The Costa Brava – not to be confused with Costa Blanca, where our cigar correspondent smoked out the tobacco shops – is a 220km ribbon of Spanish coastline that stretches roughly from Blanes (near Barcelona) to the French border. It conceals over 200 beaches and coves, receives 2,500–2,800 hours of sunshine per year, and, for those who keep tabs on the UV index like stock markets, an average of 8 in the summer months.
Statistics aside, it's also a region I’ve been to more times than I can count since childhood. And I'm not alone: it’s a favourite among Spanish staycationers. So much so that heavenly hotels hugging its shoreline, such as Hostal de la Gavina, have become hotspots for locals, with 50% of guests returning each summer – or even each weekend, I’m told – for the last 15–20 years.
MORNING
Wake up at Hostal de la Gavina
Two things become immediately obvious once you step out onto your suite’s balcony in your robe and slippers. One: the villa-lined road below is so still that the only traffic is a single moped scooting past. Two: the entire surrounding area is so serene that only the odd yacht etches a white wake across the water. No need for FOMO. You’ll be in the same boat soon. But first, breakfast on the sunlit terrace: plump peaches and jamón, alongside café con leche brought by waiters who have remembered your order from yesterday. Perfecto.
Credit (L): Chris Fynes
Stroll along the Camí de Ronda
Having stocked up at breakfast, next up on the agenda is tracing the Camí de Ronda, a coastal path that runs all the way to the French border we mentioned earlier. Today, though, a couple of leisurely hours will do – depending on how many times you stop for photographs. Spoiler: it’ll be a lot. Turn left out of the hotel and the route trails past turreted villas, with ivy clinging to honey-coloured stone and bougainvillea spilling like paint across terraces. All the while, local runners plod past in pairs, seemingly unfazed by the views as they go about their regular morning routine.
Credit: Claire Menary
AFTERNOON
Set sail across the shimmering Balearic Sea
Next, bumble down to the bobbing blue pier at Platja de S’Agaró and hop on a short shuttle, where skipper David is waiting aboard Bramble to whisk you away on a four-hour charter along the Costa Brava coastline. En route to his favourite secluded cove, Cala Futadera, he pauses by a sliver of golden sand that, when we visited, was occupied by little more than a lone kayaker. Accessible only by boat or a cliff-clinging staircase, his cove of choice draws clusters of catamarans to its emerald waters, while you and fellow paddleboarders skim the surface and snorkellers disappear beneath it.
After clambering back aboard, David lays out gilda pintxos, giant crisps, and slices of Iberian ham to tide you over, alongside chilled glasses of brut rosé that occasionally skate across the table when the swell catches the boat. From there, he steers you towards a narrow, barnacle-covered sea cave known only to locals – and one he explored as a child – before snapping a Polaroid keepsake of the afternoon. On the return journey, hold on tight: Bramble’s 400hp engine is, as David puts it, “muy rapido”, as the boat bounces over the waves.
EVENING
Have a sundowner and one final swim
Back at the hotel, the saltwater pool overlooking the crescent-shaped bay has smoothed into a mirror, and a flute of something cold from Blue Bar Piscina is calling your name. Around 7pm, the pool bar closes shop and the parasols begin to fold away, one by one. That’s your cue to either squeeze in a few final lengths while you more or less have the entire pool to yourself, or head back up to your suite to start getting ready for dinner.
Credit (L): Claire Menary
Tuck into tapas or just-caught seafood
You have two options tonight: settle into the leafy La Terraza Gavina for Catalan tapas, or head down to the seafront La Taverna del Mar, where, thanks to the stone arches, it feels as though the tables are floating above the water. At the former, waiter Adam will sway you towards the patatas bravas resting on squid ink and paper-thin jamón ibérico con pan con tomate. And at the latter, the seven-course sea menu includes cod roe-topped oysters, buttery mussels, and a seafood paella spooned tableside and ordered by every table.
