Highlights

• Walking around the city walls
• Girona Cathedral
• Basílica de Sant Feliu
• Sant Pere de Galligants Monastery
• Cases de l’Onyar, colourful houses on the riverside
• Pont de les Peixateries Velles
• Pont d’en Gómez o de la Princesa
• Casa Agullana window in the wall
• Arab Baths
• Baluard de Sant Francesc – Monument del Lleó
• Antic Hospital de Santa Caterina
• Wine vineyards nearby including Vallalta Vinícola

Before you go

• Be prepared for lots of walking including on cobblestones
• The main language is Catalan although most people speak Spanish
• Some small shops close for an afternoon siesta
• Weather is moderate but can get hot in the summer
• Two of the large celebrations: Girona Temps de Flors (Spring Flower Festival) in May and Fires de Sant Narcís (autumn festival) in Oct/Nov
• If you would like to go to a particular restaurant, it is a good idea to book in advance
• Weekends can be very busy with tourists!

Transport

• Travel to Girona from Barcelona is easy either by train or by car. The Renfe fast train takes about 40 minutes.
• If you drive, you will need to pay for parking on the outskirts and then walk around the old town
• Be prepared for lots of walking for sightseeing around the city on foot
• Girona-Costa Brava Airport is 20 minutes by car

Accommodation

• We didn’t stay in Girona, since we stayed with friends nearby. It’s also possible to visit as a day trip from Barcelona.
• As usual I recommend checking reviews on Google Reviews or using AirBnB

Food

Xuixo serves many tasty flavours of the local dessert specialty, which is a fried, sugar-rolled dough filled with custard. Casamoner is another bakery with delicious xuixo as well as other pastries.

Oniria Cafe and Espresso Mafia Coffee were the two local coffee roasters recommended to us. I can’t really comment on the flavour but the others said the coffee is good!

Madonna vegan ice creams was a nice find on a hot day. Sometimes I like having sorbet or vegan ice cream, as I find them lighter.

SAFO Bar was our main meal out in Girona. We ordered many small plates and accompanied that with local wines. Lots of seafood, vegetables and meat dishes so something for everyone!

Restaurant El Cul del Món was a fun restaurant outside of the city centre with a Moroccan-themed menu. The surroundings were beautiful and we enjoyed the flavourful food.

Between Barcelona and Girona, the hilly areas have many beautiful vineyards. We did wine tasting at Vallalta Vinícola, which was fantastic! It was also the time for goats to come eat the plants in the fields, so we got to pet baby goats. Lovely countryside nearby to the cities.