Costa Brava towns and beaches

What is the prettiest town on the Costa Brava?

It's your call, but two names come up again and again: Tossa de Mar, with the only fortified medieval town still standing on the Catalan coast, and Calella de Palafrugell, which keeps the look of a fishing village from before mass tourism.

Tossa de Mar. The Vila Vella sits on Mount Guardí above the beach. Its walls date from the end of the 14th century and keep the whole original circuit, with four turrets and three round towers, and a lighthouse stands where the abbot's castle once was. It was declared a national historic monument in 1931. Below it, Platja Gran runs 380 meters along the town (Wikipedia).

Calella de Palafrugell. The Palafrugell tourism office describes narrow streets, steep tiled roofs and traditional two-floor fishermen's houses, and Calella holds the Catalan Tourism Agency's "Poble amb encant" seal for places of special charm. Its old quarter, Port Bo, keeps the white arched vaults where nets were once sewn, now restaurants facing the boats (Wikipedia).

A third name for the list is Cadaqués, further north, covered below.

Sources: Wikipedia, Tossa de Mar and Calella de Palafrugell; Palafrugell tourism office, Calella de Palafrugell.

Which part of the Costa Brava is best?

It depends on the trip. The south (Blanes, Lloret, Tossa) is closest to Barcelona and busiest. The middle (Sant Feliu de Guíxols to Begur and L'Estartit) has most of the coves and every kayak tour on this site. The north (L'Escala to Cadaqués and Cap de Creus) is wilder and farther.

The Costa Brava is usually taken to run from Blanes, 60 km north-east of Barcelona, to the French border, which makes it the coast of the province of Girona. Wikipedia splits it into three counties:

• The south (La Selva): Blanes, Lloret de Mar, the largest resort, with a population of over 200,000 at its summer peak, and Tossa de Mar.
• The middle (Baix Empordà): Sant Feliu de Guíxols, S'Agaró, Platja d'Aro, Palamós, Calella de Palafrugell, Llafranc, Tamariu, Begur, Pals and L'Estartit, where the Montgrí massif and the Medes Islands close the stretch.
• The north (Alt Empordà): L'Escala and the Greek ruins of Empúries, founded around 575 BC, the Gulf of Roses, Cadaqués and Cap de Creus.

Our view: for a first trip, base yourself in the middle. You get the coves, the camins de ronda and the kayak tours within a short drive, and the south and north are both reachable for a day.

Sources: Wikipedia, Costa Brava.

What are the most beautiful beaches and coves on the Costa Brava?

The coves of Palafrugell and Begur are the classic answer: Calella's string of small beaches on the Camí de Ronda, Llafranc's sandy bay, Tamariu, and Begur's Aiguablava, Sa Tuna and Aiguafreda.

• Calella de Palafrugell: a chain of coves, from Platja del Canadell to Platja del Golfet, linked by the Camí de Ronda along the cliffs and through tunnels (Wikipedia).
• Llafranc: a fine sandy bay with an esplanade to the port, 1 km north of Calella, and the best views on the Palafrugell coast from Cap de Sant Sebastià, with its lighthouse, watchtower and hermitage, per the Palafrugell tourism office.
• Tamariu: a coarse-sand beach set among rocks and greenery. The cove of Aigua Xelida, beyond it, is reached by sea, "in a canoe, boat or swimming", says the same office, since the coastal path does not go there.
• Begur: more than 20 km of coastline, from the fine sand of Sa Riera, good for families, to small coves with clear water such as Sa Tuna and Aiguafreda (Visit Begur).
• S'Agaró: Sant Pol and Sa Conca beaches, joined by the Camí de Ronda.

Begur's tourism office gives four tips that fit every cove: wear comfortable shoes for the remote ones, go early for parking and a quiet spot, bring water and sunscreen, and take your rubbish with you. In summer, usually June to September, Begur runs a beach bus linking Sa Riera, Sa Tuna and Aiguablava with the town center.

Sources: Wikipedia, Calella de Palafrugell and S'Agaró; Palafrugell tourism office, Llafranc and Tamariu; Visit Begur, Beaches and How to move.

Begur, Cadaqués, S'Agaró and L'Estartit: what is each one like?

Begur is a hilltop town with a medieval castle above eight coves. Cadaqués is the white village of the Cap de Creus peninsula, tied to Dalí. S'Agaró is a 20th-century garden village on the cliffs, and L'Estartit is the beach town facing the Medes Islands.

