Walk through the Noucentista chalets of Salou

The beginning of tourism in Salou is associated with modernism. Did you know? There are two factors that explain it. On the one hand, there is the fact that the first tourist buildings in the capital of the Costa Daurada were built in the twenties of the last century, in the midst of this movement. And on the other, in addition to the chronological coincidence, in that the good economic situation of the promoters of the first summer houses that were built in the surroundings of the current Paseo Jaime I, facilitated that the outbreak of tourism in the town revolved around the modernism. Today it is part of their DNA.

If you want to follow this trace in time, we propose a route that you can start with Chalet Bonet or Voramar, one of the most unique and the first to be built in Salou. The works began in 1921, as a result of the impulse given by the textile entrepreneur Cirac Bonet y Escarrer. Although Cirac had a house in Reus, his passion for the beach promoted the construction of this jewel of late modernism.

Two years later, the Pellicer-Querol family promoted the construction of Vil·la Enriqueta. The building was inaugurated on the occasion of the wedding of the married couple's daughter. During the Spanish civil war, the building changed its use to become the headquarters of the republican command.

The Chalet Loperena, built in 1925 by the architect Domènech Sugranyes, is in the Noucentist style. The house, owned by Josep Loperena i Romà, stands out above all for the lookout tower and the glazed ceramics that were used for the realization of the shields of Catalonia and Sant Pere.

The architect Domènech Sugranyes is also the author of the Sol i Mar building. This building dates from 1925 and is the first tourist apartment building to be built in Salou. It was probably created to rent apartments for the first vacationers who came to the villa. The construction is modernist with eclectic solutions.

The Mallorquin or German Chalet dates from 1928 and has a colonial air from the late 20th century. When you visit it, take a look at the detail of the three windows, which are a copy of the Catalan Gothic style.

The Chalet Recasens or Torremar, which now houses the headquarters of the Municipal Tourist Board of Salou, was built between 1928 and 1929. It is the work of the architect Josep Simó Bofarull under the impulse of Eduard Recasens.

The route cannot end without visiting the Chalet Miarnau Navàs or the Virgen de la Pineda. The property is in a noucentist style. Its promoter, Josep Maria Miarnau, was a native of Vila-seca and commissioned the work to his son, also Josep Maria. The work includes a reproduction of the Virgen de la Pineda.

Source: Salou Tourist Board