Hi,
My family and I will be traveling to Barcelona in June 2022. We would like to see Figueres and Cadaques, and I'm wondering if we could do both in a single day trip out of Barcelona (we will be using public transportation - trains/buses to take this side trip).
Also, while we would really like to see Salvador Dali's home in Cadaques, I see that travel to Cadaques is challenging without a car, which we will not have.
Can anyone provide advice?
Thank you for your time!
Linnet
Your impressions are correct, Figueres and the museum is easy; quick train ride, short walk, and you are there. For Cadaques, you are relying on the bus schedule, which maybe in June is more frequent than when we were there, but typically is not real frequent (by my memory). You may also need tickets or reservations for the home, making timing even more difficult, or at least from a planning perspective. You might be able to work it out in a long day, but not something to jump into without a plan. Going directly to Cadaques, then working back through Figueres might be your best bet.
If renting a car is a nonstarter, you might look at private driver or a guided tour. We managed by staying in Cadaques our first nights before heading to Barcelona, mainly to overcome jetlag.
Paul,
Thanks so much for this advice. Yes, it would have to be a finely tuned plan. I think you may be right that heading straight to Cadaques and working back from there may be the idea plan. We are used to long days, so its just whether the timing would work in our favor. Again, thank you so much for your thoughts and time!
Linnet
We would like to see Figueres and Cadaques, and I'm wondering if we could do both in a single day trip out of Barcelona (we will be using public transportation - trains/buses to take this side trip).
Absolutely not. I took a direct 3h bus from Barcelona to Cadaques at 9p and spent two nights there. The next morning, I walked to Port Ligat where Dali's home is (30-minutes) that was a nice scenic stroll. Later I had dinner in Cadaques and the next morning took a direct bus to Figures (1h) and that too offers good scenery.
When you get to Figures store your luggage in a locker. I can’t remember if I did this at the bus station or if I walked over to the train station which is nearby and then followed the people to the Dali-Theatre Museum. I then took a train back to Barcelona (2h).
You definitely want to buy your tickets for Dali’s Theatre-Museum before leaving home and I also did the same for Dali’s home.
Hi Mary Pat,
Thanks so much fir this detailed information! We are used to long days, but also have the time to spend two days if necessary. Your itinerary sounds like a great way to thoroughly see the sights! Thanks so much for your input!!
Linnet
If you have extra time, Girona is worth a couple of nights (one full day) and is on the way to Figueres via trains from Barcelona. It would perhaps be a bit easier to hit the two Dali sights in one day if you were staying in Girona rather than Barcelona, but you'll still be dependent on that not-frequent bus from Figueres to Cadaques.
It's important to realize there are two train stations in Figueres. Figueres Vilafant is where the fast trains stop. Figueres is used by non-express trains; buses to Cadaques depart from outside the Figueres station.
The Dali Theatre-Museums is located between the two train stations, a bit closer to Figueres than to Figueres-Vilafant. There's city-bus service running between the stations and passing fairly near the Theatre-Museum. The bus appears to be timed to align with the schedule for trains at Figueres Vilafant. If your train arrives late, the bus may already have departed.
Good point, acraven. We got stuck having to take a taxi from the distant station to downtown when our train was late. I would avoid that station if at all possible.
Thanks acraven for this information! Extremely helpful!! As you said Janet, best just to avoid the one train station if possible! Thanks to you both for you time!
As far as I know, all the fast trains use Vilafant.
Hmm okay that's good to know. We'll have to factor that in.
In February 2017, my husband and I took a day tour with Spanish Trails. The tour was called Surreal Cadaqués and All Things Dalí . Our host-guides were Andrew and Alexandra. We met them early in the morning in Barcelona and drove to Port Ligat in a nice Mercedes van. Andrew was absolutely wonderful. He has an amazing knowledge of the area and Salvador Dali. When you visit Dali’s home, (reservations needed) you only get a few minutes in each room and Andrew was able to get us extra time inside the house. His expertise on Dali was invaluable. Next we had lunch overlooking the ocean in Cadaques. We drove to Figueras and went to the Dali museum. Don’t miss the collection of jewelry designed by Salvador Dali. I highly recommend this trip over renting a car and driving a group. You will waste a lot of time with navigation and the driver will not enjoy the beautiful scenery. To see all of these sites, it is a long, full day.
https://spanish-trails.com/tours/surreal-cadaques-all-things-dali-day-trip/. If possible, Andrew is the guide to take you on this wonderful adventure.
Hi Jmebelle,
That sounds like a wonderful tour! I will definitely look into it! Thanks so much for taking the time to provide such detailed information!
Linnet
To save travel time, you can take high speed rail to Girona and change to the regional train to get to Figueres. Move from one platform to another takes you 10 mins.
This is because the AVE platforms are underground and the regional rail platforms are overground.
I think you should consider spending overnight at either girona or Figueres
Hi Jeff,
Thanks so much for this information! I really appreciate it!
Linnet
I'm not clear on how changing from a fast train to a slow train saves travel time. It might be worthwhile if traveling from Barcelona straight to Cadaques, because the buses to Cadaques depart from the Figueres train station, where the slow trains stop. The Figueres Vilafant station used by the fast trains is some distance away. If the passenger misses the bus that normally meets those trains, there would be a considerable walk (maybe 30 minutes??) or taxi ride to the bus departure point. But if one is just traveling from Barcelona to Figueres to see the Dali Theatre-Museum, the only reason I can see to change trains in Girona is that doing so might be cheaper (I haven't checked). Any time there's a transfer, there's a slight risk of a missed connection.
Girona is a much more attractive city, in general, than Figueres. The lodging market knows that, however, and Girona hotel rates tend to be quite a bit higher than those in Figueres.
I'm another one of Spanish Trail's satisfied customers from 2017. Andrew was our guide for a private day trip to Tarragona - which was awesome. I am trying to remember the name of the guide who accompanied us on our small-group tour to the Costa Brava and Medieval Girona. We also took a small-group tour to the Priorat Wine Country with a third outstanding guide from Spanish Trails.
