sfmaster

Well I booked the tickets! 9/13-9/20 - I think Grandma was planning on 5-6 days and now it will be a full week away but I think they'll survive and we will LOVE it.

My Itinerary thoughts:

Land Monday 9/14 8am (i think). rent car and head directly toward costa brava
Monday night - CB
Tuesday night - CB
Wednesday night - CB
Thursday night - CB
still to research where

We want lots of hiking, swimming, exploring, smaller towns, long leisurely ADULT meals, some art, maybe some biking?

Friday return to Barcelonal
Saturday all day in Barcelona
Sunday morning (10ish depart)

I know that this is way to short in Barcelona but seems like it would be fun to get a taste.
We have cashed in starwood points to stay at Le Meridian.

I have been to spain but not for 25 years, never to Barcelona. I have traveled in Italy and Croatia in last 5 years.

Specific Questions:

- I promise to do some more research about where to base and hotels - it is all out there and I am just learning about the wonders of Mirabel.... but if anything strikes folks based on notes above let me know. We are ready to splurge (up to $300 if worth it) given that we haven't been anywhere just the two of us in a while, we are ready to relax and enjoy. Still tempted to split between two different towns/hotels - less pressure to pick the righ place - vs one. Thoughts?

- Car rental -
My fantasy vacation has us taking buses and trains and NOT driving but I think driving best in Costa Brava -
Should we return the car before heading to Barcelona hotel and then just take taxi or other transfer to airport. Avoiding parking, driving in Barcelona etc?

Barcelona -
I could be talked out of stopping back in Barcelona - I thought, get a taste and come back for more later, and also take pressure off of getting to airport for return trip but maybe location of airport or something makes this not seem wise. I would then add days to exploring....

I am excited about the timing being mid september and hope it will be not crowded but not too vacant and that the weather will allow for lots of time outside and swimming.

Thanks so much.

Mirabel I would love the magic guide - seems like protocol is to send it directly.

I would be most grateful at [email protected]

Maribel

sfmaster,
First of all, here's a thread on the Aiguablava area that might be of interest to help you make your hotel choice:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...aiguablava.cfm

And find out about the lovely Begur area and its coves here-

www.begur.org/turisme/

If it were my September vacation, I would choose between the Hotel Aiguablava and the Parador Aiguablava if you're willing to splurge.

JulieV stayed at the Hotel El Far above the seaside town of Llafranc.

www.elfar.net

Here's her great and detailed trip report:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-barcelona.cfm

As to the specific questions,

Yes, you really, truly need to rent a car to enjoy the Costa Brava and the inland Empordá.
And yes, you should return the car before heading to your Barcelona hotel.

You can just download the Barcelona file at
www.maribelsguides.com

sammy123

spent may 15-22 on Costa Brava; rented a lovely villa outside of Begur. You can hike along the entire coast on the well marked coastal trails; easy hikes, from aiguablava; more strenuous, from Sa tuna; we were able to walk to a "trailhead"from our villa. Scenery is magnificent no matter where you choose. Begur is a charming small town,, with great views, although not on the water. Callella de Palafruguell is another choice with many small hotels and restaurants right on the beach, and a lovely coastal walk as well. Don't skip Barcelona! Happy to provide some restaurants in Begur area , and Barcelona , if your plans include .

sfmaster

Thanks Sammy123. I am now starting to zero in on the villages and lodging. We have 2 nights in Barcelona at the end of the trip.

I am deciding between one place for 4 days or 2 places for 2 days each. Thinking maybe 2 days in Begur and 2 days in Cadaques.

Hotel choice would really drive my final choice but I am realizing I want it all.

charming hotel with character - not modern with elevators etc
Sea view
Walk to beaches
Nice town life with restaurants, cafes shops and not just tourists
Don't need night life

The Parador and Aiguiabrava often reco'd here don;t have walk to access for wandering around town. The Parador perhaps a little out of range....
BEgur looks lovely but no sea views etc - which is why I also thought to split between two places.

Anyway just some updates on my planning - better get serious soon and make some reservations.

sf

Dukey

Let's talk a little more about LeMeridien in Barcelona..not a bad choice IMO although the scardy cats will soon be here telling you that staying on Las Ramblas is absolutely like taking your life into your hands...and if you've already cashed in the points then stay with it...you might want to look at the TA reviews.

One day in BCN is better than none at all IMO..you'll have time to see a couple things if you want and think you'll enjoy them...

