Today we would like to share with you what we think are the 5 places that if you come on holiday to the Costa Brava, you should not miss. Not mean they are the best, as for likes there is nothing written, but these are five sites with magic and charm.

Sunset at Cape Creus

A place full of magic and with a force that seems to come from the depths of the earth. The same place where rise the black rocks that shape this unique landscape, the eastern tip of the Iberian Peninsula. The place where the Pyrenees finally surrender to the sea. No wonder that the film was shot here «Light of the end of the world,» with Yul Briner and Fernando Rey. The dazzling beams of light from the lighthouse swept out as the black sails of a mill light. An Englishman who fell in love with these solitudes bought the old police house near the lighthouse and got into it a bohemian restaurant where one can delight with a curry or a cold beer while sunset takes over this unrealistic place.

Monastery of Sant Pere de Rodes

Hard to believe that the Benedictine monks accomplished to erect a building of this magnitude on the ridge of a mountain 520 meters above sea level, and in the very distant Middle Ages. Even today, when you go drive the 8 miles of coastline and curves that separate the monastery of Sant Pere de Rodes from El Port de la Selva,  just the fact of getting there is a real adventure. Sant Pere de Rodes was one of the centers of political, economic and ecclesiastical of Europe between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. From that time is the Romanesque bell tower that stands out from the rough tops of the mountains and the magnificent church, unique in the world, with gross Roman influences. Like many other monasteries, was abandoned and only a massive restoration in 1999 returned the completed part of its former glory. A highly recommended visit.

Historic center of Santa Pau

Not on the Costa Brava but in the region of the Garrotxa, countryside,  but it is a classic tour and highly recommended if you stay on the coast. Santa Pau offers a beautiful medieval town preserved almost perfectly, if not for the amount of cars that filled the square, you’d feel teleport in time. Much less crowded than the neighboring Besalú. You will find many shops to buy fesols (beans)  and ratafia from Olot.

Archaeological site of Sant Marti d’Empúries

The ancient Greek colonists from Phocis could not have chosen a better name when founded Empòrion the 575 BC, as it means «port of trade.» Empúries was founded as a colony aimed at long-distance trade due to its strategic position in the Mediterranean. Later, around 100 BC, the Romans built a new town that would live with the colony, which ended when Caesar Augustus granted Roman citizenship. Eventually, from the first century AD, Emporiae was overshadowed by the power of Tarraco and Barcino until, in the third century AD, was abandoned.

Today, after over 100 years of excavations and research, you can visit both the Greek and Roman city and the museum. Walk among the ruines of a city of more than 2,500 years old and in a location so beautiful how the Gulf of Roses is a feeling that is difficult to explain with words.

Vila Vella and Tossa de Mar Walls

If Tossa de Mar and has a special charm due to its location, it is in a valley that juts into the sea, the Villa Vella and the walls exude a unique magic. The promonitori where stands the Villa Vella was already occupied by IBERS and Romans, but it was not until the tenth century the Count of Barcelona ordered to build a castle (overthrown 1917 to build the lighthouse) and a wall to surround the village, the which was destroyed by the French in 1285 and rebuilt a century later, forming the ring of walls has survived to this day. The ascent to the Gothic church of San Vincente (destroyed by the French in the nineteenth century) and the lighthouse may seem harsh, especially in the heat of summer, but surely that when you get up you will know that it was worth it!