# Montseny The highest massif of the pre-coastal range, a natural park and biosphere reserve, with beech and fir forests an hour and a half from Barcelona. Santa Fe is the best-known gateway. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/montseny · Revisado: 2026-11-12 ## What is the Montseny and where do you get in? The Montseny is the highest massif of the Catalan pre-coastal range: more than 31,000 hectares of natural park spread over eighteen municipalities in Osona, La Selva and the Vallès Oriental. Three groups make up the mountain: the ridge of Turó de l'Home (1,706 m) and Les Agudes (1,703 m), the Matagalls (1,697 m) and the plain of La Calma. Between them, the upper basin of the Tordera. Because of the altitude and the humidity, Mediterranean landscapes and Central European-type forests such as the beech woods live side by side: a mosaic that has earned it biosphere reserve status. The best-known entrance is Santa Fe del Montseny, in the upper Tordera valley, at about a thousand metres: a reservoir surrounded by beech trees and the old grand hotel that the publisher Ramon de Montaner had built between 1912 and 1914 next to the chapel. You get there by the BV-5114 from Sant Celoni, a mountain road with many bends. Other gateways are Viladrau and El Brull on the Osona side, and Montseny and Tagamanent on the Vallès side. ## Can I go without a car? Yes, on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays all year except Christmas and New Year. The Rodalies R2 reaches Sant Celoni and there connects with the Bus Parc, Sagalés line 573 to Santa Fe. The special ticket costs €2.65, is valid all day with unlimited trips up and down and is free up to age 12; you pay in cash. There is a combined Renfe plus Bus Parc ticket. On the Osona side, from Vic lines 436 to Viladrau and 484 to Collformic run, and the R3 has a stop at Balenyà. ## What happens in autumn? Between 10 October and 8 December 2026, at weekends and on public holidays, the park sets up welcome points because Santa Fe, Fontmartina and Collformic get swamped by cars. At the one in Fogars de Montclús you park for free and take the Bus Parc up to Santa Fe or Fontmartina, with information, workshops and guided outings. In those weeks the bus timetables are extended and line 572 from Sant Celoni to Fontmartina runs. Using it is not compulsory, but it is the way to avoid spending the morning looking for a spot on the verge. ## Dónde está - Zonas: Unusual places to stay in Spain, Horse riding routes in Spain - Cerca: Vic (a 22.3 km), Caldes de Montbui (a 24.1 km), Rupit (a 30.0 km), Barcelona (a 45.6 km) ## Qué hacer - **The Santa Fe Reservoir and Beech Forest** (1 h 30 · All ages · Self-guided · free): What it is Santa Fe is the best-known corner of the Montseny: a small reservoir surrounded by beeches, at 1,080 m, with the old Santa Fe hotel and the hermitage beside it. The dam was begun in the 1920s and the reservoir was opened in 1935; the hotel dates from 1912 to 1914. The Santa Fe valley is a dense beech forest that turns yellow, orange and copper in autumn. It is the classic Montseny walk in October and November, and so also the busiest. Walking here is free and doesn't require fitness: going round the reservoir and spending a while in the beech forest is the whole visit. What walks there are From the Santa Fe car park, the Natural Park signposts several routes: Volta al pantà de Santa Fe: the circuit of the reservoir, flat, among beeches and with the hotel and dam in view. It is the walk for everyone. La Font del Frare: an adapted, accessible route that can also be done with a pushchair or wheelchair. SL-C 86, the Roc Perer: a longer local path, through the forest. Empedrat de Morou: the paved path that climbs towards the Morou. SL-C 208, from Santa Fe to the Turó de l'Home and les Agudes: the climb to the highest peaks of the massif. It is already a mountain outing of half a day or more, with serious ascent. PR-C 204, Pujada a Santa Fe: the path that climbs here from below. For the circuit of the reservoir and a while in the beech forest, allow an hour or an hour and a half. Check the Park's website for the route and length of the others before setting off. Getting there and parking By car, on the BV-5114 road, which climbs from Sant Celoni and Campins on one side and from Viladrau and Seva on the other. The public car park at Santa Fe is at km 21 of the BV-5114; it reopened after refurbishment on 1 July 2025 and is free. The road has many bends: allow plenty of time. In autumn, at weekends and on bank-holiday weekends, the Santa Fe car parks fill up and car access has been regulated or cut off when there is no room left. Check the notices from the Montseny Natural Park before going. By public transport, the Bus Parc, line 573, goes up to Santa Fe from Sant Celoni station, which the Rodalies R2 Nord reaches. It runs at weekends; check the current timetables on the Park's website