Cava & Hotel Mastinell
Why we like it: Five-star hotel in the Mastinell cava winery, a 1 km walk from the centre of Vilafranca: rooms with vineyard views, the En Rima restaurant and a cava cellar tour.
Duration2 nights
From BarcelonaDirect Rodalies R4
BaseCava & Hotel Mastinell, Vilafranca
Budget€400–650 pp
Best timeApr · May · Sep · Oct
Without a carTrain and on foot
The plan
The plan, hour by hour
Designed to arrive on a Friday by train and head back on Sunday afternoon, with the visit to the hotel's cava cellar, the Sant Sadurní cellars and the Camí del Vi without a car. For Mas La Plana, on Sunday, you need a taxi or a car with a driver; the hotel arranges cars with a chauffeur from reception. Book the hotel, timed visits and tables beforehand.
Friday
- 111:00Train to Vilafranca and the Camí del Vi
Rodalies R4 to Vilafranca del Penedès. Leave your suitcase at the hotel, ten minutes from the centre, and go back to the tourist office for the Camí del Vi: 3.5 flat kilometres among vineyards with eight stations about wine, free.
- 213:30Lunch at El Cigró d'Or
Catalan cooking with Penedès produce and a Michelin Bib Gourmand, a few minutes from the Plaça de Jaume I. Open at midday every day. In the afternoon, the Vinseum, the museum of Catalonia's wine cultures.
- 320:30Dinner at En Rima
The hotel restaurant serves its gastronomic menu on Friday and Saturday nights and the eve of public holidays, with the house cavas and wines. Book ahead.
Saturday
- 110:30Train to Sant Sadurní and Codorníu
A few stops on the R4. The Heritage Tour goes by train through the Modernista cellars by Puig i Cadafalch and ends with two cavas, from €25. Lunch at La Torre de Codorníu, on the estate, or the visit-and-menu package for €71.
- 216:30Cava Centre or Freixenet
In the middle of the town, the Cava Centre tells the story of cava in an hour with a tasting for €6; opposite the station, Freixenet does its visit with two cavas for €21.50. Train back to Vilafranca.
Sunday
- 112:00The hotel cellar and Mas La Plana
Mastinell's standard visit, with two cavas, a wine and cheese, leaves at 12:00 in Spanish, for €32; the 10:00 one is in English. Or, with a taxi or a car with driver, Familia Torres in Pacs del Penedès: on Sunday at 12:30 there is a four-wine pairing with tapas, in Spanish, for €37. Train to Barcelona in the afternoon.
The Penedès has an advantage that few wine regions have: the Barcelona commuter train stops in both of its wine capitals, Vilafranca and Sant Sadurní, and the big wineries are a walk from the stations. This getaway takes advantage of it with a hotel inside a cava winery, the Mastinell, ten minutes' walk from the centre of Vilafranca. Two nights are enough for the hotel's cava cellar, the Camí del Vi, the Modernista cellars of Codorníu and those of Freixenet, and a morning among the Torres vineyards.
Where to sleep?
The Cava & Hotel Mastinell is a five-star hotel inside the Mastinell cava winery, on the Sant Martí Sarroca road, half a kilometre from Vilafranca. The building imitates cava bottles stacked in a rima, the roof is trencadís and the rooms look onto the vineyards or the winery. Check-in from 15:00, check-out until 12:00, 24-hour reception and free luggage storage: you can arrive on the morning train and leave your suitcase. À la carte breakfast from 7:30 to 11:30. Animals are not accepted.
The trip day by day
How much does it cost?
Between €400 and €650 per person sharing a room: two nights at the Mastinell, three lunches or dinners, three visits and the trains. The hotel's rate varies a lot by date; its website guarantees the best price for direct bookings.
And with a car?
With a car you add Castelo de Pedregosa, a family cava winery on the outskirts of Sant Sadurní with a wine bar among vineyards, and the Hotel Font de la Canya, in Avinyonet, for another night among olive trees. But the car stays in the hotel car park whenever there is a tasting.
Map
The stops, in order
What to do
Eat
88 €Stay
Services
Plan the trip
Penedès, step by step
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
When to go to Penedès
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Best timeGood timeLow season
How you travel
The same break, your way
The plan stays the same. What changes is where you sleep, how you get there and how much you spend.
By Car, with a Driver Who Does Not Taste
A car opens up the wineries on the outskirts, such as Codorníu, Torres at Mas La Plana or Castelo de Pedregosa, which have no train nearby. In return, someone does not taste: or you sleep here and spread the visits over two days.
80–160 €per person per day, approximate
- SleepHotel Boutique Font de la…
- Getting aroundAP-7 or A-2 to Sant…
- EatLa Torre de Codorníu, every…
- ServicesTourist offices in Sant Sadurní…
Sleep
- Hotel Boutique Font de la Canya, among the vines in Avinyonet
- Mercer Casa Torner i Güell, in the centre of Vilafranca
Getting around
- AP-7 or A-2 to Sant Sadurní and Vilafranca, about 45 minutes from Barcelona
- Park at the wineries, which have their own space
Eat
- La Torre de Codorníu, every day from 9:30 to 17:00
- El Cigró d'Or, in Vilafranca, at midday every day
Services
- Tourist offices in Sant Sadurní and Vilafranca
How much does it cost?
People2
Nights2
Where to stay
Where to stay if you're driving
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Hotel Boutique Font de la Canya
Why we like it: Eight-room hotel among olive trees and vines in Avinyonet del Penedès, with a garden and views of Montserrat, on an Iberian site linked to the origin of wine in Catalonia.
Mercer Casa Torner i Güell
Why we like it: Four-star hotel in an 1884 modernista building on Vilafranca del Penedès's rambla: 14 rooms and 3 suites a few steps from the Vinseum and the train.
From €110
View details
Services for this trip
Where to eat
Where to eat in Penedès
Castelo de Pedregosa
What to order: a tasting of its cavas at the cellar, by reservation.
BP-2151 road, km 10.5 · weekend visits at 10:00 and 17:00, weekdays on request · 628 22 15 14
El Cigró d'Or
What to order: On weekdays, the menu of the day or the Menú del Cigró; at the weekend, the seasonal à la carte with Penedès wine.
Plaça de l'Oli, 1 · lunch every day 13:00 to 15:30; dinner Fridays and Saturdays · bar on the square Thursday to Saturday evenings
© CodorníuLa Torre de Codorníu
What to order: The La Torre menu, which you can book together with the cellar visit; pair it with one of the house cavas.
Avda. Jaume Codorniu, s/n · every day 9:30 to 17:00 · bookings on 610 486 999
Tips
Worth knowing first
- 1Check the state of the R4
It has had stoppages for works: leave a margin before timed visits.
- 2Freixetren
If you leave Barcelona only for Freixenet, its package with the train included costs €20.
- 3Book En Rima
It only serves its menu on Friday and Saturday nights and the eve of public holidays.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Can I do this getaway without a car?
Yes, except Mas La Plana: the rest is done on the R4 and on foot.
How much does the visit to the hotel's cellar cost?
€32 for the standard and €42 for the premium.
How far is the hotel from Vilafranca?
1 km, about ten minutes' walk from the centre.
Does the hotel accept dogs?
No.