Maribel

sf,
I would stay in one location for 4 days, get to know it well, relax and take a few day trips from there.
You can reach Cadaqués from the Begur area by day trip-have done it myself several times.

For your parameters,
Charming hotel with character (although charmers can have elevators)
Sea view
Walk to beaches
Nice town life with restaurants, cafes, shops (far fewer tourists in Sept)

I'd look at the 3 star family run hotels in Llafranc, below Begur and book a room with balcony.

Hotel Llafranch
www.hllafranch.com

Hotel Llevant
www.hotel-llevant.com

or for less money, the 2 star Hotel Casamar
www.hotelcasamar.net

See a complete list of the hotels in Llafranc or its neighbor, Calella de Palafrugell, here:

http://www.turismepalafrugell.org/ac...=2&id2=60&id3=

Anncor1

We are going to Barcelona and also visiting the Costa Brave two weeks earlier than you. We too are staying at the Meridian, also using our points. We managed to book cash and points rather than use 12,000 points. We stayed there last year and it's a wonderful location. I suggest you stay in Barcelona first You can start seeing the sights of Barcelona as soon as you arrive, by storing your baggage at the hotel until your room is ready, walking the short distance to Plaza Catlunya and buying a 2 day Barcelona Bus Turistic at the tourist Bureau under the Plaza. The hop on one of the buses and rest while you listen to descriptions of the sites on your personal headphones. We are leaving Barcelona by train heading for France but on the return we are stopping in Gerona and picking up a car at the railway station to explore the Costa Brava and dropping it off at the airport in Barcelona. There is no drop off charge with National.

zeppole

I think I would have found Cadaques not fun as a day trip, and was glad I spent nights there. But I wouldn't want to use it as a base for day trips. It's got it's own unique charm and as a day trip, I think you only get the touristy veneer.

I found the single most accurate guide to descriptions of the towns in the region and what they have to offer to be the Rough Guide to the Costa Brava, although I wouldn't use it for restaurant recommendations.

Calella de Palafrugell is my favorite town in the Costa Brava, but I wouldn't want to use it as a base for day trips and it is very much a kick-back do-nothing-but-swim destination, so I don't know if would hold enough cultural interest for you. It's tiny.

traveller1959

>>>I think I would have found Cadaques not fun as a day trip, and was glad I spent nights there. But I wouldn't want to use it as a base for day trips. It's got it's own unique charm and as a day trip, I think you only get the touristy veneer.

sfmaster

Thanks everyone.

I agree with Maribel about settling in and staying one place but this trip I am going to split it up. We don't have the kids, we'll be lighter and can move around and I think we'll like the variety.

I am currently looking at the Parador and Hotel Galena Mas Comandau in Begur.

http://www.mascomangau.com/hoteleng.htm

The Parador sent me rate for 2 nights with breakfast for 540 Eurous - A little more than I want to spend but maybe ok and not sure about the room type - need to peruse the email more. I like the idea of the beautiful location and views and the walk to the beach.

The Mas Camandau has great trip advisor reviews, seems a nice restaurant and a little more of that "character" I was looking for.

Still to work on Cadaques lodging.

Our plan is to go straight to Costa Brava and then be in Barcelona 2 nights before departure to tee us up for our 10am flight without stress of driving and car return. Anncor1 recommends reverse but think our plan might work for us given flight times.

I am set on L'Meridian as I wanted Barcelona to be FREE hotel and so that is the plan regardless of points costs etc. Reviews are pretty good and sounds like location will serve us well for our quick "taste" of Barcelona. We know we'll need to get back.

Thanks so much for everyone's input

Maribel

I do know both the Parador and the Galena Mas Camandau. The Mas Camandau is located off the road coming into Begur and doesn't have sea views. The restaurant serves really lovely meals in a stylish environment.

If you want those Med views, you'll need to stay at the Parador. It is a modern, big box-like concrete structure (minus the "character"), sitting dramatically on a cliff. But what views! And all the rooms minus those on the -1 floor have sit out balconies.

Neither hotel is located in town, but from the Galena you can walk into charming Begur, which is fits all of your requirements for a lively town filled with shops, great places to eat, lots of character, filled with beautiful indiano homes, pretty plazas, etc. Begur has charm galore.