or the operator's. When to go The time for colour is from mid-October to mid-November, depending on the year. During the week or first thing on Saturday you will find it much quieter. In spring the beech forest is light green and there are very few people. In summer, at 1,080 m, it is cooler than on the plain. In winter it can freeze and snow: the road demands caution and, with snow, chains. With children, a dog and accessibility The circuit of the reservoir is flat and suitable for small children. La Font del Frare is designed as an accessible route. Dogs must be on a lead: it is a natural park and there are many people at weekends. Stay on the paths and don't pick plants. Where to eat There are few services up here. In Montseny village, La Fonda del Montseny serves Catalan cooking and grilled food from Wednesday to Sunday; in autumn, book. - **Turó de l'Home and Les Agudes from Santa Fe (PR-C 208)** (5 h · 11.5 km · Fit walkers; teenagers · Independent · free): This is the outing that takes you to the roof of the Montseny from the bottom of the Santa Fe valley. The park signposts it as PR-C 208, a short-distance path with white and yellow marks, and gives it 11.5 km, about five hours on foot and medium-high difficulty. You start among the Santa Fe beeches, at about a thousand metres, and finish on the bare ridge linking the two highest summits of the massif: the Turó de l'Home, at 1,706 m, and Les Agudes, at 1,703 m. On clear days, from the top you can see the Vallès, the Maresme coast and, to the north, the Pyrenees. From Can Casades to the Briançó spring The start is at the Can Casades information centre, beside the BV-5114 road in Santa Fe. The first kilometres climb through the beech forest, with shade and a constant gradient; in autumn it is the most colourful stretch of the route. On leaving the forest the path opens onto the sunny slope and reaches the Briançó spring, at about 1,440 m, halfway up between the two summits. It is an old spring partly damaged by a forest track; do not count on it to fill your bottle. At Briançó the path divides. One branch climbs to Les Agudes and the other to the Turó de l'Home, the highest summit of the Montseny, with the installations of the former observatory. Between the two there is a little over a kilometre of ridge, so you can go up by one branch, cross over the top and come down by the other to the spring, and from there return to Santa Fe through the forest. The ridge, the wind and when not to climb There are no trees at the top. The ridge takes the wind full on and the temperature drops a lot compared with the valley, so carry in your rucksack the clothes you do not need in the beech forest. In winter there may be snow and ice on the upper part, and then the route requires equipment and experience. In thick fog, the ridge is disorienting. The park marks no technical passages on the PR-C 208: what is hard is the accumulated ascent and the duration. For a family with small children or a short day, the walk is different: the circuit of the reservoir and beech forest of Santa Fe, flat and from the same car park. The short, steep version, from Sant Marçal The GR 5.2 climbs from Sant Marçal to Les Agudes by the Goitadora scree and continues along the ridge to the Turó de l'Home. It is 7.2 km, high difficulty and about 4 h 10 according to the park. It is shorter, but with a lot more slope. Parking at Santa Fe or going up by Bus Parc The public car park at Santa Fe, at km 21 of the BV-5114, is free. On autumn weekends and public holidays, from 10 October to 8 December 2026, it fills up early and the park recommends leaving the car at the Fogars de Montclús welcome point and going up by Bus Parc. Line 573 runs up from the Sant Celoni station, on Rodalies line R2 Nord, on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays; the all-day ticket costs €2.65, is paid in cash and is free up to age 12. Check the time of the last bus down before you start: five hours of route leaves little margin. For a meal afterwards, La Fonda del Montseny, in the village of Montseny, opens Wednesday to Sunday at midday. The plan from the Santa Fe beech forest to Les Agudes and chestnuts in Viladrau organises an autumn Sunday around this climb. - **Matagalls from Collformic (GR 5.2)** (3 h 30 · 7.2 km · Keen walkers; teenagers who want a summit · Independent · free): Matagalls is the mountain you see from all over the Vic plain: a round dome, bare at the top, with a cross on the summit. At 1,697 m it is the third highest point of the Montseny, behind the Turó de l'Home and Les Agudes. It can be climbed in a morning because the path leaves from a pass already at 1,145 m. From the Collformic car park, on the BV-5301 road that runs from Sant Celoni to Vic via El Brull, the park signposts the climb along the GR 5.2, the path of the Montseny summits, with white and red marks. Uphill from the pass It is 3.6 km to the summit and about 