Costa Brava Tourist Guide

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El Port de la Selva is a seaside village in the comarca of the Alt Empordà in Catalonia, Spain.

Overlooking a bay by the same name, the village is situated on the northern coast of the Cap de Creus and is an important fishing port and tourist center.

A Costa Brava photo souvenir book, available at shops in all the tourist districts up and down the coast says it’s the only natural harbor in this area,

for in this part of the coastline the mountain masses drop drown to the sea in sheer cliffs, majestically impressive and rugged, forming de Cap de Creus with the islands of Massa d’Oros and L’Encalladora before them.

Then there are Isla Culleró, Punta de Moli, Isla Poraló, Punta dels Farrallons, Penyas Roges, Cap Gros, Punta Blanca, Punta de la Creu and many other steep rocks and islets.

In the midst of all this ruggedness — remember, Costa Brava means ‘Wild Coast’ — El Port de la Selva is a haven of calm.

You guessed it: El Port de la Selva started life as a fishing village, but the fishersmen from this part of the coast have for centuries lived in the village of Selva de Mar — three kilometers inland — where they alternated fishing with farming activities. Port de la Selva developed from this village.

Fishing is still the village’s main source of income, but tourism also brings in a lot of money.

El Port de las Selva is popular with wealthy Barcelonians, and — owing in part to its proximity to the border — to visitors from France as well.

The population of about 1.000 people is swelled in the summer months by tourists, many of whom return so often than they have bought a house or apartment here.

Beaches

Platja Perabeua is a nice, pebble-stone beach in a natural setting of rocks and cliffs. The sand is clean and the blue water is crystal clear.

Some houses and tents are visible, but there are no amenities. Bring a picnic basket.

The beach can only be reached on foot and is somewhat of a climb down and later back up again. No lifeguards, no first aid post, and no toilets available.

The main beach of El Port de la Selva fronts the village. The clean beach consists of a mixture of fine sand and pebbles.

This beach includes a wide range of amenities and facilities. It is popular with wind surfers, and has on offer boat tours, jet skis, and para-sailing.

First aid post, toilets and showers are available.

This blue flag beach has plenty of nearby shops.

The water at the beach is, for the most part, shallow making this an ideal beach for children.

Things to do

Aside from the usual beach activities, hiking in the area around town is very popular.

There are numerous historical sites to see.

Hotels

• Hotels in and near El Port de la Selva

CostaBravaTouristGuide.com, Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009 — Twelve Catalan newspapers published a joint editorial last Thursday in which they defend the legality of Catalonia’s statute of autonomy.

The statute — meant to clarify the division of political powers between Spain and Catalonia — is under review by Spain’s constitutional court, which reportedly may weaken plans to enlarge the region’s self-government.

The newspapers, including the popular La Vanguardia en El Periódico, point out that both the Spanish and the Catalan parliament approved the statute, which enhanced Catalonia’s powers in taxation and judicial matters and provided the region with more control over airports, ports and immigration.

Catalonians voted for the statute in a 2006 referendum.

However, three years ago the conservative People’s Party (PP), Spain’s main opposition party which favors a stronger central state, lodged a complaint against the statute at the Constitutional Court.

El Pais last Sunday reported the court is leaning toward rejecting the term “nation” in the autonomy statute. In addition it would cancel or alter many of the statute’s 126 articles, including Catalonia’s increased promotion of the Catalan language.

Autonomous Communities

Political power in Spain is divided by a central government and 17 Autonomous Communities, including Catalonia, which is home to 7 million of Spain’s 46 million people.

These communities are self-governing, each through their own Generalitat — an autonomous political institution which has exclusive jurisdiction, both legislative and executive, over a wide range of subjects.

The Dignity of Catalonia

The court’s decision could set the stage for a major political crisis just before Madrid takes over the rotating presidency of the European Union during the first half of 2010.

The joint editorial, published under the title, “The Dignity of Catalonia,” claims the court’s plans threaten “the democratic maturity of a pluralistic Spain,” and warns that Catalans would take to streets en masse over the court’s decision.

The newspapers were supported by Catalan radio and TV stations, political parties, unions and civic associations.

Separatism

Analysts believe the row plays into the hands of Catalan Separatism, a political movement that promotes complete independence from Spain, is on the rise.

