As you start to familiarize yourself with a new city and grow your own comfort zone there, you start to want to branch out and visit close places. After 6 weeks in Barcelona, me and my friends have both explored Barcelona as well as popular destinations nearby. Here are some of my favorite places that can be explored for about 10 euros (USD $11.09) round-trip from Barcelona.
Sitges
Sitges is a wonderfully idyllic town south of Barcelona. It only costs about 10 euros round-trip from Barcelona-Sants and has easily been the setting of many of my favorite days in Spain. Sitges honestly has everything. Although it’s only roughly the size of a DKR crowd versus Kansas (30,000), this city packs a punch. It’s cobblestone streets are quaint, often only large enough to accommodate one car at a time. All of them leading towards beautifully sanded beaches with water and air temperatures reaching around 76 and 88 degrees respectively. Simply put, if you
have the chance to venture to Sitges, do it.
Montserrat
Literally translating to “Serrated Mountain,” Montserrat is a stunning mountain town. Part of a Catalonian mountain range that maxes out at about 3500 feet, Monserrat is an amazing day trip from Barcelona as it takes you to a completely different world. While the small town and monastery are cool, the trip is incomplete without a hike. There are two options for the hikes, one lasting around 45 minutes and one lasting 3 hours, both round-trip. While the views from anywhere around the town are sure to be amazing, the payoff in the 3 hour hike is amazing. After an agonizing couple of hours, you are sure to be amazed by the sweeping panoramic views of Catalonia.
Costa Brava
A term that colloquially refers to the Northeastern coast of Catalonia, Costa Brava encompasses many of the most beautiful towns in Spain. Although it’s only around an hour from the Catalonian capital, the towns that litter the Balearic Coast are a sight to be seen. Popular cities in the region include Cadaqués and Calella, both of which are picturesque towns along the coast.
Andorra/France
A day trip always becomes cooler when you can visit another country, right? That notion reigns true when considering day trips to either of these countries. Andorra is a small micronation in the Pyrenees and is considered a shopper’s haven with its low taxes. France, as if it needs any introduction, is one of the most visited countries in the world and a day trip from Barcelona ensures a visit to one of the beautiful towns of the French Riviera which line the southern French coast with tourist destinations.
This summer I’ve found that day trips have encompassed some of my favorite days in Barcelona. After a few weeks familiarizing myself here and getting to know the city itself, I started to want to see places nearby. And even though you usually travel less than 60 miles, it opens up entirely different places that you would have no idea about if you stayed in Barcelona, often experiencing new food, people and even sometimes a new language. Wherever you are studying abroad, I wholeheartedly recommend day trips as a way to see so much more without cashing out.
This post was contributed by Ethan McCarthy, a 2019 Global Ambassador. Ethan is a Radio-Television-Film major interning in Barcelona as part of the International Internship Program.
Don’t get left behind. Read more about Ethan’s experience in Barcelona>>
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