Spains Catalonia

Catalonia encompasses a large part of the Spanish Pyrenees. There are some wonderful national parks for nature lovers to explore as well as skiing in the winter season. The coastline is well known for the popular resorts along the Costa Brava and Costa Daurada and the not so well known holiday region of Costa Garraf.

Barcelona is the capital of the region and offers the possibility of a city and beach holiday combined. It is home to a busy port and as a city is on a par with Madrid in all aspects. The cathedral is a popular attraction for visitors as well as Las Ramblas in the old part of the town, probably one of the most famous streets in the country. It is busy and thriving at all hours with its picturesque buildings, cafes and shops which lead down to the seafront.

Girona is another historic city to visit in this region. Like Barcelona, Girona also has in the old town, la Rambla de la Llibertat, a street full of busy shops and cafes. There is also a cathedral as well as museums. Many visitors take day trips to Girona from the coast, but it also has a very good choice of restaurants and places to stay.

The Costa Brava - the Wild Coast - is part of the Catalonian coastline within the province of Girona and can be found to the north of Barcelona. Although the Costa Brava has many busy holiday resorts there are still quieter beaches to be found such as Santa Cristina.

To the south are three of the busiest destinations; Lloret de Mar, Tossa de Mar (which is an old fort town) and La Platja d'Aro. L'Estartit is also popular and has a marine reserve which is excellent for scuba diving.

If you want to get away from the beaches and travel inland you will find the medieval villages of Peratallada, Peralada and Pals.

Looking for holiday villas Costa Brava, choose from our wide selection of properties in this beautiful region of Catalonia.

The Costa Garraf, is a little heard of region of the Catalonian Coast between the city of Barcelona and the Costa Daurada.

Located by the Llobregat delta, the Costa Garraf forms a low lying region with long sandy beaches, against steep sided cliffs. Vilanova i la Geltru is a popular resort as is Castelldefels and Sitgues, one of the most popular towns along this stretch of coast.

With its clear waters and pleasant climate, vacationing in a holiday rental along this coast offers up plenty of opportunities with Barcelona situated not too far to the north east. There are many apartments in Barcelona, ideal for a short break before spending the remaining time lazing by the pool of your Costa Garraf villa.

The Costa Daurada - the Golden Coast - of approximately 240km has many long, sandy beaches and runs from Tarragona northwards to Barcelona. Tarragona is a major industrial port but still has many of the remains of its Roman history. To the south of the city is Port Aventura, one of the largest theme parks in Europe.

To the north of Tarragona is the town of Sitges which is a lively resort and is popular amongst the Spanish and holidaymakers alike. The local restaurants serve many Catalan dishes.

The resort of Salou and Cambrils found to the south are amongst the busiest and have safe, shallow waters which are ideal for family holidays in one of the holiday villas Costa Daurada.

Warren Ward runs the vacation owner rental website of www.ChooseSpain.com which advertises hundreds of holiday villas and apartments throughout Spain.