Can you sleep in a motorhome in Spain and Portugal? The law in 2026

In 30 seconds

In Spain, a properly parked motorhome or campervan can stay overnight wherever any other vehicle can park, unless a local by-law restricts or bans it.
Since 1 October 2026, "properly parked" is defined by article 92.4 of the Reglamento General de Circulación (Spain’s General Traffic Regulations, as amended by Real Decreto 518/2026): nothing outside the vehicle’s footprint, resting only on its wheels (levelling chocks are allowed) and no fluids emptied.
Putting out an awning, tables or chairs, or emptying waste water, is no longer parking: it is camping, and camping is regulated by each autonomous community and each municipality.
Protected areas are a separate matter: in national parks, and in Andalusia also in natural parks, you cannot stay overnight outside the designated places.
In Portugal, Lei 66/2021 allows an overnight stay (with people inside, from 22:00 to 7:00) of up to 48 hours in the same municipality if there is no municipal regulation, and bans it in Rede Natura 2000, protected areas and zones covered by the coastal plans, except in authorised places.

Spain: parking is not camping

Real Decreto 518/2026 (Royal Decree), published in the BOE (Spain’s official gazette) on 26 June 2026 and in force since 1 October, added a paragraph 4 to article 92 of the Reglamento General de Circulación. For the first time a national rule says when a motorhome is parked rather than camping. It has to meet three conditions at once:

Nothing extended beyond the vehicle’s footprint: no awning, no tables, no chairs, no steps outside.
Resting only on its tyres. Levelling chocks are expressly allowed; stabiliser legs resting on the ground are not.
No fluids emptied from the living area: neither grey nor black water.

If they are met, sleeping inside is parking, just like leaving a car parked. The DGT (Spain’s traffic authority) was already applying that criterion in its instruction PROT 2026/04 of 16 March 2026: motorhomes stop and park under the same conditions as any other vehicle.

The DGT’s earlier instructions (08/V-74 from 2008 and PROT 2023/14) have been superseded. If a website quotes them to you as the rule in force, it is out of date.

What your town council can still decide

The national rule does not override local by-laws. The DGT instruction itself accepts the 2018 doctrine of the Supreme Court: a town council can limit parking time, reserve areas for motorhomes or ban camping outside authorised places.

That is why the answer to "can I sleep here?" depends on each municipality, and why in VanLife every place says which by-law or council notice covers it and links to it when one exists. Many municipal aires limit stays to 48 or 72 hours.

Natural areas, beaches and the coast

A properly parked motorhome does not give you the right to stay overnight in a protected area:

National parks: their use and management plans ban overnight stays outside authorised places.
Andalusia: Decreto 15/2011 (article 8.4.j) bans parking to stay overnight in all its natural parks, except in designated places.
Beaches: the Ley de Costas (Spain’s Coastal Law, article 33.5) does not allow parking or unauthorised driving of vehicles on the beach.
Natura 2000 network: in Spain it is not a general ban; it depends on the plan for each site.

Portugal: the 48-hour rule

Portugal regulated it earlier, with Lei 66/2021, which amended the Código da Estrada (the Portuguese Highway Code, articles 48.º and 50.º-A). It defines an overnight stay as the motorhome remaining with occupants between 22:00 and 7:00.

Where there is no municipal regulation, you can stay overnight for a maximum of 48 hours in the same municipality.
In places expressly authorised by the municipality, there is no such limit.
Overnight stays and parking are banned in Rede Natura 2000, protected areas and zones covered by the Planos de Ordenamento da Orla Costeira (POOC, the coastal management plans), except in authorised places.

That is precisely the difference with Spain: in Portugal, Rede Natura 2000 is a general ban, and a large part of the coastline falls within it.

How we handle it in VanLife

VanLife brings together 4,785 places to spend the night in Spain and Portugal. 3,315 link to the source their legal status comes from, and 1,931 carry the "Verified" seal, which says whether it comes from a by-law, a council notice or the business licence. If nobody checks a place again, the seal expires. 974 are public aires or car parks with a rule that allows overnight stays, and 1,948 are "tolerated": no known rule bans it, which is not the same as a permit.

Figures by community and region →

Frequently asked questions

Can I sleep in my campervan on the street?

Yes, if it is properly parked (nothing outside its footprint, resting only on its wheels and emptying nothing) and in a place where parking is allowed, unless a local by-law restricts or bans it. That is what article 92.4 of the Reglamento General de Circulación has said since 1 October 2026.

Can I use levelling chocks?

Yes. Article 92.4 expressly allows them. What turns parking into camping is the vehicle resting on something else, such as stabiliser legs.

Can I put out the awning or chairs?

Not on a public road: anything that sticks out beyond the vehicle’s footprint turns parking into camping, and camping is only allowed where regional or municipal rules authorise it (campsites and aires that say so).

How long can I stay?

The Reglamento General de Circulación sets no maximum for a properly parked motorhome, but town councils can limit it by by-law, and many municipal aires set it at 48 or 72 hours. In Portugal, without a municipal regulation, the maximum is 48 hours in the same municipality.

Can I sleep on the beach or in a natural park?

On the beach, no: the Ley de Costas does not allow vehicles to park on it. In national parks and, in Andalusia, in natural parks, only in designated places. In Portugal, not in Rede Natura 2000 or protected areas either, except in authorised places.

Keep reading

Sources

This guide summarises the general rules; it is not legal advice. The final word belongs to the municipal by-law and the signs at the site.

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