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 Routes
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BRAVA |
Tel.
972 20 84 01 |
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The
Costa Brava, spreading from
Blanes (60 km north of Barcelona) to the French border, is the most
touristic coast of Catalonia and although mainly known for its beaches
and tourist resorts, the region has some very important cultural
and historical attractions.
If
sea, sun, sand and night life entertainment are your cup of tea,
do not miss Playa de Aro or
Lloret de Mar. If instead of this you dream of small,
less touristy coves, we recommend the following places: Tossa
de Mar, with its magnificent castle, Calella
de Palafrugell, where you can stop and have a "cremat"
(a typical beverage), Begur,
with its coves, and finally, our favourite, Cadaqués,
a small fishing village, with white houses, in the north of Catalonia,
that has maintained its charm through the years.
From
Cadaqués you can go to see Port Lligat
and Dali's house or spend the day in the beautiful and wild Cap
de Creus (Creus Cape). If you feel like having some culture
and history, besides Dali's museum in Figueres
(see page 30), we recommend the following visits: the ancient Greek
site of Empúries, founded in
550 BC (( 972 - 77 06 03), Pals,
a fully preserved medieval village, and La
Bisbal, known for its ceramics.
Further
north, close to Rosas and Cadaqués,
lies Sant Pere de Rodes, a Benedictine Monastery, with its church,
universally recognised to be the precursor of the Catalan Romanesque
style, unique in the world.
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| PYRENEES |
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The
Pyrenees spread all along the border between Spain and France, thus
all along the north of Catalonia. The region offers, all year round,
an endless list of activities for nature, mountain or outdoor activity
lovers. |
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The most interesting places from east to west are listed below:
the capital of the region of Cerdanya
is Puigcerdà (Tel. 972 - 14
06 65), only two kms from France, starting point for a visit of
the area and just close by any ski resort of the eastern Pyrenees.
From Puigcerdà and through La Seu d'Urgell,
with its magnificent cathedral, you reach Andorra,
a small country in the Pyrenees, which, besides skiing and other
mountain sports, is very well known for being a duty free country
(tobacco, liquor, photographic equipment, etc), thus attracting
lots of people.
From
Andorra and heading to the west, you arrive at the remotest regions
of Catalonia, such as Pallars Sobirà,
Alta Ribagorça and
Val d'Aran with its capital,
Vielha. This area, better known
for its ski resorts and hihg mountain activities, is also very suitable
for resting and visiting architectonic jewels of romanic art (XII
and XIII centuries), specially at the Boí
valley, where the concentration is very intense and has
been recently recognized as humanity heritage for its artistic and
cultural value.
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Between those three regions we can also find the overwhelming
Aïgues Tortes and Sant Maurici Lake National
Park (Tel.
973 62 40 36 /
973 69 61 89; http://catalunya.net/aiguestortes),
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the only one in Catalonia, an excellent place for cross country skiing
in winter or trekking in summer. By the meridional entrance, from
Espot, flows the river Noguera
Pallaresa, well known for its adventure activities, such as rafting,
kayaking, canoeing, etc.
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