Friday, October 31, 2014

Barcelona Day Trips: Montserrat and Sitges

Sleachmour Adventures: Sitges Photo Collage
From our base camp in Barcelona, we took two easy day trips: one to Sitges, a nearby beach resort town, and the other to Montserrat, a multi-peaked mountain with hiking trails and a Benedictine Abbey. Here's a bit about each trip and logistics of getting there from Barcelona.

Sitges
Located southwest of Barcelona on the Mediterranean coast, Sitges is a pretty little tourist town located on truly gorgeous beaches. From the Passeig de Gracia station in Barcelona, we took the C2 train south and arrived in Sitges 40 minutes later. The train runs every 20 minutes and costs just €7.60 roundtrip. 

From the Sitges train station, a short stroll through the old town brings you to the beach! There are 17 beaches in Sitges. We chose one of the closest (and probably more crowded) central beaches, Platja de la Ribera. The beach was breathtaking with clear turquoise water butting right up against the adorable old town. It was also very small and very busy, so we forked over €20 to secure beachside lounge chairs for the day (and wristbands that allowed us to come and go as we wanted). For lunch, we wandered through the old town, eventually deciding on El Pescadito for reasonably priced tapas (patata bravas! gazpacho!) and sangria. 

While the Barcelona beaches were fantastic, Sitges was definitely worth the day trip. The relaxed beach-town atmosphere was a pleasant change from the hustle and bustle of a large city. Please excuse the lack of photos - we packed light, left my expensive camera in the hotel safe and brought only one cell phone (in a waterproof bag), beach towels, books and a little cash. Without valuables to watch, we were able enjoy the water and waves!

After a full day of sun, sand and a bit of a burn (ouch!), we made our way back with time to shower and change for dinner. All in all, the total cost of our day trip to Sitges, including train tickets, lunch and a splurge on beach chairs rang in around €70.