Investing in the coast of Barcelona

The coast of Barcelona is one of the most traditional holiday destinations in Spain, an area of great natural beauty, dotted with fishing villages, diverse urban centres and complete services: leisure, health, education and commerce. One of its main attractions is the cosy, quiet and family atmosphere that few coasts can boast. Its small towns preserve the essence of modesty and peace they had before the tourist boom, and offer visitors a special charm, very different to what you find in Costa Brava or Levante

In a society that appreciates more and more the simple things, the lifelong traditions, the wellness without worries, this coast of Barcelona has become one of the most sought after destinations by families and couples seeking a space to rest and enjoy a healthy, safe and comfortable stay.

Towns like Santa Susanna, Calella, Malgrat de Mar and Pineda are the main elements of this holiday tour around Barcelona, where the Fergus Hotels chain has focused much of their investments for 2015 season, creating a network of resorts on the coast of Barcelona especially targeted to families, groups and couples.

Emblematic hotels in Calella such as the Espanya Hotel are part of this portfolio which gives priority to the traveller well-being at affordable prices, competing with some of the most important hotels in the centre of Barcelona, especially as regarding comfort and personalised service.

Besides Calella, Fergus has increased its presence in the Barcelona coast with hotels in Santa Susanna, accommodations in Malgrat de Mar and Pineda de Mar. They are modest hotels with attention to detail, modern, simple and functional decoration offering a pleasant feeling of well-being without ostentation. They are impeccable in terms of gastronomy, facilities and rooms space, and offer a wide variety of leisure plans and special services.

Price is one of its greatest values, since they offer high quality accommodations providing exceptional service at affordable prices. The location is good and reviews on forums give them a remarkable rating in terms of service and customer care, which is not very easy to find in such a tourist area as Maresme is.

Barcelona never disappoints

Book holidays at the last minute is never a good option if you want to save… Even so, if you are running out of time and have lost the opportunity of getting a good discount in your hotel by earlybooking, there are always destinations that, whatever the time of the year, combine a complete leisure and rest offer with more than affordable prices, both in transportation and accommodation. This is the case, for example, of Barcelona.

Barcelona never disappoints when you plan to organise holidays without room for budgetary manoeuvre. The Catalonian capital has a so wide variety of proposals that is ideal for all kinds of travellers, there converge the most multifarious motivations: seeing a certain exhibition, attending  a music festival or a special concert, having a party weekend with friends, going with the children to PortAventura…

Hotel rooms in Barcelona

Hotel rooms in Barcelona

Barcelona, besides its infinite plans offer for all tastes and ages, has the advantage of offering good connections and accommodations that, despite not being the cheapest, provide a very interesting price-quality relation, in particular, as regards hotels in the centre of Barcelona, where the competition is ferocious, making the hotels in Ramblas and Ciutat Vella to offer really attractive discounts.

Choosing your coast opens up a world of possibilities. Beach hotels in Pineda de Mar, Calella or Santa Susanna are good and cheap accommodation options in Barcelona that, besides offering access to the best beaches for family holidays, boast complete services at surprising prices. The ideal transport would be by own car or you can travel to Barcelona by plane and rent a car there.

These coastal towns are perfect for escaping and getting lost in the most sea-essence of Barcelona, where tradition, cuisine and beach are the main figures. If you travel with children, booking a hotel in Calella, for example, is one of the best options, since it is quieter than the city and offers very varied out of doors leisure possibilities.

A destination guide: What to see in Ibiza?

What to see in Ibiza? What are the places you must visit in this Mediterranean island, those places that one should not miss? As with many places, choosing a top 5 of the most beautiful places in Ibiza is very complicated, as every traveller is different and each trip also: you will not find the same Ibiza if you travel with friends at age 20, with children at 30 or with your couple at 50… But, it is true that if one stops to think and analyse it, there are a number of places that should not be missed on a holiday in Ibiza.

Hotel in Cala Portinatx

Hotel in Cala Portinatx

1.Dalt Vila

The old town of the city of Ibiza, also called Vila. Its walls and cathedral stand out, both part of a historical set with a renaissance style (XVI century), which has been declared, since 1999, a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Another of its most striking landmarks, is the castle that overlooks the city and the port of Ibiza. Strolling through the streets, admiring the view from this area is always a good plan.

2. Calle Barcelona

The liveliest area of Ibiza after sunset. Very close to the port of Ibiza and full of bars, terraces, restaurants, Chill Outs, pubs and the best atmosphere on the island, to enjoy your first drink before heading back to the hotel or to start off the evening. Here, it is easy to buy discount tickets for evening shows to the most important night clubs in Ibiza and be surprised by the parades of professional go-go dancers on the street.

3. Café del Mar

Although there are many Chill Out bars in Ibiza, Cafe del Mar has become a true symbol of the most modern and eclectic island in the Mediterranean. Located on Lepanto Street, in the town of Sant Antoni de Portmany, close to the Hawaii Ibiza hotel.  Worth visiting it for its sunsets with music, that have become famous worldwide. The atmosphere is very lively, with people of all kinds and from all over the world. Another similar place, less crowded, is the Kumharas, on Lugo Street of Cala de Bou, in the municipality of San Jose, very close to the Fiesta Milord hotel.

