With a short trip to Barcelona, I wanted to maximize my time in the city but also get a chance to explore a little bit of a quieter area nearby. The solution? A day tour to Costa Brava!
Lloret de Mar 
Lloret de Mar
The bus picked us in Barcelona and from there we were off to Lloret de Mar, which appeared to be a very touristy area of Costa Brava. We were given free time there to walk around a bit or swim and hang on the beach.
After about an hour of so in Lloret de Mar, the group boarded a glass-bottomed boat to Tossa de Mar. The 45-minute boat ride was one of the highlights of the day, with the weather being perfect for sitting up top and enjoying the views.
Most of the tour time was spent in Tossa de Mar, where we began with a guided tour of Vila Vella. Getting the chance to walk around a medieval fort was an amazing experience and there were amazing views on each level as we ascended up the pathway.
Vila Vella 
View from Vila Vella 
Vila Vella 
Ava Gardner Monument 
Ava Gardner Monument
With quite a bit of free time after the tour in Tossa de Mar, I chose to grab some lunch at a pizza shop, which gave me some strong Venice vibes. Walking through the small streets of Tossa de Mar overall reminded me heavily of being in Venice, which was incredible.
Lunch at La Grotta 
Lunch at La Grotta 
Lunch at La Grotta
Tossa de Mar 
Tossa de Mar 
Tossa de Mar 
Tossa de Mar 
Tossa de Mar
I’d been very go-go-go on this trip up until this point of the tour, so I was happy to have some free time to just sit by the beach and people-watch before heading back to Barcelona.
Final Thoughts:
I found out that I loved Tossa de Mar on this tour, and could see myself going back there for a trip focused on relaxed beach time and good food!
I do wish there was more of a group dynamic in this tour where we did things together like walking around the city, eating meals, etc, but since the tour group consisted of all couples and families, I think I would have been the only one with that complaint. Overall, it’s a great tour as long as you’re ok with the fact that the benefit of this tour is mostly the pre-planned transportation, and not necessarily having a group to be part of.
You can book this tour at //www.barcelonaholiday.es/en/
