Beyond Barcelona

Outside of Barcelona (and its ring of ghastly suburbs) there are endless tempting day trips, made easy by Catalunya's excellent train network.

We've included some of the most popular, from the buzzing beach resort of Sitges to the holy mountain of Montserrat, Dalí's whacky theatre museum in Figueras and Spain's biggest theme park, near the fascinating Roman town of Tarragona. Or visit atmospheric medieval Girona, or perhaps the sun drenched vineyards of Penedès, source of all that lovely cava. Or take in the less-visited city of Terrassa, with its unique ancient churches and Modernista buildings, or the remarkable church Gaudí began before the Sagrada Família.