550 m of ascent, always climbing. The path leaves the pass across meadows and heather scrub and climbs the ridge to the crest; there are almost no trees to give shade, so in summer it is best to set out early. The park's volunteers have been closing the shortcuts that people opened by coming down in a straight line, because the slope is eroding: follow the marked path even if you see shorter traces. Allow between an hour and a half and two hours to climb, depending on your pace, and a bit less to come down the same way. With stops, the morning goes in about three and a half hours. The park rates the route as high difficulty because of the continuous slope, not because it has delicate passages. It is a good first summit for teenagers who like walking; with small children it becomes long. The Matagalls cross and the Vic plain At the top is the cross you can see from Vic. To the north the Osona plain opens out; to the south, the rest of the massif, with the crest of the Turó de l'Home and Les Agudes opposite and the Tordera valley in between. There is no refuge or fountain on the summit: bring water and warm clothing from below, because up there the wind chills far more than at the pass. Parking at Collformic or leaving the car in El Brull The Collformic car park, at km 26.4 of the BV-5301, is free and has about 20 spaces; 500 m away there is another for 40 cars. The information point opens on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 9:00 to 14:00 and has a defibrillator. On weekends in October and November the pass fills up early. In autumn 2026, from 10 October to 8 December, the park opens a welcome point at the entrance to El Brull, with free parking and a Bus Parc to Collformic; you can also walk up from El Brull along the SL-C 85 path. Without a car, Bus Parc line 484 runs up on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from Vic and from the Balenyà-Tona-Seva station, on Rodalies line R3. The special all-day ticket costs €2.65, is paid in cash and under-12s do not pay. After the summit Viladrau is about twenty minutes by car: the Xalet La Coromina serves meals at weekends and has rooms if you want to stay. If the summit seems too much for the group, the Turó de Tagamanent is a half-hour climb on the same side of the park. - **Turó de Tagamanent from El Bellver** (1 h · 2.4 km · Families; children who already walk · Independent · free): Tagamanent is the small summit of the Montseny: 1,055 m at the western end of the massif, overlooking the Congost valley, down which run the C-17 and the R3. You climb it in half an hour from the El Bellver farmhouse and at the top you have a church, the remains of a castle and the view over the Pla de la Calma and Matagalls. It is the park outing that works best with children who already walk and with anyone who has only a morning. From El Bellver to the Coll de Sant Martí and up The park's signposted route leaves from the El Bellver information point and is 1.2 km, low difficulty and about 30 minutes each way. First it descends among farm terraces to the Coll de Sant Martí, where the hermitage of Sant Martí stands, almost in ruins. From the pass the final climb begins, short but steep, to the summit. You return the same way. With the visit to the church and a while at the top, allow a good hour in all. Santa Maria de Tagamanent and the castle At the summit is the church of Santa Maria de Tagamanent, which had to be rebuilt after the earthquake of 1448 and was consolidated in 2019. Beside it are the remains of the old castle that gave the place its name. From the esplanade you see the Pla de la Calma, Matagalls to the north and, below, the Congost with the traffic of the C-17. El Bellver: parking, information and the house museum The El Bellver information point is in the farmhouse of the same name, on the access path to the turó, inside the Tagamanent Ethnological Park. It opens on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 9:00 to 17:00, with holidays in August and at Christmas, and parking is free. From there the guided visits to the Casa Museu L'Agustí, the ethnological park's house museum, are organised; ask about times and price on 937 445 082. The farmhouse also has a restaurant: call the same number to find out which days it serves. On foot from Figaró station Without a car, the PR-C 213 climbs to the summit from the Figaró-Montmany station, on Rodalies line R3. The park gives it 17 km and about four and a half hours, passing through the Tagamanent Ethnological Park. It is a different outing: a full day and with ascent. Tagamanent in the morning, Matagalls afterwards Tagamanent and Matagalls are on the same side of the park, that of La Calma and Osona. If the group has the legs, leave Tagamanent for the morning and then climb Matagalls from Collformic, with parking and information at the Collformic pass. For a meal on the Osona side, the Xalet La Coromina, in Viladrau, serves