Empordà, stone villages between the Pyrenees and the Costa Brava.

What is the Empordà?

The plain of north-eastern Catalonia, in the province of Girona, that runs from the Pyrenees to the sea. To the north it is closed by the Albera range, on the French border; to the south, by the Gavarres massif; to the east, by the Costa Brava. Three rivers cross it, the Muga, the Fluvià and the Ter, which have left marshes, rice fields and market gardens beside the coast. It is divided into two districts: the Alt Empordà, to the north, with its capital at Figueres, and the Baix Empordà, to the south, with its capital at La Bisbal d'Empordà.

The landscape alternates fields of cereal and fruit trees, vines and olive trees on the slopes, cork oak woods in the Gavarres and medieval stone villages on top of small hills. Its stretch of coast is the northern and central part of the Costa Brava, from Portbou to Palamós. The wind sets the character of the district: the tramontana, which blows hard from the north, clears the sky and can blow for several days in a row.

How to get there and get around?

From Barcelona, along the AP-7 motorway, toll-free since 2021, Figueres is about 140 km away, around an hour and a half. By train, the AVE reaches Figueres-Vilafant station from Barcelona in a little under an hour, and the slower Rodalies regional trains stop at Girona, Flaçà and Figueres on the way to Portbou. The nearest airport is Girona; Barcelona has more flights.

Within the Empordà, a car is almost essential for seeing the inland villages: the distances are short, ten to twenty minutes between one and the next, but the bus has few services. Cadaqués is reached by a winding road over the Cap de Creus, and in summer the car park at the entrance to the village fills up early.

By bike, the Carrilet II greenway links Girona with Sant Feliu de Guíxols along the old railway line, about forty almost flat kilometres that skirt the Baix Empordà on the south. The quiet minor roads of the plain are also good for cycling. On foot, the camí de ronda, signposted as the GR 92, follows the coast between coves, especially on the Begur to Palamós stretch.

What is there to see in the Alt and Baix Empordà?

In the Alt Empordà, Figueres has the Dalí Theatre-Museum, which the painter himself designed over the old municipal theatre. Very close, Peralada brings together a castle, a convent turned into a wine and glass museum and vineyards of the Empordà appellation. Castelló d'Empúries holds a Gothic basilica next to the Aiguamolls de l'Empordà Natural Park, a wetland of lagoons and flooded meadows where birds can be seen from hides. Towards the sea, the Cap de Creus is the last spur of the Pyrenees, with the monastery of Sant Pere de Rodes on high and Cadaqués and Portlligat, where Dalí lived, at its feet. In L'Escala, the ruins of Empúries combine a Greek and a Roman city facing the beach.

In the Baix Empordà, the inland villages are the main reason to visit. Peratallada preserves a moat dug into the rock and stone streets; Pals, a Gothic old town on a hill with views over the rice fields and the Medes islands. Nearby are Monells, Ullastret, with an Iberian settlement, La Bisbal, with its ceramics tradition, and Púbol castle, which Dalí gave to Gala. On the coast, Begur and the coves of Palafrugell, like Calella, Llafranc or Tamariu, are the best known, and at Torroella de Montgrí begins the Montgrí, Illes Medes and Baix Ter Natural Park, with the Medes marine reserve off L'Estartit.

To the west, already in the Garrotxa, Besalú is half an hour from Figueres and combines well with the Alt Empordà.

When to go and what changes each season?

April, May, June, September and October are the best months: good weather for walking and cycling, villages open and reasonable prices. In September and October the grape harvest arrives, and the sea stays warm well into September. In July and August the coast fills up, parking in villages like Pals, Peratallada or Cadaqués gets complicated and accommodation prices rise. In winter the district is quiet and many rural-tourism houses and coastal restaurants close; the tramontana is more frequent and colder.

How many days and how to divide them?

A weekend is enough for one of the two districts: the inland Baix Empordà from Peratallada or Pals, or Figueres, Cadaqués and the Cap de Creus. With four or five days you can see both, with a base in each or a single one in the middle, near Torroella de Montgrí or La Bisbal. With a week there is also room for a couple of days of beach or camí de ronda and an excursion to Girona or Besalú.

What to know before you go?

The Dalí Theatre-Museum sells timed tickets, and in summer it is wise to buy them in advance. With a strong tramontana the sea at Cap de Creus becomes dangerous and some coastal walking routes become uncomfortable: check the forecast before setting out. In July and August, visit the medieval villages first thing or at dusk, when fewer cars arrive.