Hotels Costa Brava

What to see by car: Costa Brava

Driving around the Costa Brava and the region of Catalunia is generally easy and rewarding. Sample more of the stunning coastal scenery, or venture inland to discover the more traditional Spain.

Not far from the French border and the Pyrenees, lying inland from the Mediterranean, is the charming city of Girona. The old town contains all of the city's important sights, and is situated across the River Ter on a thin wedge of land. The cathedral and its treasures illustrate the dominant role of the church in the Middle Ages. The local museums also exhibit valuable collections of art and archaeology.

After its last battering during the Civil War, Lleida's main sight, La Seu Vella (old cathedral) was rescued from a long period of service as an army barracks, enabling its Gothic cloisters and splendidly carved capitals to be properly admired. Its latter-day replacement, an 18th century building, can be seen on the way down to the newer town.

Above the old cathedral stands the Moorish fortress, La Zuda. Lleida's fortified citadel commands a strategic vantage point over the fruit-growing plains of the Segre Valley, which are still watered by Moorish irrigation systems. Lleida is located to the west of Barcelona on the A2 highway.

Just north of Barcelona and standing boldly above the town, the huge Gothic church of La Seu makes a journey to Manresa worthwhile. Built between the 14th and 16th centuries, its two-tier buttresses give an impression of great power. The interior of the church is remarkable for its wide vaulting and fine rose window; and the Holy Ghost altarpiece is an excellent piece of 14th century Catalan art.

San Ignacio de Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, came to Manresa in 1522 to write his Spiritual Exercises in the solitude of a cave. A church has been built over the saint's cave, but the cave can still be seen behind the altar.

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