One of the best pleasures in Canadell is, after having the lunch, to lay about two hours on the sand under a boat

Josep Pla, the great writer of the Costa Brava and Ampurdan, wrote this impression from the beach in which he spent so many summers, in the family villa, still standing. He wrote this feelings almost a century ago in his early work “The Grey Notebook”. Today we recall the same spirit and visit this beach, also close to other great places to visit, as Llafranc, Port-bo, or Sant Sebastia Lighthouse.

Canadell beach is small and very familiar. It has a length of 200 meters and about 27 meters wide. The sand is somewhat grainy. Access is easy, and you can arrive on foot, by car or even public transport.

Canadell beach was originally, centuries ago, a little village of fishermen

One of the main attractions of the beach is the seaside boulevard. Superbly conditioned, it offers to the visitors views of the villas, some of them some centuries old, as that historically linked to writer Josep Pla, which belonged to his family and where they enjoyed together the summer. The winter villa is in Llofriu: and it’s called the Mas Pla. As the sunny and warn weather approached in summer many families in those years used to move out next to the sea, to the coast of Palafrugell.

The villa in red, in the left side, belonged to Josep Pla family

Other special feature of this landscape is the large rock that sits on your right, “the chair”, a projection of rock from which many young people plunge into the sea.

Rock called "la Trona", located on the left side of Canadell beach

In Canadell beach many people know each other. This beach is so familiar and small that many visitors repeat every summer and have the opportunity of meeting the same passionated people of the place.

Canadell nights are special. It's time for a marine "ron cremat" drinking, based on rhum.

Don’t miss the elegant coastal path that, on the north side of the beach, leads to Llafranc bay, just 15 minutes away.

Cala El Golfet is an excellent cove a little far away from Calella de Palafrugell center

This is a rustic and picturesque cove, surprisingly little known in the Costa Brava. Its location away from the center of Calella de Palafrugell, where you’ll find other coves very interesting too as the Canadell, Port-bo, etc. makes it the great unknown in the area. However, the rugged beauty of Cala el Golfet is very different from the rest of coves in the village.

Cala El Golfet is made of golden and coarse sand

The Golfet, located at the end of the urbanization of the same name, is a cove surrounded by lush vegetation everywhere. It’s just in the center of a bay flanked by Punta d’Els Forcats, from the east, and the Cap Roig, in the west. It has a length of 75 meters and a width of 20 meters, and being a natural cove does not have any type of service. Made of thick, golden sand, on the left side of the creek you’ll find a very characteristic large rock, as you can see in the pictures.

Rocks and pine woods that surround Cala el Golfet make it a very attractive beach to spend a summer day

To get there from the urbanization you have to go down some stairs, after parking your vehicle. It is also possible to reach the cove from the heart of Calella de Palafrugell walking along the coastal path, a journey that is covered in about 35 minutes. Cala el Golfet begins to glimpse the same reddish rock tones as Cap Roig (Red Cape), next to it. This color with the green of the pines almost touching the sea and turquoise clear waters, give the typical character of wild beauty to the cove, features also shared with many others in the Costa Brava.

Scenic views from Cala el Golfet

El Golfet is situated in a sheltered geographical position away from the stakes of the north wind, the Tramuntana. In the distance you’ll see the Formigues Islands that, with the rest of the rocky landscape that forms the shore of this beautiful cove, contribute to strengthening its scenic beauty, and that is also a special attraction for scuba divers or just snorkel fans just wishing to explore the underwater between the rocks.

Port Bo cove, in Calella de Palafrugell, Girona, Costa Brava

This event brings together a diverse group of Havana music singers from different parts of Catalonia. This style of singing, with slow rhythm slow and very melodious, was created in the Ampurdán during the XIXth century, when many migrants returned to Costa Brava from Cuba after trying to make a fortune overseas. What began as a small meeting in the tavern, became from 1966 on an event that attracts about 40,000 people in the small cove of Port Bo, and that is broadcasted by television stations every year.

Habaneras Song Festival is celebrated in Calella de Palafrugell the first weekend in july

The scenario presented that night at Port Bo cove is awesome. Under the bright bay, thousands of people attend several shows and dozens of ships are event witness anchored in front of the stage, from the sea. In the background, the white villas of fishermen around the bay and the famous “Voltes” arches that form a small porch on the seafront. The show ends with the singing of one of the most emblematic songs of the repertoire of Havana music, El meu avi, as the crowd waves white handkerchiefs in the air. Typically you’ll also enjoy the show in the company of a “cremat”, the hot drink made with coffee, rum and sugar.

Voltes de Calella are the famous archs above Port Bo seafront boulevard

The Port Bo beach is quite small, about 55 meters long and 15 wide.
Access is easy, as it is located in the heart of Calella de Palafrugell, which is well connected with Palafrugell center. The beach has all the facilitiess you would expect from a swimming area quite crowded in summer, like restaurants, renting hammocks, showers, docking area, etc.. It also has car parking and is wheelchair accessible.

Port Bo scenic view, just next to another beautiful beach in Calella de Palafrugell: Canadell