Begur, Spain

I aimed to showcase a variety of accommodations during this trip, City, Beach, Medieval city. In Barcelona, we relied on public transportation for most of the city segment of our journey. Roses was the beach portion, with a hotel on the boardwalk conveniently located within a 10-minute walk of most attractions in the town. Our final stop was Begur.

BEGUR is a charming medieval town perched on a hill, embodying the allure of a small European town and perfect for leisurely walks. It provides comfort with ample shade on hot days and features numerous shops showcasing local artisans, as well as several outstanding restaurants. The town's main highlight is the Castle at its highest point. To reach the castle, you can take a 10 to 15-minute walk from Center Square, depending on your pace, with clear signs guiding the way. The path is generally safe and easy, though it may be slightly risky in rainy weather. Otherwise, it’s a pleasant walk that doesn't take long and offers breathtaking views of the countryside and the sea.

We checked into Hosteleria de Begur in the mid-afternoon. Before arriving, we stopped in another coastal town known as the hidden gem of Costa Brava. This town, Estartit, is about a 40-minute drive south along the coast, just below L'Escala. There is a boardwalk that encircles the entire bay, a large beach, ample public parking, and, as expected, many charming shops and restaurants to entertain tourists. We decided to dine at a restaurant called Gilda at the end of the boardwalk. A Gilda is a traditional pintxo from the Basque region of Spain, typically bite-sized and handheld.

At the end of your meal, you pay based on the number of toothpicks you've collected, plus any drinks. Everything is displayed for you to choose from, or you can order from the menu for specialty pintxos not on display. We enjoyed some spreads and several grab-and-go pintxos, as well as a special one, which was a Jewish artichoke.

Throughout the trip, I attempted to show my mother-in-law of the key things among Spain and Europe in general that are incredible dishes that you probably would not see most places in the United States. Jewish artichokes are one of these things.

There was a gelato shop, and although we weren't particularly hungry, they offered a Dubai chocolate flavored gelato. I know this has been somewhat trendy, but dubai chocolate has always been a favorite of mine. It's a combination of a special Middle Eastern sweet with pistachio pieces inside decadent chocolate. The flavors are incredibly unique. If you put that in gelato, I might never need to eat anything else, so naturally, we had to try some—no regrets. I'll just do an extra Peloton session when I get back.

After visiting a few stores, we decided to check into our hotel. We took a little rest by the pool, as it was 95° and not ideal for walking around town.

The Hostel gardens are delightful, featuring a beautiful pool, numerous lounge chairs, and a welcoming couple and their family as hosts who excel at making you feel at home. At 5 o'clock, they offer to serve drinks, which are not complimentary, but it's a thoughtful service to help plan your evening. Our itinerary includes exploring the town, visiting the castle, possibly doing some shopping, and eventually dining at the restaurant Aiguaclara.

The restaurant was recommended by several blogs and TripAdvisor. I was a bit disappointed that despite making a reservation, they charged me the pre-reservation fee because they thought I hadn't shown up, even though we had a table right in the front, overlooking the town. I'm currently disputing that. However, the food was excellent. We enjoyed a selection of small tapas, including a green bean and asparagus salad with pecorino and mint, burrata with pickled peaches, and braised veal cheek. A 10-minute walk down the hill after such a feast was all we needed to return to our host.

On the second day, we began with a delightful breakfast and fresh juices courtesy of the hosteleria, then got ready to head to the beach. There are several beaches surrounding the area. We knew that Sa tuna is the most popular beach and that driving there wasn't advisable, so we asked our host about the bus options. The bus system is quite straightforward. There are three routes to different beaches: one goes to Sa Reina and Sa Tuna, and another to Aiguaclara. We learned that due to its popularity and the lack of parking, visiting without an umbrella, towel, or other accessories can be challenging, as there are no rentals available at TUna. It's best to be prepared for direct sunlight and high temperatures unless you bring your own gear.

Sa Reina, on the other hand, offers rentals, larger spaces, and nice cafes.

from sa tuna, There's a place where you can rent some beach items, but it doesn't open until noon. Instead of sitting on the beach, we chose to walk the coastal path to Aiugabegur beach, a small cove with another little beach and an excellent swimming area. It also had a very nice little restaurant offering drinks and a street tacos menu. The walk was quite warm due to the blazing sun and involved a decent number of stairs. If you have mobility issues, this may not be the best walk for you. However, if you can manage the stairs a couple of times, reaching the new beach should be perfectly fine for you.

Prior to heading back to our hostel. We had some mid afternoon tapas at Sa sala restaurant which is and has really beautiful vistas I had some kind of wine and another lovely salad with mango peaches, currents, and mozzarella. After a pool break, We ended up walking around the town again picking up some extra gifts that we have thought about the day before and did not buy, and then going to a restaurant called Rostei recommended by our host. There is quite a wide variety of fishes, meats, vegetarian entrées, and a nice wine selection. The service is a little bit less perfect than other places that we had been over the past week and a half, but the food was still fantastic and I can forgive a little bit of crappy service. Following dinner, we proceeded back to the hotel things not to miss in begur that we missed were sailing boat rentals, snorkeling, kayaking. It would’ve been highly advantageous to have a couple of extra days that we could’ve done some of those things but unfortunately, on a relatively quick trip that was meant to originally just be for work this is what we have. If I were to go back I would do a little bit more water sports and also maybe switch the amount of time that I had in roses and begur.