Mission Impossible: ......a traditional Spanish fishing village?
 

Am I still dreaming of a quaint, rustic fishing village on the Med where I can stay in a simple hotel, sit on my balcony, gaze out over the small fleet of fishing boats and wander down to wharf and eat paella?

I've been searching the web and all I can find are miles and miles of multi-storey resort hotels.

Are there still authentic Spanish fishing villages to explore?

Your suggestions would be most apprecaited.

Mission accomplished! There are certainly a number of places like the one you have "invented," and the dot the coast. The deal is that they do not advertise as much as the big places do because if they did, they would cease to exist.

I am a huge fan of the fishing villages of the Comunidad Valenciana as opposed to Catalunya. In Alicante you have the Trenet, a small train that will take you up the coast from Alicante city to Benidorm (a hellhole). There are beautiful villages along the way. Altea is nice, and Calpe is a wonderful area. I had a nice weekend in Teulada a few years back, and every summer my host dad and I go to Moros y Cristianos in la Vilajoiosa. If you head up to Castellón, you have Benicassim, which is gorgeous (though kenderina can probably tell you even better places).

If you are looking for something wonderful, small and traditional, I recommend going to Formentera, or just renting a car in Alicante and driving up the coast, discovering along the way.

I see Calpe listed on this thread. We had a time share there in the '70s, and it was wonderfully picturesque. A true fishing village. Later, it was called the "Conrete Coast", from the high-rise German hotels and time shares. :-(

Last time we were there, it was still interesting,if only for the "Ifach", a huge Gibralter-like rock that sits at the Southern end of the town. Well worth the climb, if you are athletic. Be sure to ride the "Toonerville Trolly" train that runs up the coast from Benidorm to Denia.

If you find one of the old, unspoiled, places that has excaped the tourists, please let me know.

:-)

Nukesafe is right on! If you do climb the Ifach, you will need good hiking boots and maybe some knee pads, as they get scraped up if you are in shorts (yes, I looked so pretty after it was over. . . smiling, sweaty and bleeding all over the place).

Another great place is Gandia.

I know that you are looking for a fishing village, but if you are interested in doing a few days of village visits, I think that going inland, particularly in Valencia, would be a very relaxing endeavour. I loved Bugarra, but you also have Xátiva and Alzira.

Also, if you are looking to go off the beaten path, you will really enjoy Murcia. It has beautiful beaches (Cartagena, for one), and even the capital is tranquil and lovely.

The first place that comes to my mind with your description is Moraira, next to Calpe in Alicante :) It's still a fishing village , great hotels with balcony and good food :)
If you want to go north (Castellon) then you have El Grao de Castellón (there are three ports..a big cargo one, a little sporting one and a normal fishing one where you can join the selling of the fish in the afternoon). There are few hotels because it is a place where people actually lives all year round, not touristic at all but I like it a lot :)
Then , 4 km more and you go to Benicassim. It has big beaches which are the kind of multi-storey you don't like (me either !) but then, as you go along, you'll find the best part of it , two beaches not so big, with old luxury villas in a promenade along the beach..and at the final point, a beautiful (expensive for me!) hotel literally in the sand, with wonderful terraces (no fishing there, sorry !).
There begins the most luxury zone round here , Las Playetas. Really beautiful landscapes, absolutely clean sea water ...former president Aznar had his summer vacation there.
And 80 km north..there's Penyiscola. It's a tiny fishing village in a little peninsula inside the sea, where the Castle of the last of the Avignon Popes is. Along the big beach they have there are lots of hotels and apartments but , with good sense, its not allowed to build more than six floors, so it's still pretty. There's also a Parador there. It also is a good point for day trips of the Maestrazgo, lots of scenery and medieval history and villages :)

I don't know about quaint & rustic but I believe there's still a daily fish auction (the catch of the day) in Campello (Alicante).

You might do better meeting your specs on the north or northwest coast (Rias Altas and Rias Bajas): LaGuardia (Pontevedra, Galicia) is onr place that comes to mind.

Okay, nobody mentioned about the star of Andalucia. El Puerto de Santa Maria. This is the other side of the bay of Cadiz. Like Cadiz, Puerto is about 3,000 years old, so people have been fishing for some time at this place.

There's a port full of fishing boats. The auction is across the river and the "Catch" is sold to the restaurants for the daily special on the menu.

There are restaurants on the quai which sell the fish directly too. You can buy gambas per the kilo and walk over to the cerveceria and have a beer while you much the gambas. It's the cheapest to eat fresh shrimp that I've ever found. Back into the village are full of good restaurants and tapa bars.

Each night it's full of people after midnight. You can buy an ice-cream at 3:00 and the street is so packed that the cars can't pass.

http://images.google.fr/imgres?imgur...lr%3D%26sa%3DN

Maybe this won't work but just google for el puerto de santa maria. Look for images and find the one which shows the seafood counters ar Romerijo.

Blackduff

FYI- If you want a really amazing seaside place, go to Essouira, Morocco. It is my favorite coastal relax destination.

On the Costa Brava, Calella da Palafrugell would be my pick for its lack of high rises and marvelous charm.

http://www.finquesfrigola.com/webcam.htm

My second choice would be L'Escala, which really is a working fishing town, specializing in anchovies. Cadaques also lacks high rises, but it is an arts colony. If you go as far as Portbou near the French border, you are going to find some fairly unglamorous, untouristed places with working people and fishing boats.

This being Catalonia, paella is not the most regional dish, but it's definitely available.

Ever think about the Basque Country? Getaria and Zaurutz spring to mind as unspoiled fishing villages -- and the food is fantastic.

I agree, nessundorma,
On the northern Costa Brava:
Calella de Palaruguell, Llafranc, Tamariu

These aren't on the Med, but on the Costa Canábrica.
In the Basque Country, I agree.
Getaria, Lekeitio, Zumaia, Elantxobe, Bermeo

In Asturias:
Ribadesella, Cudillero, Luarca

In Galicia:
Viveiro, Ortiguera

Thanks so much for your suggestions. This certainly gives me a lot of scope to further my research...e.g. day dreaming.
Cheers
Steve

bookmarkign

Why in the world did you top a thread that in nine years old? Most of the quaint, rustic, fishing villages are probably now tourist destinations, filled with loud music, pizza, and McDonalds.

He-he, not much "pizza, and McDonalds" in Getaria, Lekeitio, Zumaia, Elantxobe, Bermeo etc along the Basque coast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqdjeGqnVKc

Oh, kimhe, that made me really hungry! :-)

It was a real downer when McDonalds opened a branch in the building of the excellent La Bretxa food market in San Sebastian some years ago. I'm not at all against a juicy Big Mac when time is right, but never ever in San Sebastian ;-) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwmBAvqa_0U

Although it seems like it's fairly popular when ever you walk by, but then so is sushi in the land of "to know how to eat is to know enough!" - Nola jan jakitea, nahikoa jakitea da.

the title of this post caught my attention...did not note date...wow some of those places are now nothing but high rises and mass tourists...sad.