How do you imagine your dream accommodation? In what corner of the world would you celebrate love? How many times have you imagined enjoying the pleasure of living without having anything else in your head? We are sure that with this TripIdea dedicated to the most idyllic accommodations of the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast), you will have more desire than ever to get carried away by romanticism.
In the heart of the Conca de Barberà region and surrounded by vineyards there is a castle that you would say is waiting for the knight to rescue the princess. This setting is Castell de Riudabella,
a unique accommodation to live a weekend like in the 12th century.
It offers two renovated apartments, one in the castle and one in the annexe, and swimming pool with garden, outdoor jacuzzi and barbecue. You will be welcomed with fresh flowers and from the most privileged rooms you can admire the endless vineyards fields of the surroundings. It is an ideal place to celebrate parties and weddings; the castle has its own chapel. It's hard to ask for more: history, nature, exclusivity and all-in-one pleasure.
The Alt Camp region, like much of the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast), is a land of vineyards. But it is also home to Catalan modernism, this artistic movement that has so many architectural icons has given to the world. Agrarian modernism has its own personality and exponents; get to know them with this TripIdea.
In the capital of the region, Valls, you can aim for a new route that follows the artistic trail of one of Gaudí's local disciples, Cèsar Martinell, who signed urban and agricultural buildings of great projection.
The visit will take you to Casa Vives Pi, to the Reading Center or to the Church of Sant Joan, where Martinell intervened in the chapel of the Immaculate. Continue to the fountain in front of the old cinema of Valls and arrive at Ca Claravalls, one of the emblematic façades of the architect in the capital of the Alt Camp. A special stop should be made at Popular Library, which Cèsar Martinell collaborated to promote, and ends at the Sanctuary of the Virgin of Lledó.
If you have not tried it, it will seem like a strange phenomenon, an inexplicable passion. Don´t you understand why walking with the help of canes has become a real fever? We introduce you, the Nordic walking: the most complete discipline to know the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast) by feet!
In Calafell they were the pioneers in importing this sport with an army of followers throughout the world. Nordic walking excursions are organized here on weekend nights, but, of course, also during the day. In fact at the Tourist Office you can get some canes and walk at your own pace. The very long beach of the municipality is the ideal place to carry out this healthy activity with which you will train 90% of the body muscles. A sport as complete as swimming or even more.
A winding road crosses the Sierra de la Argentera mounrains; it seems as if the road does not have an end. In one of the summits of these mountains it is
surprising to find an unjustly little admired attraction. We start this TripIdea at an authentic jewel of the Costa Daurada (Costa Daurada), in the Castell Monestir of Sant Miquel d’Escornalbou.
It is not strange to imagine why its first founders located the construction in this place. The elevated position of the Castle Monastery of Escornalbou - at about 600 meters of altitude - makes it a unique vantage point to admire the Camp de Tarragona. On clear days you can see the entire gulf of San Jordi and beyond (from Cape Salou to Punta del Fangar del Delta del Ebro), and even if you are very lucky, the Puig Major de Mallorca!
In the 12th century, a group of Augustinian friars were commissioned to erect the building on the ruins of ancient fortifications. The current restoration is the responsibility of Eduard Toda, a diplomat and philanthropist from Reus who established the residence here at the beginning of the 20th century. The stately rooms or the exceptional library will give you an idea of the bourgeois life Toda lived until it was ruined during the Civil War.
The soul and the motor of the region. The passion and the landscape of the Priorat. Wine, the inseparable brew of these wild and slimy lands, is the main protagonist of this TripIdea. Do you join the wine culture of the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast)?
The first weekend of May, in Falset, the Fira del Vi (Wine Fair) is held, which brings together the Montsant and the Priorat Denomination of Origin. From 11h to 21h, sixty wineries present their wines and cavas. Your mission is to get tickets and try the most diverse varieties of wine and cava, as well as other local products such as cheeses and sausages.
In addition, children from 5 to 12 years can participate in the 'Fira dels Petits' (Kids´ Fair), a stage with workshops for children to become distracted while they make a paper coaster, or simulate a bunch of grapes with cardboard and wood. The most artistic children can also participate in the large mural set in the theme of the strain. Go on and paint!
Modernism flourished at the beginning of the 20th century and the agricultural cooperatives of the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast) wanted to turn their wineries into places of admiration. So, as wineries were created with this formula of work organization, small wonders of the wine-making architecture surged. Today these modernist wineries are known as Wine Cathedrals and this Tripidea is an excellent guide to make you a fan!
The circus arts take the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast) for three days in May. Music, dance, acrobatics, juggling, theater, humor ... shake hands and plant their tent in Reus to be exhibited at the main Circus Festival of Catalonia, the Trapezi, a festival that has been awarded with the National Award of the Catalonian Government abd the National Award of the Ministry of Culture. You will find artists from all over the world showing their creations to the audience of Reus and thousands of visitors. On the street, they present short pieces in different areas that also serve as a rehearsal and to outline details of the shows. Canadian, Norwegian, French, Brazilian, Argentinean and of course Spanish and Catalan companies come to Reus to act at the meeting point for circus lovers.
It is not the city that disguises itself to revive its imposing Roman past. It is the inhabitants of the Tarraco of the emperor Augustus that return to the city for the rebirth of the capital of civilization of 2,000 years ago! Welcome to the Tàrraco Viva Festival, a proposal of historical divulgation essential in TripIdeas of the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast). Tarragona, its setting, is one of the witnesses of the best preserved Roman past in Europe and for this reason it is a Unesco.World Heritage Site.
The Tàrraco Viva Festival puts this monumental heritage into value with a work of historical reconstruction admired throughout the world. The city becomes the city that Augustus projected as the political and commercial axis of the civilization united by the Mare Nostrum. Tarraco was for two years the capital of the Roman Empire while Augustus established his residence to recover from an illness.
The best musicians, emerging bands and the latest musical creations of Catalonia meet every year on a weekend in May on the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast). It is the Fira de la Música in the Carrer of Vila-seca, considered one of the main events of the emerging scene in Catalonia. Here we find the present and the future of music made in Catalonia and lovers of live music can spend two days jumping from concert to concert as they stroll the streets of the city. In fact, it is a market dedicated to the professionals of this industry, but anyone who enjoys discovering new musical proposals is more than welcome.
Pau Riba, Pascal Comelade, Coriolà, Flamingo Tours, Joan Colomo, Sidral Brass Band, La Banda Municipal del Polo Norte ... The names that have performed during this street music fair are highly and a warranty of high quality. Consulting the website of the Fair is the best way to know where, when and who you can see at the next edition of the Costa Daurada festival. Can you believe that in just one there are about 800 musical performances tomorrow, evening and night weekend in the streets of Vila-seca? You will see that you do not need big scenes: you will find the musicians in every corner or making rumble any street no matter how narrow!
Legend has it that on January 16, 1194, the archbishop of Tarragona was horribly murdered by Guillem Ramon de Moncada, a noble of the court of the Count of Barcelona. To forgive him, the Pope forced him to dedicate all his goods to the construction of a Cistercian monastery of great beauty. Thus he ended building the monastery of Santes Creus on the Costa Daurada (Golden Coast), one of the three monasteries that are part of the Cistercian Route. This account is not faithful to the historical documents found to date, but it is a beautiful way to imagine its birth.
