Palafrugell, Girona counties, Catalonia, Spain

Palafrugell is a town and municipality in the region of Lower Emporda. The area’s summer climate and beaches have been exploited for tourism. In additional to international tourism, Palafrugell serves as a summer holiday town for residents of cities such as Barcelona and Girona.

This medieval town was once fortified but is no longer. Many narrow streets emanate from Plaça Nova: a large square with bars, restaurants and boutiques. The local government (Ajuntament) sponsors activities such as concerts and dances including the traditional Sardana. St. Martí’s church was built in the late 11th century and is close to Plaça Nova.

Palafrugell was reputed for its cork manufacturing in the 18th and 19th centuries. One of the main sources of wealth in the municipality has been the cork industry, which currently still enjoys great prestige. This industry had been largely focused on the export of cork stoppers around the world. The largest factory was owned by the American company Armstrong and employed hundreds of locals. Its closing in the 1970s led to severe unemployment. The factory’s tower still stands, and there is now a small museum commemorating the cork industry just below it.

The municipality borders those of Mont-ras, Forallac, Torrent, Regencós and Begur. The town of Palafrugell is the center of the municipality, where there are also the rural nuclei of Santa Margarida and Ermedàs, the village of Llofriu, at the foot of the Gavarres, together with the coastal nuclei of Calella, Llafranc, Tamariu and Aigua Xelida. In this way, the municipality lives divided between the sea and the interior, although the importance of its coast has conditioned the social and economic development, transforming a traditionally tapera town, into a fully consolidated tourist and service center.

It has some coves representative of the Costa Brava and has an extensive gastronomic tradition and a cultural richness personified in the writer Josep Pla. Palafrugell is one of the tourist destinations and the second largest residence in the Girona region. This puts the population at the peak of the summer at around 60,000 inhabitants, practically tripling the census population. The coastal strip includes 12 km of cut coves and small beaches.

There is a new bus station belonging to Grup SARBUS whose local division is known as Sarfa. The station has a regular bus service, servicing the Costa Brava region (including Llafranc, Calella de Palafrugell, and Tamariu) as well as Barcelona.

History
In the 2nd century BC, with the arrival of the Romans in Empúries, the town of Sant Sebastià experienced a slow and progressive abandonment in favor of the town of Llafranc, which was permanently occupied until the 4th century AD. The town of Llafranc became a prominent center for the production of wine and pottery in Roman times. From its port came amphorae to store wine, building materials, kitchen pottery and crockery, as well as wine grown in its hinterland, where more than a dozen Roman villas have been located. From the Roman past, the village preserves the remains of what was a wine press and a winery very close to the church of Santa Rosa, located on a small promontory, where archaeological excavations have discovered the oldest houses in the site.. In 1980, archaeologists made a spectacular and unique discovery in Catalonia: 78 raw tiles from the Roman period abandoned before being baked.

From the 5th and 6th centuries AD, the insecurity of the coast favored the settlement of inland settlements. This is how Vila-seca was born, today incorporated into the town center, Santa Margarida i Ermedàs. Palafrugell, a name of anthroponymic origin –Palau means strong house and Frugell designates its own name with Germanic roots–, was probably born as a fortified place of defense. The oldest reference to the town is found in a document from 988 that is preserved in the Archive of the Cathedral of Girona, where a woman named Ermengarda donated her properties located in Palau Frugell in the monastery of Sant Pere de Galligants de Girona. The first wall was probably built in the 13th century on a small hill, about eighty meters high, which delimited the current streets Pi i Margall, Cavallers, dels Valls –where there was probably a moat– and Plaça Nova. The site was accessed through two portals – the Portal d’Amunt, in Carrer dels Valls, and the Portal d’Avall, in front of the Raval Inferior – which gave access to the main street of the site, Carrer Major, a name that still is maintained today.

In the center of the town were the Church Square, the town’s public square until the construction of the New Square in the late eighteenth century, and the Church of St. Martin, built between 993 and 1019. The parish church, of much more modest dimensions than the current one, was the object of several works and extensions, such as the 15th or 18th century, when the Capella Fonda was built and the Bisbal house master Joan Ranté designed the current bell tower, with a square floor plan and an octagonal body, which remained unfinished and has become one of the identifying elements of the town. Outside the walled core other habitats appeared. Inland, the rural nucleus of Llofriu is mentioned in 1062 (Lofrid), as a possession of the count of Barcelona Ramon Berenguer I, and his church of Sant Fruitós, in 1121. On the coast, the fear of Mar was responsible for the neighborhoods that were established there being temporary until the eighteenth century. Tamariu is documented in 1039 and Calella i Llafranc, in the capbreu of the monastery of Santa Anna from 1339-1345.