meals Friday to Tuesday. - **Montsoriu Castle, in Arbúcies** (2 h 30 · 5.6 km · Families with children who walk; history lovers · Free, with booking): Montsoriu castle crowns a hill on the Selva slope of the Montseny, between Arbúcies and Sant Feliu de Buixalleu. It is first mentioned in writing in the year 1002, and in the 13th century the chronicler Bernat Desclot counted it among the most beautiful and noble castles in the world. What you walk on today is mostly the great Gothic work commissioned by Bernat II de Cabrera in the mid-14th century, when it was the residence of the viscounts of Cabrera. Beneath lie the remains of an Iberian settlement from the 4th and 3rd centuries BC. A Saturday morning with a guide and no ticket You can only enter in a group and with a guide. There are two sessions every Saturday and Sunday, at 10:15 and 12:30; in November one at 11:30 is added. The visit is free, but places are limited and it is advisable to book on the castle's website: you choose how many of you there are (up to eight per booking), the day and the time, and a confirmation email arrives. Before starting, each visitor signs a sheet accepting the conditions. The guide normally speaks Catalan; if you need another language, write beforehand to info@montsoriu.cat. The castle closes all of July and does not reopen until the first weekend of September. The management may suspend a visit in progress if the weather turns bad. From the lower enclosure to the noble hall The route climbs through the castle's three enclosures. It begins in the lower enclosure, the service courtyard where villagers took refuge in wartime, and crosses the barbican, the gate tower and the wall walk. Beside it stands a pre-Romanesque chapel, probably from the second half of the 10th century, with a horseshoe apse. Through a double bent-entrance gate you pass into the upper enclosure, with its Gothic courtyard, the keep and its terrace, the highest point, at about 640 m, with views in all directions. At the end you reach the parade ground, the palace the Cabreras built: the Gothic chapel, the viscounts' private rooms, the cistern, which held about 250,000 litres of rainwater to withstand a siege, and the noble hall, the largest of the complex, with two large windows and a great fireplace. A good part of the route is outdoors and there are many steps. The track from the Coll de Castellar By car you arrive from Arbúcies, by exit 209 of the Eix Transversal (C-25), or from the AP-7 via Hostalric or Sant Celoni, taking the GI-552 through Breda and following the signs to the Fogueres de Montsoriu housing estate. The signposted public car park is at the Coll de Castellar. From there it is 2.8 km of forest track to the gate, 30 to 40 minutes on foot, and it has to be done on foot. To go down you can take a signposted path that leaves the outer square and reaches the foot of the tarmac road in less than ten minutes. Anyone with reduced mobility can ask to go up in a private vehicle by writing a week in advance to info@montsoriu.cat; even so, the steps inside make the visit difficult. Children, dogs and picnics Under-16s enter with a responsible adult. Pets are not admitted, except guide dogs, so the dog stays at home. Up there you cannot picnic or smoke. Bring footwear and clothing for the time of year: the track and half the castle are in the open. To complete the day, cross to the Osona side: in Viladrau, the Xalet La Coromina restaurant cooks with the village's chestnut, and the plan Montsoriu castle and chestnuts in Viladrau joins the two. If you want to sleep nearby, the Cabanes als Arbres are in Sant Hilari Sacalm. - **Horse Ride in the Montseny from Can Vila** (From beginners; families · Desde 28 € per hour): Can Vila is an equestrian centre at kilometre 7.5 of the road that climbs from Sant Esteve de Palautordera to the village of Montseny, already inside the natural park and about 35 minutes from Barcelona according to its website. It opened in 2000 and now has stables, a riding school, livery and a rural hotel in the farmhouse next door. The guided rides leave from the same arenas and head along the tracks of the lower Montseny, with a crossing of the River Tordera on horseback, which is the moment the house highlights. From the arena to the Tordera ford The ride starts and ends at the club, with a guide from the house. The route follows the tracks of the natural park and crosses the River Tordera. They adapt the route to the rider's level, from someone who has never sat on a horse to confident riders, and organise it in four formats: as a family, as a couple, with a group of friends or as an individual outing. They also prepare tailor-made rides for a celebration. The club's website does not publish the length of each ride, the exact route or the minimum age. The estate's hotel gives a reference price of €28 per hour on horseback. When you book, ask how long the outing they propose