Gastronomy and culture in northern Spain and Southern France

Welcome on your journey to Northern Spain and Southern France!

Upon arrival at Barcelona’s El Prat Airport, your private driver will welcome you and escort you to your beautiful 4* hotel in the heart of the city. Check in and unwind. 

You then have the afternoon free to stroll in the city.

♦ WHAT IS INCLUDED ♦ Transfer | Dinner | Accommodation

Start visiting Mt. Montjuic and the surrounding area. Montjuic is a famous hill that stands 1,988 feet (606 meters) high and overlooks the Port of Barcelona. Take the Montjuic Cable Car from the metro station near Olympic Park, which takes you up to the 17th century Castle Montjuic and offers panoramic views of the city. You can also access Montjuic via cable car from Barcelona Beach and by funicular elevator adjacent to the cable car. 

The Poble Espanol is also fun to visit. Constructed in 1929, this open-air museum features over 100 recreated buildings in the style of traditional Spanish villages. When the sun goes down over the city, make sure you’re near the Magic Fountain of Montjuic, named for the dazzling display of water and colored lights that occur after dark. It’s the best free show in the city, one whose effect is heightened by the hundreds of spectators and a communal atmosphere.

Your driver will bring you Park Guell which is certainly one of the most famous sights of Barcelona. The with split ceramics decorated winding bank above the by Roman temples inspired market hall is world famous. Gaudí has created a fabulous forest with this park. Look to the wavy shapes reminiscent of flowing lava, the covered walkways with columns shaped like trees, the icicle and geometric shapes, and the use of ceramic and coloured glass, to name a few characteristics that make this park like no other.

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After breakfast, meet with your local guide for the visit of a jewel of spanish architecture, the Sagrada Familia.

Barcelona remains one of Europe’s foremost capitals of Art Nouveau architecture, or as it’s referred to in Catalonia, Modernism. Once controversial, this architecture dominates the image of Barcelona and is epitomized by the modernist architect Antoni Gaudí and his extraordinary masterpiece La Sagrada Família. On your tour, you will also take in the Hospital de Sant Pau, a nearby ‘modernista’ complex that’s also the largest Art Nouveau site in the world. When seen together in the company of a local historian, these sites provide a deeper understanding of Barcelona’s distinct, whimsical modernista movement.

After a relaxing ‘siesta’ in the afternoon, it will be time to discover the local gastronomy through a Barcelona Tapas tour in the evening.

Spain is synonymous with tapas, but are tapas a culinary tradition of the fervently nationalistic region of Catalonia? Long before the Andalusians from the south brought their gazpacho and the hot new chefs were topping tapas with wasabi, there was a local tradition of “pica-pica”, or enjoying some nibbles over a glass of vermouth before a meal. Your expert guide, a culinary insider or chef, will shine a light on this tradition, taking you on a delectable tour of top tapas purveyors around the trendy, up-and-coming Poble-Sec area. You will be revealed the basis of Catalan tapas and see how they have evolved with the influence of the rest of Spain and its recent avant-garde culinary movements.

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After breakfast, your private driver will escort you to Girona.

The medieval city of Girona bears historical roots in Christian, Jewish, and Muslim cultures. Only 60 minutes by car from the Catalonian capital, this historical hub proves to be a true crossroads of religion and culture. Your Girona tour, designed as a day trip from Barcelona and led by a historian, will reveal the secrets of this historically rich city and help to better understand why it makes such an impressive cultural impact.

The introduction starts on the car, where the guide puts the social and cultural history of Girona into context and explores the pivotal role this city has played in the story of Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Upon arrival, you enter the city with a stunning view of Girona’s colorful apartment blocks that line its river and overlook Gustave Eiffel’s  famous bridge. Passing through the city gate and into the historic center, you begin to trace the religious roots planted in Girona’s enchanting, narrow cobble-stoned streets.

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To pursue your 12-day Romantic Getaway, you first head out to Figueres from Barcelona, a small town near the border of France and one of the three points forming the so-called ‘Dalí triangle’. Dalí was born in this town and spent his childhood here. Stroll along the streets and corners that marked the artist’s early years and visit some of his favorite places.

Also located in Figueres is the Dalí-Museum, considered to be the largest surrealistic object in the world. Designed by Dalí himself upon the ruins of the old municipal theater, this magnificent building allows you to see straight into the painter’s mind. The Dali Museum contains the most comprehensive collection of the most peculiar surrealist works that you can probably imagine.

Next, you follow in the footsteps of the artist to a small village and one of the hidden gems along the Costa Brava, Cadaqués. This village, known for its gorgeous landscape formed by bright white houses, the mountainous terrain, and the Mediterranean Sea, is also the most easterly on the Iberian Peninsula. 

Check-in at your hotel and have a rest.

Just a mile from Cadaqués is Portlligat, where we recommend you finish your exploration of the Catalan genius. In 1930, Dalí chose as his residence this tiny, charming cove, building his house upon a group of fishermen’s huts. Today converted into the House-Museum, this place allows visitors to see the studio where the painter created his most important works and to take an intimate tour of the rooms where he lived with his beloved wife and muse, Gala.

♦ WHAT IS INCLUDED ♦ Tour | Transfer | Accommodation | Catering

After your hearty breakfast in Barcelona, your driver will escort you to southern France. 

After a peaceful drive from Barcelona to Carcassonne, you will check in your gorgeous hotel in the heart of the city, unwind, have traditional lunch, and start your discovery of this amazing place with a guided walking city tour of Carcassonne. Marvel at the well-preserved military and religious architecture of one of France’s most beautiful cities. 

Travel back to the Middle Ages and admire the thoughtful engineering used to construct the city’s defense. See evidence of the most comprehensive and formidable defensive fortress on the continent. Discover the city’s 52 towers, and learn about the archaeological signs that pinpoint in which century they were built.

Imagine the slots that were designed to crush the enemy, where molten and boiling oil could be poured. See the misleading stairs that sent the enemy into a state of confusion, and get an insight into the Cathar religion and the holy wars that raged in the city.

Guided tour of Granada with the Alhambra, the apotheosis of Muslim art in Spain, the Alcazar, the Cathedral, the Generalife and its terraced gardens… Lunch. Road to the Costa Blanca. Lunch. Accommodation in Murcia region.

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In the morning discover the Lastours Castles, with a breathtaking view from the belvedere. The ruined castles sit on a rocky spur above the village of Lastours, isolated by the deep valleys of the Orbiel and Grésilhou rivers.

Then, proceed to a small vineyard for a wine tasting. You meet dedicated winegrowers and oenologists, learn their different production methods and taste excellent wines. It is time to savor local food in a typical traditional restaurant.                                                         

In the afternoon, your driver will escort you to the picturesque village of Minerve classified as one of the “most beautiful villages of France”. The fortified medieval village is perched on a naturally defended rocky peninsula high above a canyon in the barren Languedoc landscape. 

On the way back to Carcassonne, your driver stop by the Canal du Midi (UNESCO site) where you learn more about the story of the 350-year-old Canal du Midi built in the 17th Century and still considered an engineering marvel.

♦ WHAT IS INCLUDED ♦ Tour | Transfer | Accommodation | Catering

After your hearty breakfast, and at your request, your chauffeur will escort you to Toulouse International Airport for your return flight. 

BON VOYAGE !

♦ WHAT IS INCLUDED ♦ Transfer | Catering