In 1194 King Alfonso I the Chaste, King of Catalonia and Aragon, ceded the terms of Palafrugell and Mont-ras to the order of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher; in 1250, the cession of the aforementioned order to the Priory of Santa Anna in Barcelona was formalized. This ecclesiastical institution was until the confiscations made during the Liberal Revolution the main lord of the lands that make up the current municipality, although there were other ecclesiastical and lay lords with possessions in the term. The passage of time has erased almost all of the town’s medieval architectural past. In 1816, after the end of the French War, work began on the demolition of the towers and almost a century later, in 1908, the last one fell, the Can Moragues tower. At present, only an irregular layout of narrow streets and remodeled houses between the church of Sant Martí and Plaça Nova is preserved, an area that the people of Palafrugell still call inside the town. Palau and his surname was Frugell and he said that his village would be called Palafrugell, Pala (of palace) and Frugell of his surname.

From the 15th to the 18th century, when the danger came from the sea, from the pirate and corsair ships in the service of the Ottoman Empire based in Algiers, an extensive and effective defensive network was built. The municipality preserves a rich heritage of this period in the form of watchtowers and defense towers attached to farmhouses. Even today, about fifteen remodeled towers are built in the town center, Mont-ras, Calella and the plains of Ermedàs and Santa Margarida. Above the head of San Sebastián, stands the oldest of all. The tower, named after the town’s co-patron, was begun in 1441 and on the ground floor was a chapel dedicated to the martyr. In the eighteenth century, the sanctuary of San Sebastián was built and a new church and also an inn that incorporated pilgrims from all over the country was added to the hermitage tower.

The period of fortification of the farmhouses is also linked to the widespread growth that occurs in the 16th century after the hardships experienced as a result of the late medieval crisis and the repeated epidemics that the town experienced during the second half of the 15th century. In 1553 the municipality had approximately 960 inhabitants. In the 16th century, the municipality welcomed Occitan immigrants and new neighborhoods appeared outside the walls: the suburbs of Dalt and Baix, la Caritat, les Botines, la Tarongeta, el Pedró, la Garriga, les Cases Noves and el Vilar, groups of houses which will be extended throughout the seventeenth century not without suffering the effects of the catastrophic bubonic plague of 1652, which caused in two years about 230 deaths, nor the consequences of the wars against Philip IV.

In 1638 the revolt of the neighbors against the Castilian troops who lodged within the municipality, ignoring thus the privilege that king Jaume I had granted to the town in 1251, gave rise to the battle of Palafrugell, facts that some historians they consider one of the precedents of the war of the Reapers. The popular uprising took place on July 20, St. Margaret’s Day, in protest of the more than 300 soldiers who resided in the houses of the neighbors themselves. The repression was brutal: some of the houses were set on fire and some churches were looted. In 1640, when the War of the Reapers broke out, Castilian troops burned 28 houses and looted the church of Santa Margarida.

In 1637, 300 unpaid and undisciplined Castilian army men lodged in Palafrugell in contravention of the privilege that James I the Conqueror had granted to the town in 1251 and engaged in looting, ill-treatment. and unbridled harassment. This situation causes tension in Palafrugell. The town revolted on July 20, 1638 against the 300 soldiers of the Castilian thirds who had re-established themselves in the town. Two captains and some soldiers were killed, and in retaliation three or ten punishment companies were sent to the village, and the population was sacked by soldiers, who burned some houses and desecrated three churches, including that of the town of Llofriu, in what is considered the precedent of the Corpus of Blood, which started the Reapers’ War.

After the War of the Spanish Succession (1705-1714), the town experienced spectacular population and economic growth. Between 1719 and 1787, the town went from 726 inhabitants to 2,377, which translated into significant urban growth and the consolidation of neighborhoods that until then had been temporary habitats, such as Calella, Llafranc and Tamariu. Until then, livestock, coral fishing, fishing and the cultivation of all kinds of cereals had been the basic productive activities. From the 18th century onwards, the town, like many other Empordà towns, specialized in the cultivation of the vineyard, which occupied unproductive land until then, near the cliffs and the sea. These new products also made it possible to increase trade with European markets and overseas colonies. Thus, Calella became the natural port of agricultural and artisanal products of some inland Empordà towns.