lasts, whether they provide a helmet and from what age a child rides alone; for the youngest, the school works with ponies. Booking by phone on weekdays Rides are booked in advance by phone or WhatsApp on 609 510 411, or by email to david@hipicacanvila.com. The club answers Monday to Friday from 9:00 to 19:00: if you want to ride on a Saturday or Sunday, fix the date before Friday afternoon. The website gives no cancellation conditions or what happens if it rains; agree it when you book, especially if the forecast is doubtful. Wear long trousers and closed shoes with a small heel; soft-soled trainers slip in the stirrup. Sleeping next to the stables The Hotel Rural Can Vila is on the same estate, in an early 19th-century farmhouse with nine rooms and views of the arenas. Its restaurant opens at weekends for guests, with booking. From the hotel you can walk, in about fourteen minutes, to Montclús castle, and drive to Santa Fe in about half an hour, where the reservoir and beech forest of Santa Fe are. Further up the road, the farmhouse Can Barrina has a restaurant with a terrace over the Tordera valley. - **Guided Mushroom Walk in the Montseny: "Els bolets amb uns altres ulls** (4 h · 5 km · General public; children used to walking · Desde 4 € per adult): What it is and who leads it This is the series of mushroom walks in the guided-walks programme of the Montseny Natural Park, which is managed by the Diputació de Barcelona. It is led by the environmental education company Aprèn, Serveis Ambientals, with an office in Figaró-Montmany. It is called "Els bolets amb uns altres ulls", mushrooms with different eyes, and that is exactly what it is: a walk of about four hours to recognise the most curious mushrooms, get to know the commonest ones and learn to identify the important species of each forest. Each Sunday the starting point and the type of forest change. In 2026 they were Collformic, among beech woods and meadows, on 4 October, and El Brull, through oak woods and mountain pinewoods, on 25 October. Two remain: Aiguafreda, through pinewoods and holm oak woods, on 15 November, setting off from Sant Martí de Centelles railway station with a 5 km route; and La Garriga, through Mediterranean holm oak woods and pinewoods, on 29 November, from the visitor centre and covering 4 km. Both run from 10:00 to 14:00. The park publishes its programme of guided walks every year on the Xarxa de Parcs Naturals website. Price, registration and what to bring It costs €4 for adults and €3 for children aged 6 to 12, large and single-parent families, over-65s and volunteers of the parks network. Children under 6 do not pay. Registration is compulsory and is done with Aprèn on 938 429 361 or at apren@apren.cat. Places are limited, given on a first-come basis, and the walk is cancelled if the weather does not allow it to be done properly. The park only asks for comfortable walking shoes and a bottle of water. The two remaining walks can both be reached by train: the Rodalies R3 stops at Sant Martí de Centelles and at La Garriga. The rules for picking mushrooms in the Montseny The walk is for learning to look, not for filling the basket. If you want to pick something, ask the guide first, and do not eat any mushroom that an expert has not checked one by one: in these woods there are toxic species very similar to the good ones. In Catalonia mushrooms are a resource belonging to the owner of the forest, and in the Montseny there are many private estates: where an estate shows with signs that picking is forbidden, nothing is picked. The Diputació's parks network does not set a limit in kilos in its recommendations; the Generalitat asks that you pick only species you know and in an amount to eat, that you do not pull up or break those you do not know, that you do not turn over the soil with sticks or rakes and that you use a basket that lets the mushrooms breathe. Chestnuts, by contrast, may only be picked with the permission of the owner of the trees. ## Dónde comer - **Can Barrina** (Restaurant, Montseny, €€€). Qué pedir: Something from the holm-oak grill or, in autumn, the seasonal mushrooms; the desserts are made in the house. - **La Fonda del Montseny** (Restaurant, Montseny, €€). Qué pedir: from the grill, the Viladrau chestnut butifarra or the Montseny lamb; the Menú del Montseny serves it with ganxet beans. - **Xalet La Coromina** (Restaurant, Viladrau, €€€). Qué pedir: The onion and chestnut soup, the wild boar civet with chestnuts or the chestnut butifarra with mushrooms; for dessert, the chestnut baba. ## By car: By Car, Entering from Both Sides The car is the natural way to get around the Montseny: the mountain roads link the Vallès side, via Sant Celoni and Montseny, with the Osona side, via Viladrau and El Brull. In autumn, at weekends, leave the car at the Fogars welcome point. Presupuesto orientativo: 80–150 € por persona y día. ### Dónde dormir if you're driving - **Cabanes als Arbres** (Small hotel, desde 159 € / night): Sixteen cabins in the Sant Hilari forest Cabanes als Arbres is in Sant Hilari Sacalm, in the Guilleries, at between 960 and 1,000 metres above sea level, with the Montseny in front. There are sixteen wooden cabins scattered through the forest around La Vileta, a farmhouse more than seven centuries old that serves as reception. They fall into three categories, Magia, Cupido and Natura, which differ in price and setting, but all are octagonal, 30 m², with a 10 m² terrace facing the Montseny, the Pyrenees or wherever the sun rises or sets. Almost all hang from one or two trees; the Tallareta rests on piles. You climb up by a suspension bridge, a vertical ladder or both, and in the cabins held between two trees the ladder is about 4 metres. For that reason they only admit children aged 10 and over, always accompanied by an adult. Animals cannot enter the cabins. A night without sockets or an indoor shower The cabin has no electricity. You light your way with rechargeable lamps and head torches, and the cabin's basket also holds a walkie-talkie. Charge your phone before you arrive. Inside there is a hand basin with a water reserve and a dry toilet: instead of water you add sawdust, and it is emptied and cleaned every day for composting. The showers, the full bathroom, the lounge with fireplace and the bar are in the farmhouse, where there is also wifi and a computer with internet. For the cold, each cabin has a bioethanol fireplace. The website charges a supplement on 24, 25, 26 and 31 December and 1 January, so you can sleep here in midwinter. In summer the farmhouse pool is open. There are also private outdoor spas, booked by sessions, and a massage room. Breakfast is included. From 9:00 it is left in a basket at the foot of the tree and you haul it up with a rope whenever you like. You cannot cook in the cabin: if you do not want to go down to the village, order a hot dinner delivered to the cabin, at €26 per person, when you book or on arrival. Arriving by car and walking through the forest You arrive by the Vallclara road and park among the trees, next to reception. From there you follow the forest signs on foot to your cabin; some are about 10 minutes away. Bring walking boots and a small rucksack instead of a suitcase. Check-in is from 16:00 to 19:30; if you are going to arrive later, let them know by phone or email. Check-out is before 12:00. Prices on its website: the à la carte night for two with breakfast, from €159; packs with dinner, spa and massage, from €239. From here you are close to the Selva side of the Montseny: Montsoriu Castle, above Arbúcies, and the climb up Matagalls from Collformic. More ideas in Montseny. - **Can Barrina** (Small hotel, desde 150 € / night): Can Barrina is a 17th-century farmhouse at kilometre 12.7 of the road from Sant Esteve de Palautordera to Montseny, at the entrance to the village and inside the natural park. It had stood uninhabited for thirty years when its present owners bought it in 1984; they refurbished it in the 1980s, extended the house with two side wings and opened it as a hotel with a restaurant. Above the door are engraved the year of the farmhouse and that of the refurbishment, 1620 and 1987. It has a pool and a terrace facing the valley of the River Tordera. Six room types and their prices The website publishes the price per room and night, and what changes from one to another is mainly the view: Double with interior views: €150. Double with pool views: €155. Double with garden views: €165. Superior with fireplace and forest views: €195. Family suite: €185 for two people and €290 for four. Golfes apartment, for four: €295 the first night and €200 each following night. The house also highlights its Montseny Suite. The website does not say whether breakfast is included, or the check-in and check-out times, or whether animals are admitted: ask when you book. If you book directly by phone or email, they offer a welcome gift and discounts with their Green Card; mention it when you call. For a family of four, the suite or the attic With two children you have two options. The family suite comes to €290 a night for four. The Golfes apartment, also for four, costs more the first night, €295, but drops to €200 from the second: if you stay a long weekend, it is the cheapest option per night. In winter, the superior rooms are the ones with a fireplace. Dinner without taking the car The Can Barrina restaurant is in the same farmhouse: holm-oak grill, seasonal mushrooms, home-style stews and rustic dining rooms with a fireplace, and in summer the terrace over the Tordera for dining outside. It does not publish opening hours, so book a table at the same time as the room. The farmhouse also organises weddings and celebrations: ask whether there is one on the day of your stay. The Montseny's Vallès side, on foot and by car From the farmhouse you can walk