Rediscover the Costa Brava

A route for the soul of the Costa Brava

The Costa Brava is the name given to the coastline of the province of Gerona. It is a captivating environment 214 km of coastline which includes the counties of Alt and Baix Empordà, the Alt Empordà, Pla de l'Estany and jungle, and extending between Blanes in the south and the French coast north.

The Costa Brava has everything you need to enjoy a memorable weekend: nature, beaches and forests-historic remains and artistic world famous and a Mediterranean climate with 2500 hours of sunshine a year.

The route

It is impossible abastar the Costa Brava in one route and, therefore, in this first part we will focus on the most southern, the one on the region of the Forest i populations as Blanes, Lloret de Mar, Tossa de Mar, Caldes of Malavella and Hostalric. The common element in all of them is water, omnipresent throughout the whole journey, both in the form of sea water as healing.

The population from which this route begins and Blanes Costa Brava is a medieval city that has one of the longest beaches of Girona. If you walk along the old town are homes nineteenth and many examples of Gothic architecture, such as portal or source Mont hex Broad Street.

In addition you can also visit the gardens of the town recognized internationally: Marimurtra Botanical Garden, one of the most beautiful in Europe with more than 4,000 species of plants arranged in three areas: tropical, temperate and Mediterranean, and the Rose Garden Pinya that cactus hosts the most important collection in the world with 7,000 species.

If you continue north, then you will reach Blanes Lloret de Mar, the most touristic city of the Costa Brava. Despite this, still has places of interest, such as the Iberian settlement of Castellet Puig (lived in the IV century BC), the gardens of Santa Clotilde (near the Boadella nudist beach) and several house of Indians . And surprisingly enough, you must visit the cemetery, a modernist work with tombs and mausoleums made by Puig. It is, therefore, a city of great contrasts in cultural tourism also can make all kinds of sports activities, from golf to scuba diving.

Eleven miles north of Lloret, find, Tossa de Mar, one of the most charms fishing villages of the Costa Brava. The call Vila Vella is the only example of a fortified medieval town that still exists in the Catalan coast, with three hundred meters of walls crowned with battlements and seven towers of defense. XII century and inside there are eighty houses fifteenth and sixteenth century that are still inhabited. Since 1931 is considered a National Historic Monument.
This city has so much appeal that even the actress Ava Gardner lived for a time in it while filming The Barefoot Contessa.

Already into the region, halfway the Costa Brava and the Sierra de las Guilleries we recommend you visit Caldes de Malavella, famous mainly for its medicinal waters of 60 ° C, the product of ground failure and subsurface geothermal activity. In fact, already during the Roman period under the name of Aquae Calidae, the town was known for its health benefits since the late nineteenth century became an important resort where wealthy families would Barcelona. Of all the resorts highlight the Vichy Catalan, which originated in the golden age of modernism and the "noucentisme" and is one of the largest in the country.

And ten kilometers south of Caldes will arrive at the end of the route, to the fortified city of Hostalric. The fort is the old Camino Real and was created in 1145 to monitor Tordera River Delta. They retain about 600 meters of wall and the whole has been declared a historic monument. You can also visit Relligur cave, 26 meters long ending in a room is 6 meters deep. Legend has it that perhaps served the Jewish families of the village to meet in secret.

How to get to the Costa Brava?

• If you come by road must know that the AP-7 crosses the Costa Brava from north to south, and the N-440.
  There are bus connections with major European cities towns of the Costa Brava.
• If you come by plane you can choose a flight that lands at the airport of Gerona or Barcelona.
• If you prefer to arrive by train, it is important to know that RENFE station does not have all the main towns. Before traveling consult their website www.renfe.es .

When to go?

Any time of year is good to get lost in the Costa Brava. Both summer in winter how you can take advantage of the room to sunbathe, Various sports related to the sea or relaxing walks through the historic areas of the interior.