Spanish tourism bureau Catalan Tourist Board (Catalunya) has developed a new self-drive route designed to entice visitors to “know, discover, live, taste and enjoy” the Northeastern part of Spain.
Dubbed the ‘Grand Tour of Catalonia’, the circular route traverses more than 2,000kms of roadway setting out from Barcelona, to Tarragona, Lleida, La Seu and Figueres. The course is ideally covered as either a 13-day adventure or in five sections of either 5 or 7 stages.
Developed in collaboration with the tourism boards of the different councils in Catalonia, and with the backing of the private sector, the Grand Tour of Catalonia climbs from the sea to the mountains, through cities to small towns, highlighting the region’s 60+ Michelin-starred to home-cooked delicacies, and everything in between.
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Sections of the route are centred on individual themes such as gastronomy, vineyards, architecture, history, culture, nature and modernism. Each section has a recommended attraction (or “stages”) that pilgrims might wish to include along the way, and highlights (“essentials”) that shouldn’t be missed.
The five sections include:
- Vineyards with a Taste of the Sea – Barcelona to Tarragona | 462kms | 6 Stages | 6 Essentials
- In search of History – Tarragona to Lleida | 418kms | 7 Stages | 7 Essentials
- Very close to the Heavens – Lleida to Le Seu d’Urgell | 357kms | 5 Stages | 6 Essentials
- Ode to Nature – Le Seu d’Urgell to Figueres | 357kms | 5 Stages | 6 Essentials
- From Surrealism to Modernism – Figueres to Barcelona | 525kms | 7 Stages | 8 Essentials
- Grand Tour of Catalonia – Barcelona to Barcelona | 1,496kms | 13 Stages | 15 Essentials
A dedicated website – grandtour.catalunya.com/ – integrates all the information on a single platform, where potential visitors can pick and choose their preferred experiences from hundreds of options, to tailor an itinerary that suits their personal interests.
To view a full breakdown of what the Grand Tour of Catalonia offers, click here.