up to the square of the village of Montseny, where La Fonda del Montseny serves meals Wednesday to Sunday. Down the road, at km 7.5, is the Can Vila riding centre, with horse rides in the Montseny that cross the Tordera. For the beech forest of Santa Fe and the climb to the Turó de l'Home you have to go down towards Sant Esteve and take the Sant Celoni road, the BV-5114; in autumn, at weekends, check first whether the park is regulating access. A car is essential for getting around: Bus Parc 576 goes up to the village from Santa Maria de Palautordera, but only at weekends and on public holidays. - **Hotel Rural Can Vila** (Small hotel): The Hotel Rural Can Vila occupies an early 19th-century farmhouse at kilometre 7.5 of the Montseny road, in Sant Esteve de Palautordera, at the foot of the natural park. It was restored with its original materials, stone, wood and iron, and shares an estate with the Can Vila riding club: from many windows you see the forest and the riding arenas. It is a small hotel, with nine rooms, with the riding centre and the tracks of the lower Montseny on the doorstep. Nine rooms named after plants Each room is named after a plant or a place in the massif. Six face outwards: Farigola, Espígol, Malva and Romaní, standard doubles, and Lledoner and Alzina, special doubles. The other three are interior: Montseny, a standard double; the Sant Elies junior suite, and the Matagalls family suite. The interior ones are reached by lift. All have a king-size bed, television, internet connection, safe, minibar, air conditioning and heating. The hotel has parking, a reading room and a meeting room for twelve people, and can call you a taxi. The website does not publish room prices or check-in and check-out times: the booking engine gives them. Breakfast at €10 and cancellation in stages Breakfast is not included: it costs €10 per person. An extra bed is €35, and room prices are given without VAT. If you cancel more than 30 days ahead you pay nothing; between 30 and 15 days you lose 40% of the deposit, between 15 and 7 days 60%, and with seven days or less, all of it. With a dog and with horses The hotel accepts pets for €20 a night. Next door leave the Can Vila horse rides, which the hotel advertises at €28 an hour and which cross the River Tordera; they also hire bicycles with prior booking. The restaurant, in a glazed annexe facing the arena, opens at weekends for guests, with Catalan seasonal cooking and compulsory booking; on weekdays you will have to dine out. Montclús castle, fourteen minutes on foot On foot, in about fourteen minutes, you reach Montclús castle, which locally is also called the Moors' castle. By car, the valley of Santa Fe is about half an hour away and Collformic, the start of the climb to Matagalls, about 40 minutes. Up the road, towards the village of Montseny, the farmhouse Can Barrina has a restaurant with holm-oak grill and a terrace over the Tordera valley, and in the village square La Fonda del Montseny serves meals Wednesday to Sunday. - **Xalet La Coromina** (Small hotel): The Xalet La Coromina is at Carretera de Vic, number 4, at the entrance to Viladrau, the chestnut village on the north face of the Montseny, already in the province of Girona. It is a mountain house of wood and stone with a garden, a hotel and restaurant in one, and what sets it apart is the cooking: it is one of four restaurants in Catalonia with the title of Viladrau Chestnut Ambassador, and its chef, Juan Antonio Cuartero, is the Official Chestnut Chef. Staying here is, above all, dining at the house and not having to drive afterwards. Wood, a freestanding bath and a family room The website presents three types of room. The doubles are of natural wood, with a king-size bed and views over the valley. The Montseny Suite is the largest, with a freestanding bath and a sitting area. The family room keeps the mountain-refuge feel and is the one to take if you are travelling with children. Booking is done on its online booking engine; the website does not publish prices, check-in and check-out times or rules about animals, so ask beforehand on +34 676 237 016 or at info@xaletcoromina.com. Breakfast is served to guests, and in good weather it is taken in the garden. Weekend massages in the woods The house has opened a massage space surrounded by woodland. There is a 50-minute relaxing or deep-tissue massage for €60, the couples version, both in the same room, for €100, and two short 25-minute massages, legs and feet or neck and head, for €35. Appointments are on Saturdays and Sundays from 17:00 to 19:00; on weekdays, depending on the day, ask. Book on the website, by phone or by WhatsApp on 670 85 15 54, and they call you to confirm. Dinner at the house, except Wednesday and Thursday The Xalet restaurant serves lunch from 13:00 to 15:30 and dinner from 20:30 to 22:45 on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays and public holidays. On