“La Balona” aire, La Linea. Closed!

[sciac2001]

Passed by the football stadium yesterday to find it closed to motorhomes. Have not been able to ascertain why and will try to obtain some info in the coming weeks.
(There had been some talk a year or so ago of the Aire at Alcaidesa marina initiating legal action to have it closed down.)
It will be a hard blow to the lovely football club who consistently punch above their weight in the Spanish professional league with the meagre resources available to them.
Lovely people too!

 

[billym]

Passed by the football stadium yesterday to find it closed to motorhomes. Have not been able to ascertain why and will try to obtain some info in the coming weeks.
(There had been some talk a year or so ago of the Aire at Alcaidesa marina initiating legal action to have it closed down.)
It will be a hard blow to the lovely football club who consistently punch above their weight in the Spanish professional league with the meagre resources available to them.
Lovely people too!

Could it be as simple as not providing a water tap?
Probably not but I could never understand why they didn't.
It's a shame for the football club but it's also a shame for the decent people of La Linea who struggle against certain criminal gangs

 

[miklin]

It was a bit of a shock for us to find it closed to motorhomes. Managed to overnight(Sunday) in the adjacent petanque club. Woke upthis morning (Monday)to discover we were surrounded by cars and all the roads around full of cars. But the stadium car park is empty!! It still seems to be designated as a car park, just motorhomes are banned. Tourist information didn't know anything.

 

[sciac2001]

The cars belong to the Spain-based employees who come into Gib for their work.
I havent yet found outthe reason why it has closed but if I can, I will pop by the Club and ask on Wednesday after visiting the weekly “Mad Market”, held nearby.
(I still suspect “vested interests” in the area.... ie Alcaidesa Marina and the Santa Barbara carpark.)

 

[sciac2001]

I can confirm that the “aire” at La Balona football stadium is closed to motorhomes.
As suspected, the Aire at Alcaidesa Marina has successfully won an injunction to have the football stadium closed to motorhomes. The Club Committee member I spoke to said that the Club does not have financial resources to appeal the ruling and for now at least, they will not be opening up to us again.
It is the usual “we want it all” attitude found all over Mediterranean Spain where campsite and similar proprietors can impose their will on the local councils to the detriment of any other less-powerful initiatives.

Whilst the Marina aire will no doubt gain some of the stadium business, it will not be anything like the numbers found at the stadium.
The town itself, in much need of visitor income will also suffer the consequence although not as much as this lovely football club.
(I will say that the Marina aire is indeed very good, but quite expensive.)

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[canopus]

We've stayed there a couple of times and were made very welcome, have also eaten in their bar/cafe. On one occasion they had a bbq in the car park, from memory lit in an upturned boat filled with logs. They cooked sardines on long sticks stuck in the ground, a foot or so above the heat. Absolutely delicious with local vino bread and salad and very cheap too.
Such a shame all the good places get closed.