• Begur: the castle tops the town, and around it stand the 16th-century defense towers built against pirates and the "Indian houses", colonial-style homes of locals who made a fortune in the Americas in the 19th century (Visit Begur). Its camins de ronda were once used to reach coves after shipwrecks, to watch for pirates and, after the war, by smugglers.
• Cadaqués: on a bay of the Cap de Creus peninsula, about a 2.25-hour drive from Barcelona. Dalí kept a home in Port Lligat next door, and Picasso, Miró and Duchamp spent time here (Wikipedia). Cap de Creus itself is the easternmost point of mainland Spain.
• S'Agaró: Josep Ensesa i Pujades bought the land in 1916, and his son built the first house to a design by the architect Rafael Masó. The Camí de Ronda was rebuilt with the development and runs along Sant Pol beach to Sant Feliu de Guíxols (Wikipedia).
• L'Estartit: part of Torroella de Montgrí, with a long beach under the Montgrí massif and the Medes Islands a mile offshore, per its tourist office.

Two of these have a kayak tour on the doorstep: the sea caves tour from S'Agaró and the Medes Islands kayak tour.

Sources: Visit Begur, The village and Coastal paths; Wikipedia, Cadaqués, Cap de Creus and S'Agaró; L'Estartit and Torroella de Montgrí official tourist office.

The most booked kayak tour on the Costa Brava: from Sant Pol beach into the sea caves of S'Agaró, groups of 14 at most.

★ 4.7 · 2 hours · from $38

Explore the sea caves tour from S'Agaró → Tour details

What is the best month to visit the Costa Brava?

June and September are our pick: warm sea, long days and fewer people than July and August. For swimming and kayaking, the sea is at its warmest late in summer.

What the official climate page for Begur says about the Baix Empordà:

• Summer: relatively hot, with August averaging 24°C. Only July and August count as arid.
• Autumn: the rainiest season, with a clear peak in rainfall.
• Winds: the Tramuntana from the north, strong and mostly in winter; the Garbí in summer; the Llevant in spring and autumn.

The sea has been running warm. Catalan News reported record sea temperatures off Catalonia in June and July 2025, about 2°C above the historical average, citing the L'Estartit station. Our sea temperature post has the month-by-month picture, and the autumn kayak notes cover paddling after the summer.

Whatever the month, wind decides each morning on the water. Every kayak tour here cancels free up to 24 hours before.

Sources: Visit Begur, The climate; Catalan News, 14 September 2025.

What food is the Costa Brava known for?

Seafood first: Palamós prawns, L'Escala anchovies, Cap de Creus lobster, suquet de peix and rice dishes such as arròs a la cassola, which mixes meat and fish, per the Costa Brava Girona Tourism Board.

The tourism board's list, with a few local extras:

• Palamós prawns: the board calls them "the only crustacean in the Mediterranean to have its own certified quality seal".
• Suquet de peix: "a thick soup of fresh fish and shellfish".
• Sea and mountain: arròs a la cassola, with meat and fish in one pan, and the Empordà's arròs fosc, where caramelized onion is the key.
• Sea urchins: Palafrugell's Garoinada runs from January to March, in the sea urchin season.
• Es Niu: a very old Palafrugell dish, first made without meat for Lent, served in an autumn campaign by local restaurants. Check visitpalafrugell.cat for this year's dates.

Inland, Spain.info notes that the restaurants around Girona have collected several Michelin stars. After a morning of paddling, a long lunch over a pan of rice by the beach is the local way to finish.

Sources: Costa Brava Girona Tourism Board, Seafood gastronomy on the Costa Brava; Palafrugell tourism office; Spain.info, Costa Brava.

Which is nicer, Costa Brava or Costa Dorada?

They suit different trips. The Costa Brava, in the province of Girona, is the coast of coves and cliffs; the Costa Dorada, in the south of Catalonia, is the coast of long golden beaches and calm water.

The official descriptions, side by side:

• Costa Brava: Spain.info, the official tourism site of Spain, describes "coves of deep blue sea, beaches of golden sand, natural parks, medieval towns", with coves between cliffs in Tossa de Mar, Torroella de Montgrí, Begur and Calella de Palafrugell.
• Costa Dorada (Costa Daurada): the same site describes "golden sandy beaches and peaceful waters" along 81 km of coast in the south of Catalonia, with Salou, Cambrils and the Roman remains of Tarragona. PortAventura World is there too.

For kayaking, the Costa Brava's broken coastline is the draw: caves, rock passages and coves you can only reach from the sea. That is why every tour on this site is here.

Sources: Spain.info, Costa Brava and Costa Dorada.

Which kayak tour is nearest each Costa Brava town?

Tossa and Lloret have the Tossa tour; S'Agaró, Sant Feliu and Platja d'Aro have four tours between them; the Palafrugell villages sit between Platja d'Aro and L'Estartit; Begur and Cadaqués are closest to the Medes Islands tours.

Matched by the start point on each listing:

From-prices are for the basic option on each listing, and every tour cancels free up to 24 hours before. To compare all nine side by side, read our guide to the Costa Brava kayak tours.

Sources: GetYourGuide listings.

Frequently asked questions