This tour combines exploring Girona‘s fascinating medieval history with enjoying the best Mediterranean landscapes in the Costa Brava, the stretch of coast where the Pyrenees meet the sea. The name Costa Brava translates as Wild Coast because of its twisted shoreline, inlets, and cliffs. Tossa de Mar, Begur, or Calella de Palafrugell are some of the charming villages that dot this beautiful area. We’ll get to the Costa Brava in time for lunch, and spend a couple of hours admiring and soaking in the beauty of this coastal region.
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A tour of Girona can also be combined with visiting the village of Besalu for those of you who love medieval villages and/or are interested in exploring the region’s Jewish heritage. Besalú, located on the Fluvià river, was the capital of the county of Besalú in the Middle Ages, and still keeps the remains of ramparts, several medieval churches, and a very handsome Romanesque bridge. Additionally, its medieval mikve is one of the very few of its kind kept in Europe from that period.
If you are interested in Jewish history, and have booked a Barcelona city tour with us, we’ll happily include Barcelona’s Jewish Quarter and the Old Synagogue into the itinerary. We can also add more time to the Girona and Besalu tour and add the Jewish Quarter in Barcelona. Just ask us about your different choices when you contact us. There are traces of Jewish heritage in other towns, such as Tarragona, but not as significant as those in Girona, Besalu, and Barcelona.
If you are crazy about Dali, don’t miss his house in Cadaques before going to the Dali Museum in Figueres. This charming fishing village stands in a delightful setting south of the Cape of Creus, and became a meeting point for artists and intellectuals. Salvador Dali’s house is made up of a maze of several fishermen’s houses that he and his wife Gala built over their lifetime. We’ll see his studio, library, bedroom, garden, and the extraordinary pool before heading to Figueres to pay a visit to his Museum.
This tour explores the two most popular day-trip destinations, Montserrat and Girona, in 8 hours. Montserrat is is a mountain and a sanctuary just one hour southwest of Barcelona. Montserrat’s amazing rock formations create a unique universe in stone. The landscape and the view are absolutely breathtaking! Perched on the mountain, the magnificent Benedictine monastery of Montserrat keeps the revered wooden statue of the Black Madonna inside its basilica. Girona is a beautiful medieval town north of Barcelona, with an impressive cultural heritage and a magnificent and very well preserved medieval historical center. Girona is also known for the town’s long and rich Jewish history. In the middle ages, Girona’s Jewish quarter flourished. Today’s Museum of Jewish History perfectly recreates that period. Other sites worth seeing in Girona are its imposing Cathedral, the church of Sant Feliu, the reflection of the colorful houses on the Onyar River, and the ancient city walls.
Tarragona‘s ancient name was Tarraco, and during the Roman Empire it was a major city and capital of the Roman province called Hispania Citerior. Today, Tarragona is a fascinating mix of Roman and Medieval history. The town’s heart is a maze of narrow cobbled streets crowned with a magnificent cathedral. But even today, Tarragona’s main attractions are the splendid Roman constructions, such as its seaside amphitheater, or the remains of the Circus. Don’t miss this UNESCO World Heritage Site if you have an interest in Roman archeology.
This is the perfect tour for those of you who’d love to have an easy time by the sea. Sitges lies just about 40 minutes to the south of Barcelona, on the coast, and is one of Catalonia’s prettiest beach towns. Luxury villas stand next to Modernista buildings and old fishermen houses, reflecting the mix of the town’s open inhabitants. Sitges always has something surprising to offer, whether you go there in the summer months, for Corpus, or during its famous Carnival. During our time in Sitges, we’ll learn about its history, have time for lunch, or even enjoy some beach time if you’d like.
Combine the morning tour to Tarragona with a stop in Sitges on the way back to Barcelona to enjoy its relaxing and cosmopolitan atmosphere. Sitges is one of Catalonia’s prettiest beach towns, and a great spot for lunch, beach time, or boutique shopping.
This chauffeured tour will take you south to the rural and secluded Priorat wine region. This is a wonderful place for nature lovers, with unspoiled landscapes of vineyards planted in steep terraces, olive and almond trees, and charming villages.
Our first stop will be Scala Dei. The ruins of the Carthusian Monastery of Scala Dei (God’s ladder) lay at the foothills of the Montsant mountain range, in the place where a shepherd had dreamt of angels coming down from heaven using a ladder resting on a very tall pine tree. The ruins of the monastery are open to the public, including its three cloisters, church, refectory, and a reconstructed cell.
After Scala Dei, we’ll visit a great winery so that you can enjoy the expressive, intense, mineral reds Priorat is famous for thanks to the region’s distinctive slate soil, abundance of sunny days, and the hard work of the proud local growers.