But, without a doubt, the emergence of cork manufacturing was the real protagonist of the economic recovery. In 1760 in the Book of Confirmations of the Parish of Sant Martí appears the reference of a young taper, Anton Ferrer. At the end of the century, an official of the Bourbon Administration who traveled through Catalonia, Francisco de Zamora, wrote in his diary that he was working with about 300 tapers. In 1845, during the reign of Isabel II, there were 31 cork factories in Palafrugell that employed about 327 people. At the beginning of the century, the first workers’ organizations also appeared – the first of which, the Brotherhood of Carmen, dates from 1803 -, embryonic groups that will act as a model when mutual aid societies are created from the beginning. second half of the century.

Cork and its industries became the main economic activity of the municipality in the 19th century and its mechanization, a hundred years ago, transformed an agricultural town into an industrial city. Cork also produced a new society governed by modern values, customs, social practices and forms of leisure. In Palafrugell at the beginning of the twentieth century, the first sports clubs had appeared, various recreational societies (the Ateneu Palafrugellenc, the Casal Popular…), more than one casino (Center Fraternal, the Cercle Mercantil…), and a considerable number of classicist bars, cafes and clubs. The income that the industry meant for the municipal corporation and for some families made possible the construction of some emblematic buildings of the time: the modernist villa of Can Mario, the house of Can Bech de Careda, the Casa Almeda, the Economica Palafrugellenca –the headquarters of the current library– and the public buildings of the Mercat Cobert, the Municipal Slaughterhouse and the School of Arts and Crafts.

All this was accompanied by a growth of the population – in 1910 Palafrugell, with 9,018 inhabitants, was the second most populated municipality in the region – and a great urban expansion, motivated by the appearance of new factories., a modern and mechanized cork factory that represented the final decline of taper crafts. In 1900, the gigantic Manufacturas de Corcho SA was created, which led the Spanish industrial export during the 1920s. Today, the buildings that house the Vila Casas Foundation and also the water tower, built by the architect Guitart, which, in the middle of the Plaza de Can Mario, has become one of the elements, remain of that company. most visible of the urban landscape of Palafrugell.

Tourism
After the war, tourism and all related sectors replaced cork as the main economic engine. Tourism, however, was not a new or unknown phenomenon. Before the war had been reduced activity, restricted to the wealthier classes of society Catalan, Spanish and European. The Russians of Cap Roig, Nicolas Woevodski and Dorothy Webster, are the most revealing example of this type of tourists. In the mid-twenties they arrived in the town and built a late medieval castle and a botanical garden on top of Cap Roig, which has hosted more than 500 botanical species from all over the world.

In 1933, the first tourism assembly was held in the sanctuary of San Sebastián, before prominent authorities of the Second Republic, with the intention of planning a demand that was increasing and limiting excessive growth in the maritime strip. In 1932, the Fomento de Turismo Municipal was created and three years later, as a result of the agreements reached in the assembly of San Sebastián, the Association of Municipalities and the Board of Trustees of the Costa Brava, bodies full of good intentions that the War Civil was in charge of erasing.

From 1955 the definitive boom took place. The town continued to grow and new neighborhoods appeared to accommodate the immigrant population while second homes were proliferating on the seafront. Some of the most applauded infrastructures – the Calella motorway (1967) – and the most discussed – the Llafranc marina (1963) -, new educational centers and other facilities and activities related to sport date back to the sixties. the culture (the Josep Pla Arbonés stadium, the Casa de Cultura…). An urban transformation that was in line with a cultural and social resurgence of the town that organized the Spring Festival in 1963 following the government ban on celebrating Carnival, and the Cantada d’Havaneres de Calella in 1967 to recover some songs from a time when more than one had tried to make a fortune in Cuba.

Main Attractions

Llafranc
The bay of Llafranc, its promenade, the port and the Cape of San Sebastián make this small town one of the most prestigious on the coast.

