little as about €70K, larger and more luxurious studios or one bedroom apartments from about €90 - 100K and bigger (multi-bedroom) apartments with good location or sea views and good orientation to the sun up to €250 - 300K and substantial detached houses up to €300 - 500K.

Properties in the naturist zone are marketed online (see those advertised on this website or do an internet search) and by various estate agencies - there is one located in "Hotel Street" which specialises in naturist property and another specialist online agent - you also need to check the windows and websites of other estate agents in the area (e.g. one in the commercial centre next to the Consum supermarket, several at Las Bugainvillas and in Garrucha. Also see the free English newspapers which are distrbuted in the area).

Plan of the Naturist Zone & immediate surroundings - click here

Last updated: 6 April 2011

We hope you have found this page useful. If you have a question about Vera Playa which you feel should be on this page but isn't yet please contact us - we may add it to this page if we think it is of general interest (and we know the answer!). If you have some useful information to improve one or more of our answers please let us have it. Please note that we do not send individual answers in response to requests for information as there are just too many!

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