If you caught our last episode of Empty Nest Adventures TV, you know we were wrapping up our time in Chaves at a fantastic local guest house. After a quick recovery day to catch our breaths, we woke up on Sunday ready to hit the pavement, explore the Old Town, and officially log our final milestone in Portugal.

But as any motorhome traveler knows, getting out of a town is sometimes half the adventure.

Leaving the N2 Behind (Backwards!)

Before we could officially wave goodbye to Portugal, we had one very important piece of business to settle at the local tourist office. We needed our final passport stamp for the N2.

The funny thing is, Chaves is actually where the iconic N2 route starts. Since we’ve been traveling this region for a while, we technically did the whole thing entirely backwards! But a milestone is a milestone, and with our passports stamped, we were officially ready to explore.

From the modern pedestrian bridge, you get a stunning, unobstructed view of the ancient Roman arch bridge just a little further down the river.

Hot Springs and Hearty Disappointments

Chaves is famous for its geothermal activity, so our first post-stamp stop was the local hot springs. The tourist office let us know there are three distinct springs in the area: one that is comfortably warm, one that is naturally carbonated and bubbly, and one that is unbelievably hot.

We found the hottest one sunken down into a stone plaza. There was actually a warning sign posted noting the water temperature cooks at a blistering 173°F (78°C). Kasey tested the air above it, and yes—you definitely do not want to leave your hand down there for more than a second!

Needing a cool down, we wandered into a nearby plaza facing a beautiful historic church. They had a Ben & Jerry’s sign outside, which felt like an immediate win—until we ordered. It turned out to be a massive disappointment: a tiny, pre-packaged, single-serving cup that was just enough to get a taste and leave you mad that you didn’t just buy a regular popsicle instead!

Inside the Walls of Chaves Old Town

Right off the ice cream plaza, the historic castle walls begin.

Salsa’s Travel Tip: Salsa absolutely loves looking out over old stone ramparts. She hopped right up to check out the views, and from the castle walls, we could look all the way across the city, spot our guest house, and see exactly where Holly was parked.

The narrow, winding streets right next to the castle feel incredibly reminiscent of Venice. The roads are tall and tight, creating a cool, shaded canopy. What makes Chaves unique, though, is the incredible, intricate stonework and ornate detail on the historical doors. Every single house feels completely customized.

Before heading back to the rig, we made a mandatory pit stop at a local dessert stand we’d spotted earlier. Spain is famous for serving thick, warm chocolate (it’s basically liquid pudding) with crispy churros. We grabbed a batch of those, along with a few warm Nutella crepes—a street food staple we’ve loved tracking all the way from Albania, Germany, and Switzerland. It was the perfect final dessert for our last night in Portugal.

Crossing into Spain: When GPS Decides You Need a “Challenge”

The next morning, we filled up Holly’s fresh water tank, emptied the grays, and set our sights on Northern Spain.

Unfortunately, our GPS had a completely different itinerary in mind for getting us out of Chaves. While our navigation system has been pretty flawless across the rest of Europe, Portugal seems to be its kryptonite. Instead of keeping us on perfectly wide, modern roads, it insisted on routing us down incredibly narrow, winding dirt paths.

We made it out unscathed, but we’re pretty sure the GPS just decided Kasey hadn’t been challenged enough behind the wheel lately!

Once we crossed the border into Spain, we hopped off the main highway and onto the N120. If you love scenic driving, this road is an absolute dream. It acts as a perfect complement to the N2—sweeping you high up into the mountains with beautiful twists, turns, and panoramic valleys before dropping you back down. (Though if you prefer straight lines and flat horizons, you might want to skip this one!)

Navigating the Mysteries of San Martín del Camino

As we cruised along the N120 toward our night stop in San Martín del Camino, we started noticing something fascinating: a long, continuous dirt trail running parallel to the main road, packed with hikers sporting heavy backpacks and walking sticks. Many of them had large seashells dangling from their gear.

It didn’t take long to solve the mystery: we were driving directly alongside the world-famous Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route! The history here is incredible—it all stems from a medieval monk who journeyed across Spain to a holy monastery, wrote a manuscript about his route (the 12th-century equivalent of a New York Times bestseller), and created a pioneer’s blueprint that millions of pilgrims still walk today. The trail is lined with specialized hostels, cozy local cafes, and rest stops designed entirely for foot travelers.

We pulled into San Martín’s municipal camper stop around 4:00 PM. It’s a fantastic, well-maintained little spot with just five spaces, completely free gray/black dumps, and fresh water. The town is incredibly welcoming to motorhomes—a local woman pushing a wheelbarrow even went out of her way to pass by and cheerfully call out “Hola!” three times until we responded!

We even made some fantastic new friends from Ireland who were traveling with a gorgeous white Golden Retriever. Salsa spent the whole evening staring longingly through our window screen at her new buddy. Our neighbors gave us some incredible route advice for our upcoming trip to the UK and Ireland—including a tip about a genealogy library near Trinity College in Dublin where you can research your ancestral name. As someone with roots on both sides of my family tree in Ireland, that is officially going on the bucket list.

High Temperatures and Low-User-Friendly Campsites

Leaving San Martín, the Spanish summer decided to turn up the dial. The temperature started climbing rapidly, the breeze completely dropped, and things got incredibly hot inside Holly. For those who don’t know, our vintage rig doesn’t have air conditioning—not even in the front cab while driving!

We pushed through the heat to our next overnight stop: a flat gravel parking lot out in the middle of nowhere, famous for the vibrant, modern murals painted all over the local buildings and public bathhouses.

While the murals were stunning, the campsite setup itself was… unique, to say the least.

