Things to do in Lloret de Mar- Day Trip to Barcelona

Barcelona is easily accesible from Lloret de Mar, the journey takes one hour 15 mins from Lloret to the centre of Barcelona by bus. There is also a train but first one must make their way to Blanes- this makes the whole thing very long winded and takes at least two and a half hours in total. The bus is slightly more expensive but much less hassle.

Directions:


Go to the bus station in Lloret, situated opposite the  Gran Casino Hotel on the main Blanes/Tossa road. If it is high season is it advisable to book your tickets in advance. This can be done by going to the bus terminal or clicking HERE.

Buses leave Lloret at:

8 h
9.30 h
10.30 h
14.00 h
16.30 h
19.15 h


Buses leave the Ronda Sant Pere (Barcelona Centre) at:

8 h
10 h
11.45 h
15.00 h
17.00 h
19.30 h

(Please check these times before leaving as they are subject to change).

The ticket price is 7.85 euros. There is a small discount for large groups.

The bus will first stop at the Estacio del Nord- do not get of there if you wish to do sightseeing, shopping etc.

The second and last stop is the Ronda Sant Pere which is just three minutes walk from the Plaza Cataluña which is a very busy square with a multitude of shops, banks, bars, restaurants and more.

Another option to see more of the city is to catch the sight seeing bus, which will give a you a tour from an open top double decker bus. There is a stop is just outside El Corte Ingles which you cannot miss- it is a huge department store selling just about every under the sun.

The Plaza Cataluña meets with the top of Las Ramblas- one of Barcalona's most famous streets and a must see for visitors.

The Jules Verne is an English Pub situated at the top end of Las Ramblas just off the Plaza Cataluña.

Decorated in dark wood, english pub style, it is a popular hangout for tourists and residents alike, and a great place to have a sit down and enjoy a pint of Guinness or Fosters.

The Jules Verne does not sell half pints and does not stock Spanish Beers.

At the time of writing a pint of beer or lager is 5 euros.


The Plaza Cataluña has it's fair share of pidgeons.
Tourists like to pose with them and if one stands with outstreched arms, they will happily come and use you as a perch.

To walk from the Plaza Cataluña to the end of the Ramblas would in theory take you about 20 minutes- however it is more likely to take an hour or two as there are many attractions to stop and look at- maybe the most famous of these being the 'human statues'.


The human statues are people dressed as statues who stay as still as stone for many hours on end with a bucket in front of them for people to put coins.
These two guys pictured have it a bit easier- everytime someone throws a coin they pedal furiously for about thirty seconds then become completely stationary again until the next coin is thrown, which is fairly frequently from what I could see.

Nice work if you are not too active.

Lloret de Mar - Dona Marinera.

The bronze statue of Dona Marinera (said to be a sailors wife) is situated on the rocks above Lloret beach at the opposite end to the castle.

While all her body is green with age, her feet are quite shiny. The reason being, it is said that if you touch her feet while looking out to sea and make a wish, your wish will come true!

Lloret Beaches.

LLORET BEACH 24th March 2006

 FENALS BEACH 24th March 2006

Two views of the beaches of Lloret taken yesterday, the temperature reached 24 deg.
Quite a few tourists are now arriving in town for their spring holidays - and daring to strip down to their cossies on the beach!

Lloret de Mar - Wildlife!

Something for the cat lovers....

Here in Lloret there are a lot of stray cats. This group live just off the beach in Fenals.

As you can see they dont look like the usual stray, some are even quite fat! and not as wild as you might think. Although some are a bit timid, others will come to you if they think you are going to feed them. Which one old lady does every day, she goes round Fenals and feeds each group. Also other people including myself, take any leftovers for them. So they are quite well looked after

Restaurants in Lloret de Mar.

While on holiday in Lloret dining out is always good value for money, especially if you fancy a change from the 'junk food' which is too easily available these days!
All restaurants, no matter what type or nationality serve what is called 'Menu del Dia' - menu of the day. Usually consisting of at least 3 courses, a starter, then the main dish, a sweet or pudding dish and then wine, water and bread. Prices start at about 6 euro. All restaurants have numerous selections for each course, its quite impossible to choose sometimes.!
Its even sometimes impossible to choose which restaurant to go to, all do excellent menus.
Although the menus displayed are mostly wrote in Catalan or Spanish, this no reason why you should not be brave enough to go inside and try the meals, if your not a fussy eater just take 'pot luck'

A few of the most common foods on the Catalan menus in Lloret are..

Galtes de porc - pigs cheek, usually done in a nice tasty gravy.

Calamars - squid, often done in batter and then mistaken for onion rings by most first timers abroard!

Botifarra amb mongetes - a meaty Catalan sausage with white beans.

Arroz negre - rice cooked in black ink from the squid.

Fricando amb bolts - sliced veal with mushrooms.

Conill amb allioli - rabbit with a garlic mayonnaise.

A couple of dishes to suit even the most unadventurous palette is Pollo, which is chicken,usually roasted on the spit and Bistek, which is steak. Normally both served with chips!