Llafranc travels between tradition and modernity. Popular and prestigious destination for over 50 years. The fine sandy bay bordered by a pleasant promenade that reaches the marina, is framed by the church of Santa Rosa de Lima with a Roman wine press on the side and the head of San Sebastian to the north. At this point we find the best views of our coast, as well as a monumental complex formed by the Lighthouse of San Sebastian, the Watchtower, the Hermitage of San Sebastian and the Iberian Village of San Sebastian. It is also a good place to take the path towards Tamariu, passing by Cala Pedrosa, or to go down in search of the dolmen of Can Mina dels Torrents.

Outstanding activities include the Cantada d’havaneras de Llafranc, on the first Saturday in August, and the Mercat Boig every first Saturday in September.

Old Town
Town center with various cultural and sports facilities, and great commercial activity. Palafrugell is located in the heart of the Costa Brava, in a privileged setting. With a registered population of about 23,000 inhabitants it is the most populated municipality in the region. The town of Palafrugell is in the center of the municipality, which shares with the rural nuclei of Santa Margarida, Ermedàs and Llofriu; at the foot of Les Gavarres, together with the coastal towns of Calella, Llafranc, Tamariu and Aigua Xelida. So this traditionally covered villa that today lives mainly from tourism, is strategically located between the sea and the interior.

Cultural and commercial activity is concentrated in the area of the center of Palafrugell. Accessible only for pedestrians, around the church, a few minutes away from the old wall you can stroll quietly and tour shops, bars, restaurants, museums and foundations.

The Villa
It is a nucleus formed from the primitive high-medieval town that had been located at the top of this hill of more than eighty meters. It is probable that the birth of Palafrugell is due to a shrine. Over time, the nucleus was structured around the church that with the first buildings, were closed by the enclosure of the wall. The perimeter followed the current Carrer dels Valls (where there was a moat), Carrer Cavallers, Plaça Nova and Carrer Pi i Margall. It was accessed through two portals, the Portal d’Amunt which connected the walled town with the Raval Superior district and other neighborhoods located to the north of the town and the Portal d’Avall located on the south side of the town.

The wall had seven round towers, except the Prison Tower which was square,. The last one, the tower of Can Moragues, was demolished in 1908. The nucleus currently preserves the testimony of the urban plot with medieval roots, except for the square to the north of the church – which has obtained its current appearance through the demolition during the twentieth century of some blocks of houses. There is some occasional survival of buildings from the 15th-16th centuries, but the predominant features correspond to the models of the 17th-18th centuries. It is probable that many more features of the constructions of these centuries have been preserved than are currently observed, as they may have been obscured by various actions on the façades. There are also some 19th century buildings. And some recent buildings of the s. XX that do not respect the traditional plot plot and negatively modify the image of the urban fabric.

Ancient fishing village
Ancient fishing village formed by several coves that still retain its charm. Calella de Palafrugell is one of the few towns on the Costa Brava that still retains the charm that was breathed in the villages of the area before the arrival of mass tourism, with narrow streets, houses with sloping tile roof and some traditional fishermen’s houses of two plants. This old fishing village is located on a rocky coast, dotted with small coves, north of the natural setting Castell – Cap Roig, ideal for walks or bike rides, and south of the coastal and tourist center of Llafranc.

In summer, the Cap Roig Botanical Garden hosts the Cap Roig Festival and also the Summer Concert Series in the church of Sant Pere, organized by Joventuts Musicals de Palafrugell. The annual meeting of habaneras in Calella de Palafrugell, which brings together thousands of people on the beach of Port Bo is one of the best known events in the area.

Tamariu
Tamariu is the smallest and wildest of the coastal nuclei. Located in the north of the municipality, between rocks and vegetation, Tamariu is formed by a main beach of coarse sand with the cove of the Liris to the south, where a century-old hut stands out, and the cove of Aiguadolça to the north, formed by rocks. If we follow the coast by sea (by kayak, boat or swimming) or by road (the ring road does not pass through this section) we reach the beautiful cove of Aigua Xelida. And if we take the path from Cala dels Liris to the south it will take us to Cala Pedrosa, where there is also an old hut. Every first Saturday in September, a habanera song is celebrated on the big beach of Tamariu.

