Santa Susanna is a pleasant resort on the Costa Maresme about an hour from Barcelona and on the…read morecoastal train route so access is quite easy. If arriving from Girona airport you can do public transport usuing train and or bus or spcialist coach transfers. All options are relatively easy and quite reasonable too. It is a long flat resort with an expanse of beach on one side of a rail track with some hotels and campsites and the promenade and hotels on the other side of the track with the older town further back. The resort is quite mixed we found. we stayed at the end near the railway station (the start of the resort) and it was much quieter than the end verging into Malgrat. The bars and restaurants were pleasant and felt quite classy and the menu choices were spanish or european (not british bars etc) We found further along that a few more britsih orientated bars were dotted about but not in excess, if thats your thing Santa Susanna isnt for you. Its a relatively quiet resort with most entertainment being hotel based but you can stop at any hotel for a drink and watch the shows should you wish, we however were happy to stroll along the pedestianised area taking in the little stalls that set up each evening selling a variety of goods, most high quality unique items, many handmade things, wooden, silver, some gorgeous unique jewellery and handbags, not all your usual tourist tat which was a pleasant surprise. There were lots of lovely bars to stop at for sangria or whatever, the sangria comes in huge bowl like glasses, a real must of you like it, it was lovely! There was also a little fairground offfering a few rides, bouncy castles and a pretty carousel for younger children. The rides were all around a couple of euros a go so wouldnt break the bank to let the children do one or two an evening. There is seating all along the promenade so you could take a break if you just wanted to sit and people watch or needed a rest between stalls! There are a few supermarkets and an indoor mall which has a few good shops inside too. There is a minitrain which runs up and down the resort but i will review that seperately as they do different tours. This resort is family orientated however the beach does shelve and is shingle, it isnt rowdy and wouldnt suit anyone wanting buzzing nightlife, Malgrat or Lloret would be better for that. The old town is a walk back from the main hotel area. We went as far as the huge hypermarket that has a couple of bars/restaurants and lots of great value shopping. It had a huge wine shop/bodega where you could buy wine from barrels in whatever quantity you wanted, the choice was fantastic! You can look on the website for more information on festivals and things like that.

Staying at The Santa Susanna Resort Hotel..... Santa Susanna…read moreis a lovely little town in Northern Spain. We flew to Gerona and took a transfer to the Santa Susanna resort hotel, a swiss-chalet style hotel. The reception staff were really friendly, and we found our room easily. We were a little disappointed with the room, as there were 5 of us we'd booked a family room...the beds were all right next to each other, side-by-side! Also, the tv was around a corner, so one couldn't see it from the bed. We asked to move rooms, the staff were very accomodating and did move us to a much bigger, better room, but we had to pay 20 euros for the pleasure. The pool was lovely, however, with a small kiddies pool area, the all-inclusive snack bar was great, and in general the food in the restaurant was good, if a bit repetative. The beach at Santa Susanna is mostly shingle sand, and there is quite a deep shelf not far off shore, so keep a careful eye on children, especially later in the afternoon where the waves become enormous! My 6ft 2", 16-stone husband was literally taken off his feet by 10-foot waves!! There are the usual gift shops along the front, the BEST ice cream shops (cherry! yum!) and lots of bars. All-in-all, a lovely, family-centric resort, no crazy clubs or loud drinking holes, so good for families!

The small airport will absolutely spoil you. I love being…read moreable to park directly across the street from the main terminal. There are plenty of free trolleys for your bags Check-in is always fast and professional. There is a good size duty freight where you can get your souvenirs drinks, tobacco, and perfume 2 outdoor terraces to soak up some sun while you wait for your flight to board. Several options to pick up some food prior to take off.

There wasn't really much to this airport. So not really much to say…read more Don't come hungry to this airport. Security was smooth, in and out.

