Entry Requirements for Spain 2025

[Cheltourer]

Hello, I am planning a touring trip to Spain later on in September arriving by ferry, staying a mixture of hotels & camping.
I will probably book the first night's accommodation but as a solo cyclist I am not going to book for every night that I am touring.
I have had a look at the UK Gov website and it says you need proof of finances and accommodation.
What are the experiences of cycle tourists on entering Spain with these requirements this year?
Thanks

[pnefc]

Hi

I was there in July and was unaware of any entry requirements. Arriving in Santander I wasn't asked any questions regarding accomodation or finances and I was astride my bike at border control.

They still record your details in every hotel/hostal...some have online capabilities others have paper forms and photocopy your passport.

Cheers Gary

[simonhill]

Almost every (if not all) countries have entry requirements. Those for Spain (and EU) haven't changed. They are there as fall back for less desirable entrants and rarely if ever applied to bona fide tourists.

I have travelled to Spain, Portugal and France and back into Spain from Gibraltar since Brexit and have never been questioned, only a passport stamp.

If they started to get stroppy, then the carrier to that country would be liable to repatriate you. At that point you would see the ferries and the planes doing the checking.

[pwa]

We did a tour of eastern France in our camper last year and nobody was the slightest bit interested in our accommodation. A quick passport check, a look at the paperwork for the dog, and that was it. Isn't Spain just the same? We are tourists, and Spain wants tourists.

[st599_uk]

Legally you need proof of funds and accommodation (in France, the funds required depend on the type of accommodation, not sure is Spain is the same)

Whether they check or not is up to the Border guard - I've only been checked in Germany during Covid. It seems to be dependent on how long you're staying or if you're traveling for business.

[Jdsk]

GOV.UK on entry requirements for Spain:
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advic ... quirements
includes:
At Spanish border control, you may need to show:
a return or onward ticket
proof of your travel insurance
you have enough money for your stay - the amount varies depending on your accommodation
a hotel booking confirmation or proof of address if you’re staying at your own property
an invitation or proof of address if staying with a third party, friends or family, such as a ‘carta de invitation’ completed by your hosts

And I haven't heard of any checking of funds or accommodation.

Jonathan

[Cheltourer]

Thank you every body for replying to this. I have not cycled in Spain for 10 years and was wondering about entry requirements post Brexit

[mjr]

Almost every (if not all) countries have entry requirements. Those for Spain (and EU) haven't changed. They are there as fall back for less desirable entrants and rarely if ever applied to bona fide tourists.

I have travelled to Spain, Portugal and France and back into Spain from Gibraltar since Brexit and have never been questioned, only a passport stamp.

I'm guessing you... how shall we say this... look like the majority, as do I in most ways. I've definitely seen checks applied to bona fide tourists who look different to me. I suspect someone in power may get annoyed by this eventually and the random checks will become truly random (but the intelligence-led ones will remain extra).

So why not carry the tickets, accommodation address, and proof of money & insurance, unless you enjoy risking it?

And probably go to a better country that doesn't have a helmet law. Like Portugal or France.

[Navrig]

Almost every (if not all) countries have entry requirements. Those for Spain (and EU) haven't changed. They are there as fall back for less desirable entrants and rarely if ever applied to bona fide tourists.

I have travelled to Spain, Portugal and France and back into Spain from Gibraltar since Brexit and have never been questioned, only a passport stamp.

I'm guessing you... how shall we say this... look like the majority, as do I in most ways. I've definitely seen checks applied to bona fide tourists who look different to me. I suspect someone in power may get annoyed by this eventually and the random checks will become truly random (but the intelligence-led ones will remain extra).

So why not carry the tickets, accommodation address, and proof of money & insurance, unless you enjoy risking it?

And probably go to a better country that doesn't have a helmet law. Like Portugal or France.

Proof of finances - Valid credit and debit card with access to the account on your phone.
Accommodation - with the likes of booking.com you can have one night or several weeks booked in advance and as soon as you leave the immigration check you can cancel them all.

So pretty pointless really. The checks are there for those people they don't want to let in and who don't have a legitimate entitlement to claim asylum.

I have a friend who works in Vietnam. She moved back to Vietnam (after Covid) in 2023. At the check in desk at the airport they refused to let her board as her ticket was one-way. They needed to see a return ticket or an onward journey ticket. She argued that she was going to work and that there was no end date other than her contract, 2 years hence. It took a lot of arguing and phone calling to be allowed to board the plane.

The usual process is to book a bus ticket from HCMC to Phnom Penh and have that as prove of intent to leave the country. The bus ticket costs a few dollars and you throw it away once you arrive.

[rareposter]

What are the experiences of cycle tourists on entering Spain with these requirements this year?

I've been to Spain for cycle tours / holidays multiple times since Brexit and, although I'm aware of those rules linked above, I've never once been questioned on any aspect of them, never once had to show any documentation other than my passport at point of entry.

As others have mentioned above, it's one of those "rules they can use if they have to", they're certainly not checking every tourist entering the country.

[mjr]

[...] So pretty pointless really. [...]

Oh for sure, but it's pretty cheap and easy for most of us to have the required evidence with us, so I don't see why you'd risk having your trip ended before it begins by not doing so.

And I really don't understand advising others to gamble.

And really really don't understand anyone taking advice from random internet forum people to gamble!

[Navrig]

[...] So pretty pointless really. [...]

Oh for sure, but it's pretty cheap and easy for most of us to have the required evidence with us, so I don't see why you'd risk having your trip ended before it begins by not doing so.

And I really don't understand advising others to gamble.

And really really don't understand anyone taking advice from random internet forum people to gamble!

It's not really a risk though, is it?

[mjr]

[...] So pretty pointless really. [...]

Oh for sure, but it's pretty cheap and easy for most of us to have the required evidence with us, so I don't see why you'd risk having your trip ended before it begins by not doing so.

And I really don't understand advising others to gamble.

And really really don't understand anyone taking advice from random internet forum people to gamble!

It's not really a risk though, is it?

It's a small risk. Frontex says about 50 UK passport holders a year are denied entry to the Schengen area due to "insufficient means of subsistence".

[Navrig]

Oh for sure, but it's pretty cheap and easy for most of us to have the required evidence with us, so I don't see why you'd risk having your trip ended before it begins by not doing so.

And I really don't understand advising others to gamble.

And really really don't understand anyone taking advice from random internet forum people to gamble!

It's not really a risk though, is it?

It's a small risk. Frontex says about 50 UK passport holders a year are denied entry to the Schengen area due to "insufficient means of subsistence".

Out of millions of entries from UK to Schengen.

[st599_uk]

That doesn't include the numbers who tried to get a tourist visa and failed. I know a few sailors who couldn't get a french tourist visa as their boat doesn't count as accommodation, they then need significantly higher income.