Despite the quirky tech, Salsa got to burn off some energy playing fetch in the massive green park next door, and we got a completely peaceful night’s sleep. The next morning, we woke up to a wild sight: the air was so thick with white tree pollen drifting through the streets that it looked exactly like a mid-summer snow flurry.

As we wove Holly back through the tight city streets to leave town, we caught a glimpse of a local dog casually chilling on a balcony surrounded by gorgeous hanging flowers, and just past the ridge, one of Spain’s iconic giant metal silhouette bulls stood guard on the hillside.

We’re officially pulling up the anchor and rolling toward our next destination: a historic, medieval town that quickly skyrocketed into one of our absolute favorite stops of the entire trip.

Entering the Camping-Car Network (Address Not Required!)

As we kept rolling through Northern Spain, we officially experienced a major first for our European tour: our very first stay at a Camping-Car Park site.

If you’re trying to visualize what a Camping-Car spot is like, think of it as a European cousin to Harvest Hosts or staying overnight at a Cracker Barrel—except it’s completely secure, gated, beautifully maintained, and usually comes with electricity!

This specific site was an absolute dream. The crew was out mowing the grass while we were there, everything was sparkling clean, and it gave us a gorgeous, unobstructed view of the historic town of Frías.

Unlike the last tech-heavy campsite, this one had a beautiful shower house with entry codes that were completely free. We punched in the code, checked it out, and it was pristine with plenty of hot water. We were honestly shocked the area wasn’t more popular than it was!

Sticking a Phone Through the Monastery Door

The absolute highlight of our stay happened just outside of town. On our drive in, we had passed a mind-blowing monastery and church built directly into the side of a massive mountain cliff.

Before hitting the road the next morning, we decided to backtrack to explore it. We initially thought it was just a quick kilometer or two down the road and considered walking. Thank goodness we didn’t—it turned out to be nearly 7 kilometers away, and a casual 8-mile round-trip hike is definitely not in our immediate wheelhouse!

The drive back was worth every second. The way the mountains were cut right around the road was incredible, with a beautiful stream and several rushing waterfalls cutting through the canyon.

When we reached the monastery, the main entrance door was completely locked up tight. However, I noticed a tiny, square opening right at the very bottom of the heavy wood door—almost like a historic cat flap.

I told Rodney, “I’m sticking my phone in there!”

With other tourists walking up and watching, I bent completely over, slid my phone through the bottom of the door, turned the flash on, and started snapping away blind. The results were incredible! The interior was completely done up and beautifully maintained for active church services. We have absolutely no idea when they hold services there, but getting a secret peek inside was a total thrill.

If you are ever driving through Northern Spain, we highly, highly recommend taking Holly’s route through Frías. It is incredibly picturesque, beautifully medieval, and a place we will absolutely be returning to.

Canyons, Ruins, and the Infamous School Rush Hour

Leaving Frías, we hit what might just be one of the best scenic drives we’ve had on this entire European journey.

Following a tip we’d picked up from someone back in San Martín del Camino, we found ourselves on a jaw-dropping road that hugged a massive river reservoir. The mountains dropped straight down into the water, and the road literally tunneled right through the rock faces as we drove along the gorge.

Eventually, the canyon opened up into a valley where we passed a massive, active construction zone. From the looks of it (and what we could decipher from the Spanish signs), it looked like a major archaeological excavation where they were actively reclaiming ancient stone ruins.

Driving the Loaded Loading Zone

Our first mission in the next town was tracking down a grocery store and picking up some highly anticipated Amazon packages.

Finding parking for an 8-meter motorhome in a bustling Spanish town center is always a sport, and sure enough, every single parking lot I had pre-selected was completely packed to the gills. We were able to find a loading zone for Kasey and Salsa to sit in the camper, while Rodney ran down the street to get the packages.

With the packages successfully secured, we just had to weave our way across town to our designated overnight parking lot. And because the universe loves a joke, we managed to hit the town center at the exact minute the local schools let out.

It never fails! Suddenly we were navigating an 8-meter rig through a sea of kids on bicycles, chaotic scooters, parents triple-parking their cars, and children running everywhere. It was a tight, white-knuckle weave, but we made it through safely.

Turning Up the Heat: Our Last Night in Spain

Our final campsite in Spain was a simple, clean municipal parking lot equipped with picnic tables and plenty of recycling bins. It was supposed to have a functional water station, but it was completely out of order.

It also featured a single electric outlet box that some poor soul had completely fried—the entire socket was charred pitch black! Someone else actually risked plugging their cord into it later that evening, but we valued our electrical system a bit too much to try our luck.

And then, the heat officially caught up with us.

It was another brutally hot, breathless night. Thankfully, we managed to grab a spot that caught the afternoon shadow of a nearby building and a large tree, giving us just enough relief to survive the evening.

This stop perfectly reinforced our “Rule of 3.” We always try to have Holly parked and settled by 3:00 PM. When we pulled in, there were only two or three other campers there. By 9:00 PM—an hour before the sun even thinks about setting over here—the entire lot was completely full. If you don’t find your dirt or gravel by mid-afternoon in the summer season, you are going to get left out in the cold (or in this case, the extreme heat!).

That steamy night officially marked our very last night in Spain. We absolutely adore this country, the medieval architecture, and the incredible hospitality we’ve experienced at every single stop.

But the summer heatwave isn’t done with us yet. Next up, we are pulling the anchor, crossing the border, and taking Holly up through France—and let me tell you, things are about to get seriously steamy on the next episode of Empty Nest Adventures TV!

Join the Adventure!

Don’t miss the secret phone-camera footage from inside the locked monastery or our tight squeeze through Spanish school traffic. [Head over to YouTube and watch the full vlog right now!]

Stay tuned for the next post to see if it lives up to the hype!