A small station on the line from Barcelona to Blanes, with suburban trains (Cercanías in Spanish,…read moreRodalies in Catalan) roughly every half hour in each direction off-peak. The journey to Barcelona Sants takes about an hour. The station is a passing place on the otherwise single-track stretch north of Arenys de Mar; Barcelona-bound trains always use the main platform next to the building, but train to Blanes use either platform, so check which your train will leave from (or follow the locals). The handsome traditional station building has a small cafe-bar serving drinks and snacks which also doubles up as a ticket office. There are no automatic ticket machines, so leave time to buy your ticket in case there's a queue. There is a level crossing with warning lights to cross between the two platforms. At the Blanes end of the station, the line disappears dramatically into a tunnel under the outcrop, atop which sits the hermitage (chapel) of Sant Pau (St Paul).

Gayle and I loved our visit to the Costa Brava and our stay at the Parador De Aiguablava. Begur is…read morethe nearest town and we enjoyed exploring its Castle and the surrounding Mediterranean beaches. This is one area Gayle really wanted to spend more time, particularly regarding a side trip to Cadaqués that never happened. In fact Gayle would have gladly cut a day off our Barcelona plans to stay here longer. Maybe next time? Begur is small (~4000 inhabitants) and is an important tourist attraction in the Baix Empordà. During the summer, the population can exceed 40,000 people. Gayle and I were here in October and we pretty much had the place to ourselves. The Village has an important historical remnants that go back in early history. The Castle of Begur is a good example of medieval remains. The Town of Begur also includes Esclanyà (with a Roman town centre), Aiguafreda, Sa Riera, Sa Tuna, Aiguablava and Fornells. Some of the most prestigious beaches of the Costa Brava can be found here. It was too cold to frolic in the water, but the scenery and crashing waves were outstanding.

The train station in Santa Susanna is not that exciting apart from it being set in an old tower,…read morethere are many dotted around the resort in the hillier parts, some round, some square. It is situated right opposite the Hotel Mercury and has a taxi pull in outside and a ramp for wheelchairs or wheeling your luggage up. The trains run through to Barcelona and along the coast to diverting away from the sea towards Girona. The trains do not go through directly though to Girona, you have to change but its and easy one. The trains run fairly regularly, are on time and are clean and the fares are amazingly cheap. If you fancy a change of scene you can nip on the train to Malgrat or any other of the resorts for a day or evening, do check the times of the last train back though! The early train to Barcelona is great for catching an earlyish flight however do make sure you get to the station handy as they do not open the ticket booth until a couple of minutes prior to the train arriving and you have to buy your ticket and validate it before boarding. Luckily we had got there early enough to be at the front of the queue or we may of missed the train. The machine for validating tickets is just across from the ticket booth on the platform, its simple, you just put your ticket in and it puts a date and time stamp on it.

In the resort there are little mini trains called - El Cuc…read more There are two routes that run, the blue route and the green route. The blue route goes through the resort along the promenade down to the Hotel Mercury, through the road underpass, along part of the beach front, then back through the underpass and out towards the old town of Santa Susanna via the steeped hillside residential area. This is a fun trip as you get to see some more of the resort leisurely plus you can get an insight into the local community. The train passes into the old town square and you can get off if you wish for a look around the shops, square or pop to a car or cafe for a drink. The train stops at many points enroute and outside many hotels so you can get on and off wherever you please. The pick up and drop off points are all well signposted. The round trip takes about an hour or so and the cost is a few euros with a reduction for children. The Green route takes you further out of the resort into the surrounding countryside and is a longer round trip. This train again takes you along the promenade through the resort picking up and dropping off along the way and then continues up into the countryside and the Montnegre Corredor park. The journeys is very piqturesque and on the route you will see things like the Font del Boter fountain and there is breathtaking scenery from the 241ft peak at Turó de la Guàrdia. You also can see a few churches and roman bridge and a really pretty aquaduct. You can do a round trip or get off and take in the scenery and local fauna and fauna or you can do one of the many countryside activities such as Segway or Horseriding. You can prebook tickets at little ticket booths situated along the promenade or pay the driver when you get on board.