Other local heritage
Assets of National Interest
The Tower of Can Mario: It is a unique building with an iron structure designed by the architect General Guitart i Lostalo, built between 1904 and 1905 by Talleres del Arquitecto Juan Torras, in Barcelona, with the functions of a reservoir regulating water pressure. It is located in the central space of the old cork factory, in the town of Palafrugell. It is a work full of technical, spatial, volumetric and stylistic singularity with a unique character in the context of the cultural heritage of Catalonia, being an excellent example of iron architecture, to which must be added its value as an urban landmark and visual reference.
The Tower of San Sebastián
Historic complex of Port Bo
Defensive elements

Cultural space
Palafrugell enjoys a large number of cultural events and spaces that allow us to better understand its history and culture. The Cork Museum, the Spring Festival and the Cantada d’Havaneres in Calella de Palafrugell are a clear example of the diversity of cultural activities that can be carried out. Delve into all these cultural resources in order to get to know Palafrugell and its tradition better.

Museums
The Museu del Suro, the Fundació Josep Pla or the Museu d’escultura contemporània – Fundació Vila Casas are just a few examples of the great cultural offer that Palafrugell has to offer.

Cork Museum and Interpretation Center of the Can Mario Water Tank
The Museu del Suro, founded in 1972, and dedicated, as its name suggests, to the theme of cork, aims to collect, study and disseminate the cultural heritage and natural heritage related to the world of cork in Catalonia. Also, the Interpretation Center of the Can Mario water tank, located in the modernist style tank of the old cork factory of Can Mario, and turned into an identifying symbol of Palafrugell, allows you to discover the history of this emblematic element and access to its terrace, 35m high, from where you can enjoy a privileged view of Palafrugell and the Empordanet.

Josep Pla Foundation
The Josep Pla Foundation, born in 1973, when the writer himself decided to donate his private library and created the Josep Pla Library Private Foundation, aims to promote, motivate and facilitate the reading and study of literary work. and journalism by Josep Pla. To do this, they organize different activities such as permanent and temporary exhibitions, routes and workshops.

Vila Casas Foundation
This institution was set up in 1986, thanks to the pharmaceutical businessman Antoni Vila Casas, with the aim of promoting Catalan contemporary art. The headquarters in Palafrugell (inside the old cork factory of Can Mario) was inaugurated in 2004, and since then it has housed around 220 sculptures dating from the 1960s to the current events, as well as temporary exhibitions.

Gastronomy Interpretation Center
Located in the tourist office of Palafrugell, this space includes two audiovisuals and interactive material that aims to give a broad view of the Catalan and Empordà gastronomic tradition and modernity.

Sa Perola, Fishing Guild in Calella
The former network dyer of the Fishermen’s Guild of Sant Pere, is today a tourist office and an interpretation center of the Fishing Guild in Calella and the maritime heritage of the area. Sa Perola thus becomes a witness to the past of Calella with great value from an ethnological, social and cultural point of view, whose interest goes beyond our municipality due to the destruction of most dyers on the Catalan coast.

Cap Roig Botanical Garden
The Cap Roig Gardens were created by the Woevodsky couple in 1927. It is a space of great beauty, located in the heart of the Costa Brava, where botany, history, landscape and art combine. It has more than 1000 plant species from all regions with a Mediterranean climate in the world. One of the most emblematic symbols of this space is the castle built with the ferruginous stone of the area. ” It is also the scene of the Cap Roig Festival, consolidated as the biggest musical event of the year on the Costa Brava.

Gastronomy
Palafrugell’s gastronomy is very rich and varied. Both traditional dishes and the most avant-garde dishes are present in the menus of restaurants and are prepared with top quality products. We suggest you take a gastronomic trip around Palafrugell tasting some of the most traditional recipes, in the restaurants of the town or buying the ingredients in the market and preparing them yourself.

Events and Festivals
Palafrugell is characterized by bringing together a large number of events on a wide range of topics that will allow you to get to know the town in a different way. The Garoinada, the Spring Festival, the Ice Rink or the Flowers and Violas are some of the annual events that you can’t miss in order to discover the most festive side of Palafrugell.

Flowers and Violets
Palafrugell welcomes spring with the creation of a circuit of courtyards, both public and private, which are open to the public to become a stage for artistic creations and decorations, concerts and shows for all tastes. Spaces that host the unpublished fusion of good music, visual arts installations with a floral aftertaste and live performances.