Wednesdays and Thursdays it is closed: if you stay those nights, you will have to dine in the village. The menu revolves around the Viladrau chestnut, with mountain and seasonal dishes, and the dining room has a log fire in winter and large windows onto the Montseny. Tables can be booked on the website until 15:00 for lunch and until 22:00 for dinner. Viladrau as a base for the north of the massif From here you reach Collformic in about twenty minutes, where the climb to the Matagalls starts. To the east, via Arbúcies, you reach the Montsoriu Castle, which is visited with a guide on Saturday and Sunday mornings; the plan Montsoriu Castle and chestnuts in Viladrau puts the two together on a Sunday. Vic is about 25 km along the Carretera de Vic. A car is necessary: the Bus Parc 436 links Vic and Viladrau, but only at weekends and on public holidays. ### Servicios - **Fogars de Montclús Welcome Point**: Free parking and Bus Parc to Santa Fe and Fontmartina · autumn weekends and public holidays, from 10 October to 8 December 2026 - **Collformic Car Park and Information Point**: About 20 spaces and another car park 500 m away · information at weekends and public holidays from 9:00 to 14:00 · start of the climb to Matagalls ## As a family: Forest, Horses and a Castle The Montseny works with children if you choose short walks and something to do at the end: the reservoir, a small summit or a castle. ### What works best The walk around the Santa Fe reservoir, flat and under the beeches The Turó de Tagamanent from El Bellver: 30 minutes to the church at the top The Can Vila horse ride, beginner and family Montsoriu castle, free with booking, for children who can manage a 2.8 km climb ### Where to sleep Can Barrina, with a family suite and pool Hotel Rural Can Vila, with a family suite beside the horses ### Where to eat La Fonda del Montseny, in the village square ### Bear in mind The Bus Parc is free up to age 12 It is cool in the forest even if it is hot down below: bring a jacket ### Qué hacer as a family - Turó de Tagamanent from El Bellver - Montsoriu Castle, in Arbúcies - Horse Ride in the Montseny from Can Vila - Guided Mushroom Walk in the Montseny: "Els bolets amb uns altres ulls ## With teenagers: The Three Summits of the Montseny For a teenager, the challenge is getting to the top: the Turó de l'Home, Les Agudes or Matagalls, with the coast and the Pyrenees in sight. ### What works best Turó de l'Home and Les Agudes from Santa Fe: 11.5 km and about 5 h Matagalls from Collformic: a little over 2 h climbing Montsoriu castle, with its story of viscounts A horse ride at Can Vila ### Where to sleep Xalet La Coromina, in Viladrau, near Collformic ### Where to eat A sandwich for the summit; there are no services up there ### Bear in mind The wind blows on the ridge: always bring a windproof In winter there may be snow on the summits ### Qué hacer with teenagers - Turó de l'Home and Les Agudes from Santa Fe (PR-C 208) - Matagalls from Collformic (GR 5.2) - Montsoriu Castle, in Arbúcies - Horse Ride in the Montseny from Can Vila ## Consejos ### Park at the welcome point in autumn At Fogars de Montclús parking is free and the Bus Parc takes you up to the beech forest without fighting for a space. ### Bring cash for the Bus Parc The driver doesn't accept cards. ### Bring a warm layer even if it's hot down below At a thousand metres, in the shade of the beeches, the temperature drops a lot, and on the summits the wind blows. ### Stay on the paths In autumn the park asks for respect for the fauna, the flora and the people who live and work on the mountain: park only where it is permitted. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How long does it take from Barcelona? An hour and a half by car to Santa Fe, via the AP-7 to Sant Celoni and then the BV-5114. To Viladrau or El Brull, via the C-17 and Vic. ### How much does the Bus Parc cost? €2.65 for the special all-day ticket, free for under-12s. It runs at weekends and on public holidays all year except Christmas and New Year. ### What is the highest peak? Turó de l'Home, at 1,706 m, followed by Les Agudes, at 1,703 m, and the Matagalls, at 1,697 m. ### Where is the park office? At Masia Mariona, in Mosqueroles (Fogars de Montclús), BV-5119 road, km 2.5: open Monday to Friday from 9:30 to 15:30 and with the Univers Patxot exhibition space. Telephone 938 475 102. ### Is there a museum about the mountain? The Museu Etnològic del Montseny, La Gabella, on Carrer Major in Arbúcies. ### Where can I stay? In farmhouses and small hotels scattered around the massif: Can Barrina, in the municipality of Montseny; the Hotel Rural Can Vila, on the Montseny road in Sant Esteve de Palautordera, and the Xalet La Coromina, in Viladrau. All three need a car. ### Can I go with children? Yes. The walk beside the Santa Fe reservoir is short and the Bus Parc is free up to age 12. Bring warm clothes: it is cool in the forest.