Here's another hotel option for Cadaqués-the Hotel Blau Mar.

www.hotelblaumar.com

zeppole

I enjoyed my stay at the Playa Sol in Cadaques, where my orange room overlooking the sea came with not one, but two, balconies.

http://www.playasol.com/

I also liked it because it was at one end the crescent shaped beach, and thus a wee bit quieter -- but only a 4 minute walk to the main hub of town. Spain being a late night place, and Cadaques perhaps even more so, you have to be prepared for people out and about well after midnight, but I did think the impact was less at the peripheries.

sfmaster

Yes I know Maribel the views the views..... I was thinking I would as part of my split the trip strategy maybe do an in town hotel in begur area and then have the views in Cadaques.....

I also like the comments at the Aigua Clara. Which may also be a more intown no views for 2 nights and then views and seaside Cadaques.

I liked that at the mascamandau has option to walk into town and has a highly regarded restaurant.... seems like the public areas have some space for lounging etc.

I just booked a semi suite at the rocamar.... perhaps also a little more than planned to spend but I am of the mind that we have only 4 days of hotel to pay for and it is a very special trip so I am not concerned too much about a few hundred dollars here and thee in the scheme of the effort it takes to get vacation scheduled, kids looked after and on the road.

The planning of the trip is lovely and I am neglecting the kids as I peruse websites!

Maribel

I understand the strategy, especially since you've booked the semi suite at the Rocamar.
(I only referenced the new Blau Mar because of its lower rates).

We've visited the Aigua Clara (but haven't stayed). And I can assure you that this converted "indiano" mansion has oodles of character, plus it's deemed to be a very good value, and also boasts a fine restaurant. In fact, the owners of the Hotel Bliss Begur (which has a nice Italian bistro) highly recommended it to us. And the Aigua Clara sits right in town, but tucked away from the lively square.

Have you looked at the descriptions of both the Galena and the Aigua Clara on
www.innsofspain.com?

traveller1959

>>>at the rocamar.... perhaps also a little more than planned

sfmaster

So we have the basic details in place

Day one - Land at BCN pick up car with National rental car - got an intermediate level
Drive to Begur
Reservations at Aiguaclara -

Decided our approach would be stay "in town" in Begur and focus on a sea view in Cadaques. Wanted the suite/terrace at Aiguaclara but not available - asked to keep in mind if there is a cancellation. Plan to have dinner at the hotel one night and somewhere else in Begur another night. Maybe the Galena where I almost decided to stay.

Day 2 - Begur - want to get into the med as much as possible and just wander around the streets.

Day 3 - drive to Cadaques - stopping here in there.....

Staying in a sea view jr suite at Rocamar

Drive 4 - Hang out in Cadaques - husband would like to kayak or windsurf

Will look for specific dinner recs through all the trip reports

Dave 5 - drive back to Barcelona
Wanted FREE lodging and so will be using points for a room at L'Meridian
Turn in car at airport before heading to hotel
They had no regular rooms left so apparently we have some high end suite (cost extra points but again I wanted to use points and have it be Free and so I just went with that approach)

Day 6 - get a sample of Barcelona - I know it is crazy to really have only 2 nights one day in Barcelona but there it is,,,,

Will do some reading on top 3 things to do and plan out some specific eating destinations

Day 7 - 10ish am flight direct home to Atlanta

Feels good to have these basics with confirmations in hand and will now start making more notes about the little details - I know I have got some.

Thanks for everyone's help.

Now of course I am starting to panic that the kids will be miserable and my mom won't survive but I think if I keep my expectations LOW (everyone alive and no major injuries) I think we'll be ok. I really really really am ready for this trip.......

Maribel

The location of Le Meridien is actually fine because it's at the very top, northern end, of the Ramblas, right across from the Hotel 1898 and just a few minutes from the Plaça de Catalunya.

Hope you like Begur as much as I do!

Another quite atmospheric place for al fresco dining (and great fish and rice dishes) is the restaurant of the Hostal Sa Tuna at the tiny pine covered cove of the same name.

http://www.hostalsatuna.com/en/3/men..._de_begur.html

http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/med...al-sa-tuna.jpg

beebs

Just want to make sure you know that renting a car from the airport involves an additional charge, which can be steep. You probably want to do it anyway, but I wanted to make sure you knew what to expect.

Also, since you posted on my trip report, I thought this might be a better place to add a thought about food. In Barcelona in particular (but probably everywhere else too), I highly advise planning where you will have dinner in advance, and making a reservation. Wandering around in the hopes of finding a good place to eat is not a good idea. (Been there, done that, and will never do it again.)