Things to do near Barcelona: visit the Maresme coast

Although is winter and it’s pretty cold outside, the Catalan coast is still one of the most beautiful places to go. We suggest you to visit it now that there aren’t so many people crowding the beaches, promenades and bars. It is an excellent opportunity to enjoy in all its splendor the promenade’s beauty walking by the sea with the sun shining and warming you during this time of the year, and enjoy drinks in the almost empty bars. If you stay in one of our apartments in Barcelona and you want to go away from the city a day or two, the coast of the region of the Maresme is an excellent choice. We give some suggestions to help you make the most of the trip.

If you have a car you have to leave Barcelona direction Girona and deviate in the N-II, you can go on from Montgat to Mataró following the coastal path and enjoy the view while driving. Still, it’s better to catch the train at the nearest station to your home (Plaza Catalunya or Sants Station) as the railway runs along the coastal line as well and you can enjoy beautiful views throughout the trip. With the train from Molins de Rei (later its stops at the mentioned stations) to Maçanet-Massanes, you’ll get to the places marked on the entire coast of the region of the Maresme.

There are several stops that you can do with the car over this break, but if you go by train you will have to decide on one of the coastal towns to avoid paying the ticket every time you want to stop in one place. If you have little time we suggest the closest locations to Barcelona: the Masnou, Premia de Mar and Vilassar de Mar has beautiful beaches, with promenades full of bars where you can have some beer and tapas, with an old town that also worth visiting. At Premia de Mar you will find, for example, the Parish of Sant Cristòfol, or at Vilassar de Mar the famous bar where Espinaler Salsa was created.

Related article: A day trip to Girona

If you have more time to make your trip, you can reach ti Mataró, a town full of history where you can visit the Basilica of Santa Maria, buy sweets at La Confiança, surround yourself with nature at the Parc del Montnegre i el Corredor, etc. If you keep going from Mataró there are the most popular beach destinations in summer as Arenys de Mar, Canet de Mar, Sant Pol de Mar, Calella, Pineda de Mar, Santa Susanna and Malgrat de Mar. Probably these small fishing villages are the nicest you will see in this part of the coast, with beautiful beaches and charming villages. In Canet you’ll find the Roura House, a modernist building, and the Ateneo Canetense and Museo Casa Lluis Domenech i Montaner, one of the major figures of Catalan Modernism.

From the town of Blanes train enters the interior of Catalonia to the final destination of its journey. If you drive, this trip near Barcelona will take one day and you can choose to take a “vermouth” in one place, keep going to have lunch somewhere else, and in the afternoon visit the most attractive monuments that you like the most. Choose a sunny day in winter or autumn to make your little trip and enjoy the beauty of this region!