42.00° N · 3.15° E · Pals
A little train takes you in about 20 minutes from the old town to the Molí de Pals between farmhouses and rice fields. You visit the mill, see how the grain is whitened and walk back through the fields. An hour and three quarters, €13 adults and €7 children.
Who offers it
Independent companies: you book with them, on their terms. Prices are as they publish them and may change.
Step by step
Meet at the little train stop, in the coach car park on calle Abeurador.
From the old town, between farmhouses and rice fields.
Texts on the rice of 1452, the electrical installation of the early 20th century and a machine that shows how the grain is whitened. You can buy rice and try l'Arrossa, a beer made with the mill's rice.
You walk back to Pals between the fields, inside the natural park.
It is the easiest way to understand why Pals gives its name to a rice: from mill to plate, with the fields all around.
Pals is known for its medieval old town, but at its feet, on the Baix Ter plain, there have been rice fields since the 15th century. The El Xiulet de Pals route boards a little tourist train in the old town, runs down between farmhouses and rice fields to the Molí de Pals and, after the visit to the mill, brings you back on foot to the village along the tracks through the rice fields. In an hour and three quarters you understand the landscape you see from the wall.
The story has its twists. There was already a mill in 1452, and it still belongs to one of the families that sell rice in the village. In the 18th century the locals blamed the stagnant water of the fields for fevers and epidemics, and in 1838 a royal order banned cultivation in the area. In the early 20th century, Pere Coll i Rigau, back from Cuba, bought land and revived it with irrigation using constantly moving water. Since 1908 rice has been back in Pals, and today five producers sell it under the Arròs de Pals brand.
For all ages, and above all for families: children like the little train and the return is along a flat track. The company adapts the activity to specific needs if you ask when booking. If you already know about rice growing or you want a long walk, it may feel a little short.
The little train leaves from the stop in the old town of Pals, in the coach car park on calle Abeurador. Pals is on the road between Palafrugell and Torroella de Montgrí, a few kilometres from Pals beach. The tourist office, on calle de la Creu, has information on bus access.
Departures are published in the calendar on the El Xiulet de Pals website, with date, language and places. The morning departure is at 10:00. The landscape changes with the seasons of the crop, so every time of year has its own colour. The rice fields lie within the Montgrí, Illes Medes and Baix Ter Natural Park, and on the way it is easy to see birds.
€13 for adults and €7 for children. If you want to take some rice home, it is sold in packets at the mill.
The route is outdoors, so in heavy rain it is not the best plan: ask the company whether it still runs. As an alternative, El Xiulet de Pals also has the medieval route and the Gothic Pals route, through the old town.
Who it's for
You are travelling with children, you are interested in knowing where what you eat comes from or you want to see the rice fields up close before eating a rice dish in the village.
You want a long walking route or you already know rice growing well.
What to bring
Map
What you have around the starting point.
More to do
Itineraries
Tips
Departures have limited places and are published on the El Xiulet de Pals website.
With the fields flooded there are more birds.
Each departure has its own language: Catalan, Spanish, English or French.
After the route, eat a dish made with Pals rice in the village: Bomba or Carnaroli are among the most prized varieties.
Every autumn Pals organises a popular walk through the rice fields; in 2026 it is on Sunday 22 November.
Questions
€13 adults and €7 children.
An hour and three quarters, including the walk back.
Yes. The company adapts the activity if asked; the walk back is along a flat track.
Catalan, Spanish, English and French, depending on the departure.
In the old town of Pals, at the stop in the coach car park on calle Abeurador.
Yes, it is advisable: places per departure are limited. Book on the website or by phone.
Several round and medium-grain varieties, such as Bomba, Carnaroli or Jsendra, the most widespread today.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/catalonia/pals/things-to-do/rice-route-train
