Looking for the best Mediterranean Beach? Sitges, Spain has it all.
I’m back in Sitges for my annual visit, I’ve been coming here for over 15 years now and this place ticks the boxes every time.
It has to be my all-time favourite Mediterranean beach destination. Sitges is located just 40 minutes south of Barcelona and is one of the “golden oldies” of the Spanish beach resorts, people have been coming here since the early 1960’s.
The resort fell from popularity in the 80’s as the Canaries, other Spanish resorts and Portugal opened up. What Sitges did when other resorts were growing dramatically, was to put hotel development on hold, effectively putting the brakes on tourism.
In hindsight, the planners got it right with that decision. A few new hotels were built, the Melia, the Dolce and la Nina but otherwise anything else has been converted or re-furbished so the town maintains a wonderful old world feel.
What’s also brilliant about Sitges is that it’s only 40 minutes from Barcelona airport; the train one way costs just €3 per person. With 2 flights per day from Dublin and 1 from Cork with Aer Lingus it’s easy to get here and you can also come down for just a few nights, a week or longer.
The beaches in Sitges are great, the weather, as I speak is amazing, a balmy 28 degrees and sunny and it’s been like that since mid-May. The resort itself stretches from the port near the Melia Hotel, over to San Sebastian, past the iconic Cathedral which dominates the town and along the 3 km promenade, past Vinyet down to the Terramar Hotel.
The restaurants are brilliant, there are almost 100 to choose from and all have great “menu del dia” offers from around €14 per person for a 3 course meal with a half bottle of wine, now that’s great value. The shops in the town are quirky and stylish and there’s a lot more to do in the local museums or hop on the train and visit Barcelona for the day.
One of the many reasons I love Sitges and keep coming back are the sun, the beaches, great food and Barcelona is only a short hop away if you fancy a visit to Spain’s most popular city. The nightlife in Sitges is one of its big draws, gay, straight, whatever; you’ll never be bored here.
That said the nightlife doesn’t interfere with the peace and quiet of the town, there are strict noise controls in place to make sure everyone gets to enjoy the town. If you haven’t been and you want something a little different, not overly touristy but where there are good beaches, great food and culture on your door step, then this is the place for you.
Give it a try and I guarantee you’ll come back again and again. This is the view from the apartment where I’m staying overlooking the beach of San Sebastian, next to the wonderful Voramar bar for the best after beach Mojitos and beside the new and very chic Sitges Café. Enjoy…
— Paul!