On December 13 more than 150 Catalan municipalities are holding symbolic, unofficial referendums on independence.
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CostaBravaTouristGuide.com — At the foot of the Pyrenees, hugging the dividing line between France and Spain, lies the small village of Portbou (1300+ inhabitants).

It is the last village of the Costa Brava, which starts some 100 kilometers down the coast at Blanes.

Portbou — which some guidebooks erroneously refer to as ‘Port Bou’ — is situated in the most mountainous area of the Costa Brava, and the closely-packed houses slope steeply up the valley from the waterfront.

Once one of those proverbial ’sleepy’ fishing villages, PortBou was transformed with the opening of an international railway station in 1878. It soon developed into a busy transport hub.

The train tunnel was joined by a road across the border, to the French port of Cerbère.

The peaceful bay has been called a ‘natural amphitheater.’ It shelters an uncrowded, and stunningly beautiful pebbled beach. Uncrowded because though Portbou has some hotels, a tourist office and other tourist facilities it is not (yet) a major tourist destination.

Yet, used to international travelers, Portbou is a hospitable village and an ideal place to spend a relaxing vacation — far away from the tourist trappings of the larger Costa Brava resorts further south.

Beaches

The main beach along the promenade is never crowded, even during the summer months. At times the shoreline is lined with fishing sloops.

There are even less crowded beaches up and down the coast, and some people half-seriously claim there’s a secluded beach or cove for everyone. Most can reached more or less easily on foot, while others are best approached by boat.

At the north of the main beach a footpath leads to Tres Platgetes — three small, white sand beaches. Further north the path, hugging the rocky shoreline, brings you to Platja del Pi, a small beach popular with nude bathers.

The water here is crystal clear and, among other things, perfectly suited to scuba diving.

Cala Bramat is also popular with nudists.

There’s a small harbor with fishing boats and small yachts.

Walther Benjamin

The German Jewish philosopher Walther Benjamin committed suicide in a Portbou hotel in 1940 rather than to be handed over to the Gestapo.

A memorial to him — created by Israeli sculptor Dani Karavan — overlooks the bay from its southern cliff.

It carries an inscription by Benjamin in five languages: “It is more arduous to honour the memory of the nameless than that of the renowned. Historical construction is devoted to the memory of the nameless.”
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Costa Brava Tourist Guide — Today we are reopening our vacation guide to the Costa Brava — one of Europe’s most popular vacation destinations.

For everyone, whatever their likes and tastes may be, whatever their idea of enjoying themselves, the Costa Brava is par excellence the perfect place. This delightful coast on the Province of Gerona has some of the most beautiful sites nature has to offer in every respect, but where its land and sea come together it is outstanding. This is stated continually by so many of the tourists, both national and foreign, who visit this region of incomparable beauty, with its mild climate.

We say “region” because Costa Brava does not refer only to the coast itself – a feast of successive, surprising delights – but refers to the whole geographic region of La Selva and Emporda. It includes the coastal area of Gerona and its adjoining lands bounded by the River Tordera to the south and the River Tec to the north, beyond the Pyrenee: by the sea to the east, and the mountains of Vidrera and Llagostera to the west.
[…]

Because of its wildness, its abundance of rocky forms of sea-eroded granite, its irregular coastline with such a profusion of inlets and headlands, the gigantic proportions of some of its crags causing the sea froth, it well deserves the name “Brava”, rugged, with which is was christened years ago by the then famous journalist Ferran Agullo.

And although the most characteristic feature of this coast is the fantastic ruggedness of its rocky cliffs, some of which have huge proportions, its capes, headlands, steep coves and caves in some cases accessible only by boat, there is nevertheless in the Costa Brava an abundance of large and small coves with delightful sandy beaches. These may be found in those places where a river has brought down the sand formed from eroded granite to form charming, sheltered beaches.

Visitors to these spots find themselves amid the peaceful wonder of a scene which is a lovely combination of the form and color of the rocks, rich vegetation, and the soft gold of the sand contrasting with the splendour of the blue sea.

Another attractive feature of the Costa Brava, and one which is an essential element of the international prestige it holds, is its long beaches and bays with extensive horizons, such as Blanes, Fanals, Lloret de Mar, Tossa de Mar, Sant Fliu de Guixols, Aro, Palamos, Pals, Riells, Rose Llanca…
- Source: Costa Brava, Photo book available at all tourist shops along the Costa Brava