Hello,

In early May, I am planning to spend time driving along the Spanish coast between Barcelona and the France border exploring Spanish hillside towns that have nice views of the Mediterranean. I posted a similar message on the message boards for France because I will be looking on that side of the border too. But I've put up another post here because I thought there might be some people who are familiar with this southeastern corner of Spain who more frequently look at this board.

Friends have told me that Cadeques is precisely the kind of topography that I am looking for, but I am very interested to learn of other hilly Catalonian towns where people live in full view of the Mediterranean near France.

I am probably not going to go any further west than Girona, but if you know of a hilltown further west along the coast, I would like to hear about it. But I am certain I am not going as far as Barcelona.

Just about the only hilltowns I would not be interested in visiting are ones with large colonies of English-speaking ex-pats or ones which have very noticeable industrial development that mars the sea view.

Many thanks in advance! Muchas gracias!

Yes, Cadaques seems to be what you are looking for but also Port de la Selva, a small fishing village situated on the way to Cap de Creus with a natural harbour surrounded by mountains. The village is very popular with windsurfers, national tourism especially the Barcelona upper class and is also visited by many French tourist. Worth a visit.

Thank you, Maria. How long would it take to drive from the French border to Begur?

From pictures, it looks like an extremely pretty town. Is it?

Yes, Begur is also a typical small fishing village built around a hill. It's just 90km from the French border. I think it takes about 90 minutes to drive from there.

Thank you very much. I will be renting an apartment or house somewhere right on the border. Can you recommend a rental service for that area or do you know of a rental?

I have seen pictures of Colliobue on the French side and that also looks like a nice place to rent. Is there any reason to prefer the French side to the Spanish side or vice versa?

I like both kinds of food, and am mainly looking for a place where it will be quiet, but also simple to find a restaurant that I can walk to.

Sorry! I meant to spell Collioure.

I don't know Collioure but I prefer the spanish side.
Don't worry about restaurants, you will find more than one in most villages.
Visit the Catalunya Tourism website to find accommodation and other important inofrmation: Catalunya Tourism

Colioure is nice, and there is a coastal train to add to flexibility.

In Spain we really like Calella de Palafruguells, and coastal walks from there to Tiramiu.

When in the area do not miss Empúries (Ampurias in Spanish), a gorgeous Roman and Greek town on the coast near Cadaqués.

Thanks to all of you for these many tips and hints. It is very hard to find detailed information about this area. Having the names of these little towns means I can do Google searches that turn out to be very rewarding. So I really appreciate your input.

We have decided to fly to Montpellier, rent a car and spend 3 days in Collioure and 3 days in Cadaques (at the Hotel Playa Sol). That should give us time for a lot of exploration of this area, including trips up into the mountains.

After that, we plan to head north to San Sebastian, probably through France, so we will be looking for a scenic route through the mountains from Cadaques back into France if that is possible.

In San Sebastian, we plan to stay in the Hotel Niza for a few nights and eat lunch in Bilbao (as well as taking a gander at the Guggenheim).

Your plan sounds great!
I went to San Sebastian (from Italy) past November through France and the area is really nice!
San Sebastian and Bilbao are great places if you like wandering around, architecture and good food and wine!

Thank you, Giulia.

I would be very interested to read a report of your trip: the route you took in France, where you stayed and what you ate and where!

Did you visit any other seaside towns near San Sebastian? I can't tell from reading about them whether they are touristy or "off the beaten track."

mycosta_sud,
I'm in Madrid at the moment and all my travel notes are in Urbino (this is one of the problems of being a "nomad": the thing you look for is NEVER where you are! ).
I will try and remember as much as I can and post it. I'm sorry I will not be able to suggest any restaurant as I was caravaning and in France I LOVE buying in local markets and preparing my own meals most of the times and when I don't I usually have things like a quiche or some pastry, not real meals.
I'll be back soon with the info!

Collioure is a beautiful town; several of the Fauves painted there. A nearby lovely town is Banyuls-sur-Mer, high up with beautiful views of the Mediterranean and the little sardine fishing boats. You can see the Pyrenees in the other direction.

M

No rush, Giulia! Thank you. I hope you are enjoying your stay in Madrid. Is the Prado completely renovated now? I have my fingers crossed they didn't ruin it! It is one of my favorite museums.

Marian,

The way my travel plans are working out, it seems I will be able to take a nice long time inching my way west along the Mediterranean from just a bit east of Collioure all the way to Barcelona.

mycosta_sud,
I'm not visiting Madrid... well, I live here 6 months a year and, even if I took a sabbatical this year I have to admit that I haven't recently visited the Prado Museum!
They're still renovating the building between the Prado and the Parque del Retiro that will be a new wing, and they ended the renovation of the Reina Sofia Museum with a brand new super modern wing.
Did you read my post about Matadero Madrid? That will be THE place to visit in Madrid!

The website it quite impressive.

Do you enjoy the Circulo des Bellas Artes in Madrid? I found it a lovely place to relax and have a lunch or a drink when I was in Madrid. I don't know Madrid very well, but I also enjoyed the area around the Temple Debold. (And everywhere I went, I was served good food. I especially liked a tapas place I gather is well-known whose name is Bocaito.)

I can't post photos of the Matadero as it is today (as I think I was not really really supposed to take them ) but I can e-mail some if you are interested (or to anybody else interested in seeing them), you can find my e-mail in my profile.
The place itself is really impressive and the project also sounds great! It will be a much more lively place than the existing museum areas in Madrid that is located in a quite touristy area that people from Madrid don't really frequent a lot unless they work in the area.
I really like Círculo de Bellas Artes exactly because it's a place where you can also just linger around and relax.
Generally speaking food in Spain is good, but wait until you try Basque cooking!!!

Thank you, Giulia, but I don't have the kind of e-mail set up that easily accepts photos. I will wait until you can post them here and share them with everyone.

I am looking at a number of flight options in and out of Spain, at least one of which would keep me in Madrid overnight until I fly back to the US. So maybe I will relax over a drink at the Circulo de Bellas Artes.

You mention travelling to San Sebastian which is a superb town to visit. So too is Hondarribia which is on the border with France. It has a charming medieval quarter and a lovely maritime district. Also worth visiting is the town of Zarautz just west of San Sebastian from which you can walk from, to the next fishing town called Getaria which has a very pleasant port with excellent fish restaurants. A little known but delicious wine called called txacoli (chacoli) is produced in this area. The vineyards are on the hills just above the town, facing out to sea.

Thank you, Ken. I just booked for 3 days in San Sebastian, and I'm quite pleased about it. However, I won't have a car until I leave San Sebastian. Is it easy to visit Zarutz by bus? Would it make a nice day to take a bus to Zarutz in the morning and walk to Getaria for lunch, then get a bus or taxi back again to San Sebastian? Any idea how much a taxi would cost?

Any channce boats go between these areas?

I had heard about Hondarribia but didn't know where it is. If it's not to difficult to take a car there and park, maybe I will do that after I pick one up from San Sebastian. Is its old quarter very different from the historic centre of San Sebastian?

Thanks!

PS to everyone: My trip is coming along very nicely. I think I am going to have the luxury of seeing a lot of pretty beach towns, north and south, at a very slow pace, and eat very well. Thank you all very much.