10 days in the Costa Brava, Spain

Arrived in Barcelona off a night flight, rented a car and headed to our hotel in the coastal town of Sitges, about 45 min south of Barcelona. Checked in to our hotel, La Sabatic, walked to the beach, had a great tapas lunch and spent the afternoon on the beach. That night we took the hotel bikes to dinner in the historic town of Sitges. Day 2: Drove into Barcelona (super easy to find parking off Las Ramblas), and arrived for our 11am bike tour. Highly recommend this 3 hour bike tour throughout the city of Barcelona, seeing all the main attractions, from La Sagrada Familia, to the Olympic village, and everything in between. Book the "hidden gems of Barcelona bike tour" on Trip Advisor. Afterwards, had lunch in the old town, then we headed back to our hotel to relax by the pool.  Day 3: Drove back to Barcelona to walk around, shop along Las Ramblas, and take in one of the markets that we had not seen the day before.

Day 4: Drove to our VRBO home in Forallac (1.5 hours north of Barcelona). Loved our stop over at Tossa de Mar, where you can lay out on the beach just steps from a Medieval castle. Had a great seaside lunch in the cute town, and then got back into the car to head up to our final destination. 

Day 5: Headed to a small beach north of Begur, Playa Fonda, lunch at Sa Riera Beach, then back to our house for our afternoon siesta and pool time. Supermarkets are easily accessible for groceries, and we made several dinners at our house during the week. 

Day 6: Drove to Palagrugell, Capella. There are several hidden nook beaches that you can explore on foot along the coast, each one connected by a walking path (part of the centuries old hiking path that runs the entire length of the costa Brava). Many of the beaches are nestled into rock formations, which makes for fun cliff jumping and snorkeling along the little coves. Had lunch at one of the many beachside restaurants and did some shopping in Calella de Palafrugell. There is also a castle here, but we did not make it there. Made dinner at home and went into the medieval town of Pals (a must to check out!) for ice cream that night.

Day 7: Drove up north of the beautiful coastal town of Cadaqués, to Cap de Creus and hiked 20 minutes down to a Platja de Sant Lluis beach. After a couple of hours at this little nook of a beach, we went back into Cadaques for ice cream and shoppping- and another dip in the sea. Don't miss Cadaqués- it is adorable and if you are looking for some culture, check out the Salvador Dali house museum. That night we had dinner at one of the many quaint restaurants in Pals (reservations recommended!).

Day 8: Took a little road trip (2 hours) to the mountain village of Camprodon. There are several hiking paths here you can check out, also a couple restaurants and inns. The church in the village is over 1,000 years old. It is a very picturesque town. On the way back, we drove back through Bisbal d'emporda and stopped to shop at some of their many ceramics shops, as well as Forallac. There is the coolest antiques emporium I have ever seen in Forallac, as well as a small strip of interesting design stores. Definitely worth checking out. Had a delicious meal at La Masia in Forallac that evening. 

Day 9: Explored the beaches just south of Castillo Cap Roig. Great for snorkeling, rock jumping, and sun bathing.

Day 10: On our last day, we explored the beaches of Begur, including Sa Tuna. There are several little beaches you can hike down into off the walking trail. Enjoyed a great lunch at a beachside restaurant in Sa Tuna. Had dinner in the medieval town of Begur that night. It's a fun spot to walk around, lots of shopping and tons of restaurants and bars. There is also a castle to explore during daytime hours. Highly recommend this adorable village, and also recommend getting dinner reservations in advance!