The pinada, some 800 hectares of pine planted on the dunes between 1897 and 1929, runs between the centre of Guardamar and the beaches of Babilonia and Els Vivers, split into the Parque Alfonso XIII and the Parque Reina Sofía. Cars stay out of it. You leave the car at the edge and walk through the trees to the sand.
Which is how keys end up locked inside: put down on the seat while you get the towels out, dropped in the boot with the cool box, left in a bag on the back seat.
Go round the car once more
- Every door and the boot. Modern cars lock all doors together, but not always the boot, and a rear door is sometimes missed.
- The other key. If anyone in your group has a second key, or one is at home, that is the quickest answer.
- A hire car? Ring the hire company first: many include roadside help.
Three mistakes to avoid by the pines
- Do not break a window. Glass in modern cars is expensive, and broken glass in a car park is a hazard for everyone, children and dogs especially.
- Do not use a coat hanger or a wedge. Modern doors have airbag sensors and wiring in the frame, and forcing a gap bends the door so it whistles for ever after.
- Do not leave a child or a dog in a hot car while you wait. If one is locked inside on a sunny day, ring 112 first.
Have these to hand before anyone arrives
- The make, model and year of the car.
- Where it is: which side of the pinada, which car park, and a pin on WhatsApp.
- Something that shows it is yours to open: the registration document or rental agreement on your phone, and an ID. You will be asked before the car is touched.
And if the key is lost, not locked in
If the key is gone, in the sand or in the sea, opening the car will not help you drive it home. That needs the car’s main dealer. The job here is opening the car, which is only half the answer when the key itself is gone.
If you are in one of the urbanizations rather than at the pinada, the guide on describing a house in El Raso works just as well for a car park. Areas covered are listed on the coverage page, and for a business owner with a shutter that will not open on the same morning, see reopening a beach shop in spring.