Spring Festival
The Spring Festival is possibly one of the most ingrained and traditional festivities in Palafrugell. This celebration, which has its origins in the ban on carnival in 1963, has become an event for Palafrugell that involves the entire population through different activities. Possibly the best known is the Carrousel Costa Brava in which floats and processions, both local and from all over Catalonia, form its backbone.

Cantada d’havaneres de Calella de Palafrugell
The Cantada de Calella de Palafrugell is possibly one of the best known events in Palafrugell. This event, which has its origins in 1966 with a meeting of singers in the tavern of Can Batlle, was very successful from the beginning and this forced the organizers to repeat the event on the beach of ‘in Calau (Calella). From 1969, the Association of Friends of Calella, organizer of the Cantada at that time, decided to move it to the Plaza del Port Bo, where it is currently held.

Cap Roig Gardens Festival
It is one of the most important music festivals in Europe held in a unique space, the Botanical Garden of Cap Roig in Calella de Palafrugell, in which artists from various registers and internationally participate.

Costa Brava Jazz Festival
This festival offers a varied musical offer that bets on the combination of the most traditional jazz with new emerging groups of the Catalan scene.

It’s a Nest
These are gastronomic days in which different restaurants in Palafrugell offer the possibility of tasting one of the most emblematic dishes of local cuisine, “Es niu”. The aim of these days is to make known this traditional dish of Palafrugell origin, which due to its long preparation, is not usually found in restaurant menus and must often be ordered.

Christmas in Palafrugell and Ice Rink
Christmas in Palafrugell and ice rink, a totally traditional activity, is celebrated inside the Bòbila. Along with the ice rink, a whole range of completely free activities are organized, for children, young people and the family in general, bar service, creperie, churreria, candies, and various children’s attractions.

Natural space

Beaches
The coast of the municipality is made up of countless rocks, cliffs, beaches and hidden corners of great beauty. We recommend a boat trip, kayak or a walk along our coast to discover all its charm.

Hiking
For lovers of hiking Palafrugell offers many possibilities to discover both the coast and the interior.

From Golfet to Sant Roc
The section of the Golfet to Sant Roc, especially rugged, can be started next to the Hotel Sant Roc from where there are some stairs that go to the roundabout. The walk allows us to enjoy a spectacular view of the seafront of Calella, skirting the coast overcoming important differences through stairs and tunnels, having a close view of the Ant Islands, where a naval battle will be fought in 1285 that destroyed the fleet of Philip III, called the Ardit, get to know the Mediterranean vegetation, listen to the birds singing… We will also find a lot of curious rocks such as Castellet d’en Niell, Punta dels Forcats, l’Agulla del Golfet … And finally we will arrive at the Golfet beach (if we leave the white and red marks of the GR-92 that continue by an important section of stairs to our right and we continue straight).

To enjoy the aerial view of Golfet Beach, we can follow the GR-92 signs until we reach Dorothy Webster Square. This section allows us to get an idea of the real Costa Brava. Once on Golfet beach we can continue on the GR-92 towards Cap Roig, where we will find the botanical garden, from where we can admire all the Mediterranean flora. Then we can continue towards Palamós or undo the path and return to the neighborhood of Sant Roc.

From Sant Roc to the Three Pines
From Canyers beach, we continue along the seafront towards the baths of Caixa and the Port Pelegrí. Then the tip of the Burricaires, where we find a magnificent viewpoint and the Platgeta. We continue this more urban route of Calella following the path by the sea that is part of the GR-92 and we arrive at the beach of Calau. The coves follow one another until reaching the Port Bo, well known for the vaults and the Cantada d’Havaneres de Calella, on the first Saturday in July. Just behind is Sa Perola, an old fishing village, preserved with its original appearance and now a tourist office. Next, we find es Còdol, a group of rocks that separate the beach of Port Bo and the port of La Malaespina, and which have become a symbol of Calella.

We will find a pier under Can Jaume Gil, we will continue towards the viewpoint of Primitiu Guri. We continue along the sea crossing the terrace of Casa Rosa (Can Genís), with the right of way, to fully enter Canadell beach. In this bathing area, well known for its basements, we find the Paseo del Canadell. Under Can Jubert and the Canyissos (or under Can Comes) there are small corners much appreciated by winter bathers, who approach us through a section of stairs to the Tres Pins, where we find the hotel la Torre, with the Calella watchtower, built in 1597 to control the pirate attacks of the time and from where the roundabout continues towards Llafranc.

