5 days to travel by car from Barcelona, but to where?
Nov 9th, 2015, 12:27 AM
#1
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5 days to travel by car from Barcelona, but to where?
My boyfriend and I have 5 days and a car to travel from Barcelona between December 1-6. We are thinking of driving up the Costa Brava, but distances seem very short between all of the places the books say to see: Girona, Regencos, Begur, Cadaques, Pals, Peratallada, and Monells, and it seems like we could see them in 2 days. Should we drive up into France and see Narbonne, Carcassonne and/or Toulouse as well? Or spend more time in each of these quaint small towns on the Costa Brava? We would love to get into the Pyrenees - any recommendations on where to go and what to see there? Or should we head towards Navarra and the Basque country instead? So many choices . . .
Nov 9th, 2015, 01:06 AM
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Perhaps do as you end up suggesting: Go to Iruña/Pamplona and Donostia/San Sebastián and get a feel for two fabulous cities in totally different Navarra and Basque Country. A very different culture than in Catalunya and the rest of Spain, and spectacular food.
Iruña/Pamplona, much more than the running with the bulls: http://www.euskoguide.com/places-bas...plona-tourism/
Belle Epoque Donostia/San Sebastián: http://www.euskoguide.com/places-bas...stian-tourism/
Iruña/Pamplona, much more than the running with the bulls: http://www.euskoguide.com/places-bas...plona-tourism/
Belle Epoque Donostia/San Sebastián: http://www.euskoguide.com/places-bas...stian-tourism/
Nov 9th, 2015, 06:44 AM
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From Barcelona it's about 4h 30 min drive to Pamplona along the major A2 motorway, and another one hour drive to San Sebastian down by the Atlantic coast. Normally no problems at all driving this main route in winter.
Nov 9th, 2015, 06:30 PM
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With only five days, I'd stick to within a couple of hours from Barcelona. There is enough to do in Girona to keep you occupied for two days (or more.) You could also head to Montserrat for an overnight, or south to Tarragona. The small city of Vic is also worth a visit.
Nov 11th, 2015, 08:12 AM
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thank you all so much for your replies and advice. i agree with seeing more of less, so we will likely stay on costa brava and take days trips to see how close to mountains and far into navarra we can get to see snow and natural beauty. we will let michelin be our guide for this trip, and save pamplona and san sebastian for next time - both look amazing! much aloha for your guidance. . .
btw - we found a lovely little hotel on greatsmallhotels.com called les hamaques in Viladamat: http://www.leshamaques.com
btw - we found a lovely little hotel on greatsmallhotels.com called les hamaques in Viladamat: http://www.leshamaques.com
Nov 11th, 2015, 02:20 PM
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It will be cooler inland, but since you only have 5 days, you might want to consider heading up to Céret in French Catalunya (Pyrénées-Orientales )for a couple of days after vising the Costa Brava. We stayed at the Le Mas Trilles on our last trip up there, an excellent property to use as a base to explore the immediate area, but it's already closed for the season.
There are some properties in Saint-Jean-Pla-de-Corts or Le Boulou that are still open. And the coastal village of Collioure is interesting.
There are some properties in Saint-Jean-Pla-de-Corts or Le Boulou that are still open. And the coastal village of Collioure is interesting.
