In truth it has been getting harder and harder to write about VP, especially when we know so many people were disappointed not to be able to visit this year for obvious reasons…what do people actually want to hear about we ask ourselves especially when in reality not a huge amount is happening… but I shall try…

Looking back I see last time we were bemoaning the removal of the lifeguard chairs saying how it kind of signalled an end to everything for the year, season over.  And I remember saying that the buoys would be the next to disappear…and how right I was, they were indeed next to vanish (see photo)!  Then the showers got it…then the disabled platform and finally the bins!  All have gone leaving the beach a bit empty, although I must confess it is quite nice to see the beach return to its natural state for the winter.

It is winter where we can see higher than average tides and occasional storms.  One such problem arising from these phenomena, which most readers will be aware of, is the beach erosion and narrowing of a certain section of the naturist beach, south from the hotel breakwater roughly to Cota Zero, El Pirata. 

This central section of the naturist beach has narrowed over the years and this is known to have been caused by the 2 breakwaters at the naturist hotel and at Quitapellejos beach.  While effectively widening the beach there, this central section in turn has narrowed.

The national Direccion General de Puertos y Costas (“Costas”) are responsible for the management of this coastline, not Vera Town Hall as some suspect, and over the last few years they have attempted unsuccessfully to rectify the erosion issues by importing tonnes and tonnes of sand from the far, Puerto Rey end of the beach to ‘our’ section. The problem is that almost as soon as the sand is deposited it washes away again in the next storm or high tides. We understand from a meeting we attended that the Costas didn’t think that this was a permanent fix more that it was part of an observation period.

This covid year, the narrowing of the beach presented more problems to the central section. All was fine while only few people were using the beach in early summer but as soon as the main Spanish holidays began in earnest and native holidaymakers visited en-masse, pressure for space on the sand on that section of beach became more apparent. 

This narrow section was barely enough to accommodate 2 lines of sun worshippers who had to keep the social distance enforced by the Playa Seguros beach warden team.  It reached the point where a makeshift ‘road’ on the sand at the back of the beach had to be created to keep people out so that the emergency vehicles, bin collectors etc could pass without having to weave their way through impenetrable clusters of bodies. 

Both the sanitary guidelines and the narrowness of the beach meant that Alexandra’s sunbeds couldn’t be laid out this year either and water lapped up to the feet of the Pirate Bar. We still have plenty of space elsewhere on the naturist beach but this eroding middle section does represent a real threat to the livelihood of businesses and the homes of many, in addition to the sun worshippers who favour this part of the beach.

We live in hope that the Costas will do something this winter to finally correct the beach.  We know of two solutions proposed to fix this issue, one of which is a 25m breakwater roughly south of the pirate bar and the other more favoured proposal is for there to be a much larger breakwater at Garrucha.

We have also heard rumours that there is talk of extending Garrucha port and perhaps if that were to happen then maybe something would be done then to fix the erosion issues at the same time. It does seem with multiple ships often queuing from the naturist beach to Puerto Rey waiting for their slot to enter the port at Garrucha, that perhaps the port can’t cope with the demand and could do with being larger.

We shall wait and see and report any events happening as and when we see them.  We are hopeful that with a couple of pressure groups on board trying to reach a solution with the Costas and with the erosion being publicised in the media, that something more permanent will eventually be achieved. 

And on a hopefully positive note this Thursday I spotted official land surveyors out measuring the affected part of the beach as my photos below show.

Do get in touch with us in the meantime if you have any further information.

Luckily Vera Playa is a resilient place and still has so much to offer and luckily the beach is long, so we are sure 2021 holds good things for those who can make it here.

With all the news of vaccines slowly being rolled out and the chance for a better holiday season with restrictions on travel inevitably being lifted, 2021 should be the year a lot of people can make up for their lost 2020 holidays.

There certainly does now seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

We have received some enquiries recently from ‘newbie’ naturists. 

It strikes me that quite a few people during lockdown have had the time to re-connect with nature, the environment and themselves. For some, and particularly those lucky enough to have access to private outside space, this manifested itself in a spot of nude sunbathing while Europe especially was basking in some good summer weather.  What better way to feel more at one with the elements than to be in your most natural of states in the sunshine?  And so I do feel this year will prove to be the year many discovered their first taste of the naturist lifestyle.  And what better place to try your first naturist holiday in 2021 than at Vera Playa?  It’s so laidback here, no one could feel more comfortable for their first time.

There are also some fun and adventurous beach activities which will hopefully be returning next season, such as paddleboarding lessons with Lolo, paramotoring above the shore, jet-skiing from Garrucha or the beach volleyball. And for those of us slightly less athletic or daredevil in nature then there’s always floating around in the water or visiting a watering hole for a refreshing drink!

The weather has been fairly kind to us this winter so far, minus the odd blip, and it is certainly still possible to sunbathe quite comfortably from around mid-morning if you are sheltered from any breeze.  In fact it’s a lovely time of the year just to wile away an hour or two in the sunshine without any real fear of getting burnt.  And right now they do keep harping on about keeping your Vitamin D levels up don’t they!  You are reminded why in normal years we have quite a sizeable over-wintering population in VP particularly from Northern European countries.

Winter is always a lovely time of year to tour around and sightsee in other towns, villages and countryside, the outlying areas from VP offering so much to see and do.  Once our own local restrictions are lifted we will be able to hit the road again. Bring it on! There’s only so much ship-spotting and shoal-watching one can take!

All that remains to say is whatever your beliefs or denomination we hope this festive holiday season is kind to you, albeit being a completely different one.   We’ll see you on the other side when I am sure we will all be moving forward with an increased sense of optimism for the New Year.

Have a good one, til next time!