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Local Area - Welcome to Catalonia
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The Costa Brava starts at the border with France and stretches down to Blanes, 60km north of Barcelona. The rugged coastline is renowned for small creeks and spectacular scenery and it is a popular destination throughout the year for walking and other leisure activities. The warm Mediterranean climate of Catalunya, along with its historic towns, gastronomic delights and rich cultural heritage makes Catalonia a perfect choice for your holiday in Spain |
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Places to Visit Include:
For detailed information about Catalunya visit www.turismedecatalunya.com. The initial page is in Catalan but once you click on Saltar Intro, you can select English from the Language options.
Calonge
A historic local town with a few bars, shops and restaurants offering
good value menu del dias (3 course meals with wine). The castle of Calonge,
originally built in 1019 has recently been refurbished.
This fishing port
at the eastern end of Palamos 
bay
was founded in 1277 and soon became an important naval base. In the 19th
century Palamos was the chief export harbour for Catalonia's cork industry
and despite the growth of tourism the town retains a significant commercial
base today. The fishing fleet still sails each day from Palamos and its
arrival each afternoon is followed by a lively fish auction by the harbour.
To the north of Palamos are two good sandy beaches, Platja de la Fosca
and Platja de Castell
Playa
d'Aro
Over the last 50 years Platja d'Aro has grown into the Costa Brava's second
largest resort, with a population that rises from 3,000 in winter to more
than 100,000 in summer, The beach is 3km of golden sand; the nightlife
is legendary and there are numerous activities for children. From discos
to watersports, whatever you want in Platja d'Aro is probably there.
St.
Pol
St. Pol is the sandy bay fronting the exclusive villa development of S'Agaro.
Built in clasical noucentisa style, the resort is an attractive mix of
italianate villas, landscaped gardens and delightful coastal promenade
around a succession of rocky coves. Film stars and politicians have long
flocked to S'Agaros famous hotel, Hostal de la Gavina, designed by Maso
as a Gothic villa and given a more austere classical style by Folguera.
St
Feliu De Guixols
This used to be the Costa Brava's busiest resort. It's an unexpectedly
handsome and dignified town, where most of the building took place before
the 1960s high-rise boom. Fishing and boat building are important industries
and during the 19th century the town grew rich on the export trade in
cork.
The main beach is a wide arc of sand with a fishing harbour at its north end. From the beachfront promenade, Rambla vidal leads into the old town of narrow streets and squares. The market square contains an unusual 1929 market hall, with art deco touches and bright stained glass. From the southern end of the beach, a road climbs 2 km to the chapel of Sant Elm. A tourist train runs up here regularly in summer.
La Bisbal is best knows as the centre of the Catalan ceramics industry. Its most abiding image and the only one that many visitors see, is the dozens of pottery shops lining Carrer de l'Aigueta on the Girona road. There are good bargains to be had if you shop around, from simple glazed terracotta pots to innovative local designs.
Llafranc
A
picturesque fishing village, popular with discerning British since the
1960's, yet still retaining its charm. Pine trees shade a beachfront promenade
and yachts flutter in the small marina beside a perfect bay, where tamarisks
grow out of the rocks around an arc of fine sand. A coastal path leads
to Calella de Palafrugell or you can walk or drive up to the lighthouse
at Cap de Sant Sebastian for views back down over Llafranc.
Calella
de Palafrugell
This pleasant resort consists of a series of coarse, sandy beaches strung
out beneath an old fishing village. The village now includes a few whitewashed
holiday villas, but it has lost none of its original charm. You can still
see working fishermen here, and fishing boats on the sand add a splash
of colour to the scene. The people of Palagrugell and beyond head to Calella
at weekends to eat at the waterfront seafood restaurants, especially during
the late winter, when sea urchins are on the menu.
A cliff path from Calella leads around to the next bay at Llafranc. At the other end of the village, high above the bay, is the Jardi Botanic de Cap Roig, a beautiful garden that has hundreds of Mediterranean plants, tall cedars and pine trees.
Aiqua
Blava
The
stunning bay of Aiqua Blava houses a small sandy beach and a few beachside
restuarants, a haven for yatchs. The bay at Aiguablava is overlooked by
the Parador hotel, built on the cliffs to take advantage of the views.
Across the bay is the chic resort of Fornells, little more than a marina,
a smart hotel and a pair of tiny beaches. North of here are more small
coves - Sa Riera, with views over the Medes islands and Aiguafreda and
Sa Tuna, linked by a footpath cut into the rock.
Palafrugell
A growing
community of British expatriates has been attacted to this busy market
town on the edge of the Lower Emporda plain. They are drawn to its down-to-earth
Catalan atosphere and to the excellent nearby beaches. It was once an
important centre of cork production and the Museu del Suro (cork museum)
has some interesting displays on the history of the cork industry, as
well as a selection of artefacts made from cork. The best time to visit
Palagrugell is on Sunday, when the streets fill with stalls for one of
the region's liveliest markets.
Girona
The ancient city of Girona is 30 minutes by car and has many museums,
shops (including El Corte Ingles) and restaurants.
The city is bisected by the river Onyar, which separates the modern city,
from the narrow cobbled streets and steep stairways of the old town. Built
right on the banks of the Onyar are ochre coloured houses, forming a colourful
parade. The river is spanned by several bridges, including one by Gustav
Eiffel, responsible for the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the design of New
York's Statue of Liberty.
Barcelona
Barcelona - A fascinating city, the capital of Catalunya. See the Olympic
village, the Ramblas, the fountains, the Cathedral then visit Port Vell
or Port Olympic for a choice of over 100 seafront restaurants.
Don't
forget to visit Gaudi's Segrada Familia, the unfinished church and his
many other architectural wonders throughout the city.
At 50 kilometers
from Barcelona to the northwest is the massif of Serra del Montserrat.
This mountain is also called "La muntanya dels cent cims" (The
100 Peak Mountain).
Nestled between the peaks for centuries the famous "Monestir de Montserrat"
(Monastery of Montserrat) is the centre of the Catalan faith. It contains
and protects the "La Moroneta", the Black Madonna and a great
collection of famous paintings.
This site is one of the most visited tourist places of Catalonia and the
problem of the accessibility of the pilgrims and the tourists was solved
by the construction, in 1892, of a cog wheel train from Monistrol de Montserrat
to the Monastery and later a faster way was built with an aerial cable
car (gondolas) from a new train station down in the valley.
Local Markets
| Sunday | Palafrugell L'Escala, St. Feliu de Guixols. |
| Monday | Torroella de Montgri, Cadaques. |
| Tuesday | Palamos, Pals, Girona |
| Wednesday | Begur. St. Antonio de Calonge, Banyoles. |
| Thursday | L'Estartit, Figueres, Calonge |
| Friday | La Bisbal, Platja d'Aro |
| Saturday | Girona, Mont-ras. |
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