La Rectoria de Sant Miquel de Pineda, Garrotxa, Spain

Une très jolie guesthouse tenue par Roy, un écossais amateur de bons whiskies et de bonne cuisine, et Goretti, une catalane sympa et souriante.
La via verde de la Garrotxa, ancienne voie ferrée reconvertie en pise cyclable, passe juste devant la maison, en plein bois. Si vous n'avez pas vos vélos les propriétaires vous arrangent tout ça très facilement, vous les trouverez le matin devant votre chambre!
A seulement quelques kilomètres d'Olot, pas loin des volcans, une immersion dans le vert à à peine plus d'une heure de barcelone.
Vivement recommande, photos et infos sur le site web, ici.

Hostel Empuries, l'Escala, Spain

Not cheap, but great place!
The hotel (a real one, despite the misleading name...) is situated litterally on the sea, within walking distance of the Empuries greco-roman ruins. It used to be the house of the archelogists working on the excavation site, hence its location, right in a middle of a protected area (no other construction in view).

We went there last autumn, actually it's probably a good idea to go outside the peak season, to enjoy the stroll along the seaside without sharing it with too many visitors...

 

 

There is a nice footpath along the beach, taking you to l'Escala in the south (15mn walk, don't miss the anchovies), and to San Martin d'Empuries in the north (10 mn walk, cute tiny village with a few restaurants and bars)
There are 2 parts to the hotel, the main building, with classical accommodation, and half of the rooms with seaviews, and then the modern rooms, very spacious and well designed.
There is a gastronomic restaurant inside, and also a spa but we did not try any of them. Being with the kids we went for the buffet option which is quite nice as well, lots of choice and good quality.
Consult the website for more details, http://www.hostalempuries.com/en

Hotel Terramar, Llafranc, Spain

Llafranc et Calella de Palafrugell font partie de nos destinations préférées sur la Costa Brava, nos virées de ce côté-là ont remplacé nos sorties à Sabaudia et San Felice di Circeo de notre époque italienne...

 

Un hotel qui nous plait bien est le Terramar à Llafranc, situé idéalement en face de la plage, et ayant la bonne idée de faire des chambres familiales communicantes bien pratiques pour nos besoins de famille nombreuse...

Pas la peine de manger sur place par contre, mieux vaut aller à Calella, aux Voltes ou encore mieux au Fiego sur la plage de Port Pelegri, juste à côté du Club de plongée, bien pratique pour les amateurs du genre...

Cal Rei, Lles de Cerdanya, Spain

With the winter getting closer, we wanted to check up the Catalan Pyrenees and get a first feel of the Spanish snow.
Following the recommendation of a Catalan friend, we headed for Lles de Cerdanya, a small mountain village, 1500m altitude, only 2 hours drive away from Barcelona.
The place to stay is called Cal Rei (www.lles.net/cal.rei), it is a casa rural, the equivalent of the Italian agriturismi and French gîtes ruraux.
It is an old house full of charm, very nicely restored by the owners Lluis and Piluca, the views over the Serra del Cadi, on the other side of the valley, are just amazing, and Lluis does a good cooking in the evening based on local dishes, with everyone eating at the same long table.
There are great walks from the nordic ski resort which is 10mn away by car, at 2000m, the Estany de Llori for example, a little mountain lake.
For a good Arroz you can go to Cal Lliuret in Travesseres, a tiny village on the way back to the valley, good food and great settings!

Albergo Da Giovanni, isola del Giglio

It must be the traditional winter radiator effect: I long for a nice sunny beach... I know, I know, I'm the lucky one living in BCN, by the sea, and yet...
Anyway, I have a thing for small southern Italian islands, and Giglio is one on my list...

Crystal clear waters, nice rocks to climb for the kids, and the beach to yourself if you go in September like we did last year.
The island is pretty much empty apart from a 3 small villages, linked by the one road: you arrive with the ferry at Giglio Porto, you get across the island through the highest point, Giglio Castello, and then down again to Giglio Campese, simple enough. As I said, pretty much one road, no real need for a car there...
If you're in for lying out on a sunny beach, like I certainly am, I would recommand Giglio Campese, not a real village but there's a tiny port with an impressive old tower, it's the larger sandy beach of the island, and it is facing to the south-west so you enjoy the sun until the evening, unlike Giglio Porto, and the rocks take on incredible colours at sunset.

Albergo Da Giovanni is a good place to go, great settings and nice food, the rooms are nothing special but the view wins it all, just a few stairs away from the sea...

Gite de Tournoux, France

Un post en français cette fois-ci pour vous dire tout le bien que je pense du gîte de Tournoux, petit paradis d'hiver au coeur des alpes...
Le gîte se trouve à 1800m d'altitude, sur les pistes de ski de fond de la station de Puy Saint Vincent, il sert de restaurant d'altitude à l'écart de la foule, et pour les plus chanceux il y a aussi quelques chambres pour y séjourner en demi-pension ou pension complète.
Les hôtes sont à l'image du chalet, ambiance montagnarde garantie, ne vous étonnez pas si vous croisez une championne du monde de ski de rando en train de servir en salle entre deux sommets...
Bref un petit coin de paradis, chaudement recommandé, l'occasion de vraiment déconnecter (on se fait vite rappeler à l'ordre si on charge son portable trop longtemps, autonomie énergétique oblige...)
Le gîte a un site, pour les infos pratiques et de très belles photos, http://gites05.free.fr/gites/tournoux/

vue depuis la chambre, par tous les temps...

Giardino degli Ulivi, San Felice di Circeo, Italy

This one had to be in one of my first posts, since it's been an all time favourite for a week-end away from Rome by the seaside...
We came across that place by accident, as we were wandering in the nice little village of San Felice di Circeo, and decided to stay the night. Since then, we've been going back several times every year, taking with us friends and family to share this little secret.
Quiet, relaxing, a very pleasant garden, welcoming hosts, all of this 5mn away by car from Torre Paola and the spiaggia di Sabaudia, who wants more...
Only drawback, I have just found out they now have a website (www.giardinodegliulivi.eu), let's just hope they don't end up in a tourist guide...