Adults Only hotel in Ibiza

Adults Only hotel in Ibiza

4. Santa Eulalia des Riu

One of the most charming villages on the island. It is a village that best preserves the hippie spirit that reigned the “white island”, and has a large number of interesting hotels where to stay on the beach of Es Canar, the most famous of the municipality. Close, on the 12th km of the road between Santa Eularia with Sant Carles, close to the Paraiso Beach hotel nest to Cala Marina, you find one of the busiest markets in Ibiza, the market of Las Dalias.

5. Cala Portinatx

One of the most famous and valued coves in Ibiza, is the beautiful Cala Portinatx. Open to the Mediterranean, as a sea inlet, surrounded by vegetation and beautiful landscapes, transparent turquoise waters and fine white sand, this cove is a natural paradise that surely deserves to be among the five essential key points to visit in Ibiza. At the cove, there is a hotel right facing the sea, the El Greco hotel, designed specifically for holidays with your partner or with children.

Accommodation that never go out of style

It is very common that we review those more innovative hotels, the most avant-garde tourist proposals or the most interesting formulas that will allow our readers to discover new design hotels. In this occasion, wrapped in autumn’s melancoly and with a little post-vacational syndrome, we have written a short but honest summary of destinations and accommodations that, in our opinion, will never go out of fashion.

Iberostar Marbella Coral Beach

Iberostar Marbella Coral Beach

The rebirth of Costa Blanca

Benidorm is a classic destination. A destination that has been gradually associated with national and foreign tourists of a certain age, and its eccentric skyscrapers that shape it as one of the European cities with the largest skyline in the continent. Something that surprises everyone that visits it for the first time. Many are those that think that this urban development is an aberration, bearing in mind the Mediterranean environment that surrounds it. As time passes, Benidorm has revitalised and changed into a vintage destination, to which many visit it as a new experience, different and fun, away from the connotations attributed in the past.

In Benidorm there is a beach… and hotels. Choosing one among all the ones available can be stressful, as the decision can be a success or a total mistake. Our recommendation in this sense, and after covering several hotels in the area, are Benidorm’s aparthotel of the hotel chain Marconfort, the Flamingo Playa and the Flamingo Benidorm, two accommodations with All Inclusive next to the beach of Levante. Ideal for those travelling with friends or family. Its services and facilities are complete, and the personalised attention of their staff is unbeatable.

Marconfort Beach Club Hotel Torremolinos

The magic of the Costa del Sol

The hotels in Málaga never go out of style. The city where Pablo Picasso was born, offers beaches that are a haven for families and surfers, and that year after year, the Costa del Sol sees how the magic of its natural beauty continues to have effect an effect on tourists. In addition, the province has many faces. On the one hand, the classic family destination of Torremolinos keeps its pull despite the changes in national tourism trends, recovering from the current economic crisis. On the other hand, Marbella and its luxury resorts near Puerto Banus, that maintains its pulse and retains its status and glamour.

Among the hotels in Torremolinos that we reviewed to include in this list, we have chosen two  belonging to the hotel chain Marconfort. The Griego hotel and the Beach Club hotel, two of the classics in this holiday destination, chosen mainly by spanish families of the interior. In Marbella, we are sticking to the Marbella Coral beach, and in the area of Fuengirola, one of the most comfortable hotels located in the beach of Los Boliches, the Confortel Fuengirola hotel.

Hotel in Fuengirola

Hotel in Fuengirola

Natural beauty on the coast of Barcelona

Another classic and family orientated destination in Spain, one of the most protected agains’t foreign mass tourism, is the coast of Barcelona. Away from the bustle of the capital and along the Mediterranean coast you find towns like Pineda del Mar, Calella, Malgrat de Mar and endless towns that have been kept almost intact, retaining its traditional essence of fishing villages. The most appreciated in this area, is its atmosphere, an to a generation it reminds them of a time when summers were blue and they could run around freely along the towns streets.

Preserving the tradition from father to son, those who visit this coast of Barcelona during the summer holidays are usually Spanish, many with a second home in the area, others accommodated in small hotels with character and staff that feels more like family. Along this line, we choose several hotels from the hotel chain Fergus Hotels, available in the coast of Barcelona:

Fergus Style Mar Mediterrania

Fergus Style Mar Mediterrania

The Fergus Style Mar Mediterrania, off the coast of Santa Susanna and completely refurbished in 2013. We like it for its exterior designer spaces, with areas of a solarium terrace and an amazing swimming pool in which to spend hours reading a book. The town of Santa Susanna, is also one of the most beautiful of all this coast.

The Fergus Montemar, an All Inclusive hotel in Pineda de Mar with the advantage of having the beach very close and all the services that can be found in the centre of the town. Good atmosphere, personal attention and surprising facilities for an All Inclusive: Jacuzzi, gardens, relax area, cocktail service, children’s playground and kid’s club…

The Fergus Espanya, a historic hotel in Calella that could not be forgotten in a list that mentions traditional holiday accommodations in Spain that, even after so many years have not gone out of style. With a large group of loyal tourists, this hotel in Calella, is a symbol fro tourism on the coast of Barcelona. Informal and with a spirit that makes all its guests feel at home, it has managed to earn the affection of all those that visit it at some point.