Both so far and so close to Collioure and the hotel, Spain remains a greatly prized place of destination and will add a touch of exoticism to your trip. A change in tradition, language less than a 30 minutes ride away from Collioure…

Just imagine: Corridas, tapas, Dali, the perfume of olive oil…

From Collioure you can drive along the coastal road or take the highway.

Our hotel is only 37 kms away from the spanish border.

:: Port Bou :: :: Le Perthus :: :: Cadaques :: :: Figueras :: :: Girone :: :: Barcelona ::




:: Port Bou ::

Portbou is a small town, by the Mediterranean Sea on the border between France and spain. It belongs to the Girona province and more particularly to the Alt Emporda. Etymologically, Portbou means Fisherman Harbour, the bous were typical small fishing boats.

The oldest records concerning Portbou date back from the 10th Century. The monastery of Saint Quirze de Colera had then a fishing right there. Later, in the 18th Century the monastery of San Pere de Besalu is given the fishing rights and asks the King Carlos 4th the permission to inhabit the mountain of Portbou. In 1872, the railway is inaugurated, as well as the Customs so much so that the population grows rapidly. In 1885, Portbou becomes the capital of the district of Colera. In 1934 Portbou secedes from Colera.

The train station of Portbou was inaugurated in 1929, during the Universal Exhibition of Barcelona. It is the terminus of the French railway network and is run jointly with the train station of Cerbčre which is the terminus of the Spanish trains.

Portbou also shelters a yachting harbour which has just been constructed and can house 300 boats.




:: Le Perthus ::

Le Perthus (in catalan: El Portůs) is a village straddling on the border between France and Spain. The Route Nationale 9 divides it in 2: the northern and eastern part form a French borough which belongs to the Pyrénées-Orientales. The western and southern parts belong to Catalonia. Its inhabitants are called Perthusiens.

The Perthus Pass (Coll de Panissars in catalan) is the lowest pass in the Pyrénées-Orientales. This is why both the Route Nationale 9 and the A9 Highwaypass through there. In a near future the TGV Railway linking Paris and Barcelona. Although the village is situated south of the pass, it is divided between Spain and France so that the latter may keep the control of Fort Bellegarde which in the past controlled the passage between both countries.

The place now attracts many travelers who look for bargains prior to going back home at the end of the holidays.



:: Cadaques :: 

Cadaqués is the most easterly village in Spain situated in Alt Emporda, Girona Province in Catalonia.
The village occupies a great part of the eastern part of the Cap de Creus range. Isolated by the mountains Cadaques looks toward the Sea. It was geographically separated from the rest of the Emporda until the end of the 19th Century.
The vineyard which made its wealth in the 18th Century almost ruined the village with the arrival of the phylloxera at the beginning of the 19th Century.
Paradoxically the isolation of the village became a factor of wealth at the beginning of the 20th Century, as tourists neglected remote place such as Cadaques, and made of this virgin district a place which is highly appreciated nowadays.
The church of the village, Santa Maria, holds an exceptional altar both in size and originality, the pillars of which are sustained by four giants.
Salvador Dalí, when he got back from New York, settles in Port-Lligat (close to Cadaques). His presence will drain important personalities such as Federico García Lorca or Pablo Picasso. 

:: Figueras ::

In the city center, the Rambla, the medieval district and the new business center meet. The Rambla was built between 1831 and 1840 in a river bed.

In the southern part of the city, Figueres honored in 1918 one of his famous sons with a monument: Narcis Monturiol, the inventor of the submarine.

The city was universally celebrated with another of its sons: Salvador Dali.

Son of a notary, Dali after an international career, came back to Figueras to build the Dali Theater-Museum, situated in the old Theater of the city. This museum is one of the most visited museums in the world.

Figueras holds other museums: Emporda Museum (ethnic and contemporary art), the toy museum and naďve art museum.

Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays are days of market, and drain a crowd of visitors.

At the right of the Rambla, close to the Dali Museum you will find a traffic free area with restaurants, and shops.



:: Girone ::

It is a beautiful city where one can feel History just strolling through the streets looking at the old houses. The old district forms a fortified borough which dates back from the Roman Times. The Onvar river reflects the pastel colours of the houses of the two banks and thus divides both geographically and historically in two.

The Girone province is quite spectacular, and its richness in monuments is unmatched.

Its coast, the Costa Brava is a beauty, with its small bays surrounded by mountains and covered with mediterranean pine trees. Its touristic diversity makes one’s head dizzy : small and charming fishermen villages, restaurants, excursions, scuba diving centers…

Deeper in the land, you can drive from one village or roman church to another in the Empurdan, or give in to mountain extreme sports or winter sports.



:: Barcelona ::

Today, Barcelona holds 1,7 million inhabitants, it is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid. Barcelona is of course known for its huge and endless parties but it reveals its gems to the walker during the daytime. Capital of Catalonia, it is a cosmopolitan and Mediterranean city where roman ruins, medieval boroughs and Art Nouveau and Avant-Garde (with beautiful works of art by Gaudi, Picasso and Dali) mingle. Culture is greatly prominent. But Barcelona nonetheless sustains its deep rooted traditions with the Feasts Or Sants, which prove to be the best occasions to discover Barcelona the festive. Tradition and modernity are the two corner stones of an innovative gastronomy, based upon vegetables, fish, delicatessen and olive oil. Barcelona has managed to enrich both its past and its future.





For further information :
http://www.linternaute.com/voyage/espagne/barcelone,