From the Three Pines to San Sebastián
After Punta de la Torre, we will continue the path towards Llafranc. The path allows you to enjoy the tranquility of the place. We pass by La Marineda, Passeig Xavier Miserachs and once we reach Plaça de la Marinada, we go down the Garbí stairs that will take us to Passeig Francesc de Blanes and Passeig de Cípsela where we will find the bay of Llafranc, with services from all over. type: hotels, restaurants, bars, diving centers, supermarkets, shops, rental services…

We continue along the stairs next to the port of Llafranc and after passing an important section of stairs, we will follow the road that goes up to the mountain of San Sebastián. Once we reach the viewpoint in front of the lighthouse, we will contemplate the panoramic view of Calella and Llafranc. We will continue for a short distance and reach the esplanade of San Sebastián. If we look at the sea from the viewpoint we will see the line of the horizon curved by a curious optical effect. This section is recommended for people who want to get to know a part of the coast of the municipality without having to walk much. The stretch from Llafranc to San Sebastián can be done by car.

Following the road we will reach Carrer del Pinell, without a exit and with a small esplanade at the end. There, we will find the rocks of Pinell where those who want can practice climbing (12 routes equipped from 4th grade to 3C). Diving enthusiasts will find in front of Punta del Pinell one of the best places to dive: the Ullastres (mountains below sea level).

From San Sebastián to Cala Pedrosa
Once we have left the watchtower and arrived in Sant Baldiri, we will follow the marks of the GR-92 to the north, from where we will enjoy the spectacle of the vertical coast, with the lead and cinnamon tones of the rocks. The Romaboira waterfall stands out, a cliff that reaches the sea and impacts its height (187 m). We will follow the marks of the GR-92 inside. This stretch is recommended for hikers accustomed to the mountains. If you make your way, take special care in the first section as it passes near cliffs that are not protected. We will continue the GR-92 inland passing through the middle of Mediterranean forests, very lush, which help to disconnect from the usual noises of towns and cities. Finally we will reach Cala Pedrosa, a cove covered with pebbles with two huts.

From Cala Pedrosa to Aigua Xelida
Once in Cala Pedrosa, following the stairs that leave the beach and climb north, without leaving the GR-92, we will reach La Musclera and La Perica, where rod fishermen often frequent. Then we will reach Tamariu. From here you cannot continue north on the coastal path. One option we have to get to the coves of Aigua Xelida is to go by road by car or on foot around the urbanization section and take the ring road again.

By road, take Carrer dels Pescadors, break onto Carrer d’Aigua Blava and follow Avinguda de Vicenç Bou. We will find a roundabout, we will continue along Carrer del Montgrí and Carrer de l’Avi Xaixu until the end, where we will take some stairs that will take us to the big beach of d’en Gotes (Aigua Xelida). If we continue to the left, there is the possibility of taking the circular path to the north to reach Sa Roncadora, although it is not recommended: the path is not signposted and there are many hedges. But, if we go there in spite of everything, we will discover a crack in the rock that has an entrance to the sea and an exit to the mainland, forming a bridge. On stormy days in the east, you can hear the snoring of the sea water colliding with the rocks and spitting out a few meters high spraying the surrounding pines.

Further north we would reach Cala Marquesa (the view from above is spectacular). A few years ago it could be accessed by land through a steep path, which today has been worn down by the rains to turn it into a dangerous and impassable ravine.

Nowadays, everyone who arrives does so by sea, in small boats. On foot from Tamariu, we can follow Carrer dels Pescadors, climb some stairs, follow Carrer del Port de la Malaespina and cross the Illa Negra until we reach Carrer de l’Illa Blanca. There we will take the path that will take us to Aigua Xelida. If we follow the coast, by sea, we will find the Rec dels arbres and the Gispert caves, places of great beauty that we especially recommend. You can go with organized excursions in motor boats or kayaks.

Bicycle
The Baix Empordà offers different possibilities to discover the region on a bicycle. The Baix Empordà region preserves a wide network of rural roads away from the main roads, suitable for cycling.

Mountain biking routes
The different mountainous areas of the region have great potential for the practice of this sport.

Pirinexus cycle tourism route
Cross-border network of greenways in Catalonia, has associated entities from Catalonia and the Eastern Pyrenees to jointly develop a continuous cycling network between both sides of the border