The Costa Brava is situated in Catalonia and is one of the most popular holiday spots in Spain. Costa Brava means rugged, wild coast. The 200 km. long coastline on the Mediterranean Sea stretches from Portbou, at the French border, to Blanes. In Blanes the coastline will continue under the name of Costa del Maresme.
The appeal of this part of the Spanish coast is characterized by a very rugged profile and a sometimes inhospitable environment, with many rocky cliffs. The small coves surrounded by pine trees, give this Spanish coastline its appearance. The beaches usually consist of coarse sand, fine gravel or pebbles. The water is often extremely clear what makes that the region is ideal for divers.
Popular places at the Costa Brava are:
- Lloret de Mar
- Blanes
- Sant Antoni de Calonge
- Llançà
- Palamós
- Calonge
- Roses
- Platja d’Aro
- Sant Feliu de Guíxols
- Tossa de Mar
- l’Estartit
- L’Escala
Camping Costa Brava
Due to the Mediterranean climate of the Costa Brava this region is very popular for campers. Camping Benelux, where HolidayTent rents its tents, is situated in a beautiful pine forest at just 500 meters from the beach and 3 km. from the seaside town of Palamós.
Accessibility
By plane
You can fly to Barcelona (south of the Costa Brava) or Girona, that is located more centrally. Flights take place from various airports in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. From the airport, you have bus links to several places on the Costa Brava. You can also travel by taxi or per rental car. Renting a car in Spain is quite affordable.
By car
The distance Netherlands-Costa Brava by car is about 1.400 km. The two main routes are through Luxembourg-Metz-Lyon-Orange-Montpellier-Barcelona via the A31, A7, A9 and AP-7 or trough Lille-Paris-Vierzon-Clermont / Ferrand-Narbonne-Barcelona via the A1, A10, A71, A75, A9 and AP-7. Both routes lead on toll roads and can be very busy in the high season. In the high season you’d better avoid Saturdays. Especially on the so-called “black Saturdays” as there are hundreds of kilometres of traffic jams and many accidents. The last part of the route, once you leave the motorway AP-7, is quite tortuous.
The total journey, without taking into account your stops, takes about 13 to 15 hours. On busy days you’ll need considerably more time. Booking 1 or 2 nights on the road is not a luxury.
By touring car
There are several tour operators that offer bus trips to the Costa Brava. You’ll spend about a day to travel from your boarding point to the Costa Brava, taking into account the different stops.
By train
By train you travel the fastest by TGV till Perpignan. This trip takes about 11 hours. From Perpignan you can travel to Girona within 2 hours by train. From Girona you will have to travel further by bus or taxi to your destination on the Costa Brava.
Climate
The Mediterranean climate ensures great weather in the summer months and an unstable climate during the winter. From November to April the Costa Brava is a wintering place for over-65s. Although it is never as cold in the winter months as in the Netherlands, nice weather on the Costa Brava can’t be guaranteed during the winter months. At midday in the summer months it can be very hot, but mornings and evenings temperatures are around 10 degrees.
