The Grand Tour of Catalonia: A catalan roadtrip

A vehicle, a GPS and good music to accompany you during the route: this is all you will need to rediscover Catalonia along a circular route throughout the territory with more than 350 points of interest and 2,000 kilometers.

We invite you to rediscover a land of contrasts. The place where the Pyrenees merge with the Mediterranean; where the modernism of Gaudí or Domènech and Montaner contrasts with Romanesque jewels such as the Romanesque complex of Vall de Boí or the monasteries of Poblet or Santes Creus; where the cosmopolitan Barcelona is complemented by the medieval towns with inland charm and where the landscape of the Priorat vineyards is juxtaposed in a perfect pairing with the fishing villages along the more than 500 kilometers of coastline that run through northern Catalonia. to the south, and where the Plana de Vic contrasts with the more than 40 volcanoes of the Garrotxa Volcanic Zone.

A land of opportunities and welcome that has been the gateway and space for coexistence of various cultures and ideas that have left us with a heritage and cultural identity, both material and intangible, as singular as it is unique.

A land where landscape and culture mix like the flavors of that traditional recipe that the Roca Brothers have reinterpreted and prepared with rice from the Ebre Delta, Anchovies from L'Escala and that cheese made with Ripollesa sheep's milk and water from sea.

Welcome to the Grand Tour de Catalunya.

WHAT IS THE GRAND TOUR OF CATALONIA?

We are a land of small dimensions and short distances, in which in a few hours you can be planted from the sea in the mountains, but we offer you endless adventures, routes and infinite sensations.

There is always a pending corner waiting to be discovered and it is for this reason that the Grand Tour de Catalunya was born, the first proposal that allows exploring both the most iconic and the most unpublished corners of Catalonia, in order to make the culture, nature, the pleasures of the palate, urban landscapes and the most rural environments of the country.

Inspired by the great literary journeys of the 19th century bourgeoisie, the Grand Tour of Catalonia is a circular route of more than 2000 kilometers in which, having Barcelona as the starting and ending point, you will travel the four Catalan provinces in the sense of the clockwise discovering more than three hundred and fifty points of interest and four hundred proposals and activities with a slow essence. Based on responsible tourism, you will become familiar with and delve into the customs and traditions of each part of the territory, the locals every day, and you will get to know the local producers and products first-hand.

HOW TO DO THE GRAND TOUR OF CATALUNYA AND WHERE TO START?

To do this itinerary planned as a road trip, you only have to start the engine of your vehicle, program the GPS, have your playlist ready with that music that we know you love and head to Barcelona, (if you don't live there) which is start point. The itinerary by car is part of the experience, that is why it runs along roads with high scenic value that will allow you to enjoy the environment away from the crowds.

The Grand Tour de Catalunya is more than an itinerary. It is an adventure within an adventure, and the more than two thousand kilometers that make up the route are divided into 5 different sections that will allow you to soak up the essence of each region. Each section lasts between 5 and 7 days or stages (each day is equivalent to one stage) and unites the great icons and monuments of said section with at least five typical experiences or activities such as tastings of typical products paired with an excellent local wine, visits to unique architectural spaces, or delve into natural places through routes on foot or by bicycle.

The sections that make up the Grand Tour de Catalunya are the following:

Section 1: Barcelona - Tarragona (462 km - 6 stages)
Section 2: Tarragona - Lleida (418 km - 7 stages)
Section 3: Lleida - La Seu d'Urgell (357 km - 5 stages)
Section 4: La Seu d'Urgell - Figueres (357 km - 5 stages)
Section 5: Figueres - Barcelona (525 km - 7 stages)

It is advisable that if you intend to do any of the sections, or all of them, you spend some time programming and planning the accommodation, since at the moment, there is no type of accommodation attached to the route.

A COMMITMENT TO SUSTAINABILITY

This route promoted by the Catalan Tourism Agency (ACT) is a clear commitment to local and sustainable tourism. An invitation to consciously and respectfully enjoy the territory and its people, customs, culture and traditions, so that you can fully enjoy everything that this magnificent land offers you.

A route, which is the result of cooperation and collaboration between the different agencies in charge of planning and promoting tourism in Catalonia and the provinces, represents an opportunity to distribute tourism demand and supply throughout the entire territory to combat overcrowding, redistribute the wealth generated by tourist activity throughout the Catalan territory, generate new business opportunities for companies in the sector, reduce the seasonality of tourist seasons and promote a sustainable and respectful tourism model, where local culture and territory are the axes central.