We will be visiting my college aged son Feb 12-20 when he is studying in Barcelona. What are some good short trips taken via train from Barcelona? We were thinking Valencia for 1-2 days? Any good places in South of France? Other places in Spain nearby?
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Not really that much in Valencia. I'd head for France -- maybe Perpignan or Carcassone, possibly both. Perpignan seems to be neglected by American tourists, but it's a nifty place. Carcassone is one of the places you probably need to see in a lifetime, but it only takes a few hours to do it. Others can advise about trains; I drive everywhere.
Posted by
Palm Beach, Florida, United States
536 posts
Janet - Barcelona is truly one of Europe's most incredible cities BUT - If you'd like a short excursion out of town - http://wikitravel.org/en/Cadaques
About two and a half hours from Barcelona, a beautiful village on The Costa Brava!!
Whatever you do - Have a Great time in Barcelona!!
Greg
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Greg's right. I forgot about Cadaques. It's still in Spain, out on a peninsula about two thirds of the way to Perpignan. Unique to the area.
Posted by
Ottawa, Canada
695 posts
Janet, my vote also goes for the Costa Brava, Cadaques, Figueres, Girona, and if you like ruins, Empuries is very close to a small village called L'Escala. If you want to take a day trip from Barcelona, try not to miss Montserrat. Have fun!
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
3 posts
Try Tarragona...about 1.5 hrs south of Barcelona. Quaint seaside city; there is a Roman ruin/amphitheate right on the beach on the edge of town. Impressive
Posted by
SF Bay Area, CA, USA
508 posts
Janet - I second Martine's suggestion of Monserrat as a day trip. It's beautiful!
Also, consider Granada. Vueling has inexpensive flights from Barcelona to Granada. It deserves at least two nights and one full day. The Alhambra was one of the most amazing sights we visited in Spain.
Enjoy your trip!
Posted by
New
1 posts
We spent two weeks in Barcelona in April 2009 and found so much to do in the citythat we never went on the daytrips we had planned.
Posted by
winston salem, nc, usa
1078 posts
You can also make a day trip by train to the little town of Coulierre up the coast in France where the impressionists used to winter. Suggest you do it on Sunday as it's market day. It's highly walkable with lots of good restaurants.
Posted by
Boscombe, Dorset, UK
964 posts
Girona! It's a lovely old city, only about an hour by train from Barcelona. And you can easily walk from the rail station to the old city. We spent a week there in October and loved it.