In 2016, media companies began to present Girona as a paradise for film sites, thanks to season 6 of Game of Thrones. The city's beauty is everywhere, from its medieval walls, narrow streets, and dazzling architecture to the petite bookshops and dozens of tapas bars. Girona is sandwiched between Barcelona and the famous Costa Brava, offering appealing beaches and remote rocky coves. The province has a vast fertile plain ideal for rural tourism, where adventure seekers can be seen hiking or cycling through the backroads before making their way to their rural pit stops.

CATALÁN REVERENCE

Running parallel to the Onyar river is the Rambla de la Llibertat, a wide street with many street cafes and restaurants. Here, you can pick up a map from the tourist office and visit the key places in the old town. Girona is a great place to visit all year round, with a personal favourite being in May for the Flower Festival. For ten days, the city gets adorned with flowers, and a schedule of cultural events and commercial activities circulates through the old and new town.

Girona was born as an old Roman fortress. You can still see the medieval walls circling the city; the extension of the Roman walls in medieval times allows today to walk along the old coastal path and cross the most extended stretches of Carolingian wall in Europe (9th century). You can get some of the city's best viewpoints from the heights of the walls with a few miradors to look out from and snap photos.

You are probably in the Jewish quarter if you are in the old town centre and find yourself stooping slightly under stone arches. The main street in this part of the city is La Força, which was the old Via Augusta, with some of the oldest houses in Girona. Here, you can find the Museum of the History of the Jews, instaled in the last synagogue of the Jewish quarter, which offers a complete tour of the main aspects of the life and history of the Jews of Girona. Design-lovers must stop at the former Casa del Contable de la Catedral, now converted into an elegant store with contemporary furniture called Pabordia.

On Carrer de les Ballesterias nº29 awaits the most important work of architect Rafael Masó. Here you can visit the old house, with a reservation first. There are views of the Onyar river from the house with the colourful houses in the backdrop.

CYCLING CULTURE

Girona is a paradise for cyclists; take notice of Lance Armstrong's four-year stay, which is how the city reached the ears of the U.S. press. Thanks to Lance's presence and a publication by The New York Times in 2005, a revolution for cyclists started, seeing many of the world's premier English-speaking, professional cyclists move to Girona.

What attracts cyclists to the city is the sense of being in a quintessential town, as it's a city of only about 110,000 people, with dozens of bike shops and cafés paying an ode to cyclists. Former professional cyclist Christian Meier (Sussex, Canada) and his wife Amber moved to Girona over 12 years ago. After completing his dream race, The Tour de France, they decided to stay in Girona. With Amber's passion for running a café, they opened La Fàbrica and Espresso Mafia Coffee.

Eat, Sleep, Cycle is an oracle for inspiring cyclists that want to enrich the community. The space is a hub for cyclists to get together for a coffee, workshop or buy bicycle parts. If you are new to the scene, it is a good idea to join their cycling tours so you can meet other like-minded people.

HOTEL CACAO & ROCA BROTHERS

Restaurant El Celler de Can Roca is just one of the dozens of projects by culinary giants Joan, Josep, and Jordi Roca. The Roca brothers together master cuisine, wine and dessert. Each of the brothers reflects their personality with a creative method born from a philosophy that embraces external inspiration, nourished by its internal motivation.

Hotel Boutique Casa Cacao is the latest project among the Roca brothers. Jordi Roca, is in charge of desserts at El Celler de Can Roca. His sister-in-law, Anna Payet, is responsible for the hotel management. The hotel has individual spaces for chocolate workshops, a café, and a chocolate shop that has just opened in Girona in 2021. The property has three floors with 15 rooms and a rooftop terrace where a 4-course indulging breakfast awaits guests. For chocolate-lovers everywhere, in addition to sweet or bitter, chocolate can be acidic or fruity and have a thousand other accents that Jordi Roca has created miracle flavours. The senses of those who visit the venue will be surprised, and you will discover new things about this raw material that can transform, either invigorating or relaxing, the state of mind of those who take it.

Rocambolesc Confitería opens its first premise in spring 2022 in Girona, right next to the Jordi Roca and Alejandra Rivas ice cream shop, Rocambolesc. This confectionery completes the Roca family's catalogue of business concepts, with an offer made up of the toppings of its ice creams, candy, and other sweets and with the idea of "exploring the creativity of sweets and the sweet world". This new store and Casa Cacao will have you surrender to the bike shops afterwards!

Without further ado, the latest venture in Girona city by the Roca brothers is on Plaça de l'Oli nº1 called Restaurant Normal. This restaurant is the Roca brothers' commitment to the traditional cuisine that is updated, spontaneous, succulent and tasty. Unlike the lavish El Celler de Can Roca, this restaurant has no tasting menu. The menu is informal and fresh to traditional dishes such as Andalusian-style squid, a recipe by Montse Fontané, impeccably fried, or the kidney sandwich with sherry that the Roca brothers ate when they were little! This is the perfect restaurant to book with family and friends, as it is affordable and comfortable.

SHOP LOCAL

Girona boasts many great little places for those wanting to treat themselves or buy gifts for loved ones. We stumbled across Vimet when last in the city. It´s a cute little grocery store that stocks a brilliant selection of artisan and eco products such as ceramics, baskets, flowers, etc. They also sell fresh local produce and artisan beers and wines from the Catalan region, making it an ideal pitstop for those planning a picnic or perhaps staying at an apartment whilst visiting. Duransisters, is a ready-to-wear fashion brand encompassing the Mediterranean. They have an impressive shop instalment, walking distance from the main cathedral. Velodrom is a boutique lifestyle brand dedicated to the world of cycling and is in the heart of the Barri Vell of Girona. Cyclists can purchase clothes, accessories, bikes and more in this cycling space. Avid shoppers can peruse through Pas Normal Studios, Rapha, Café du Cycliste, Maap, Ndlss or Velocio.

LITERARY LOVE

There is a strong connection between coffee and books that goes beyond the feeling of cosiness induced when we wrap one hand around a warm mug and use the other hand to turn the pages of a good book. Bookstores-slash-cafés serve as community hubs, gathering places for like-minded individuals. Girona takes the biscuit for these shops, as seen in Llibreria cafè on Carrer del Pou Rodó, a library-cafe-bar. Bookshelves serenade the walls with old classics, with the venue doubling up as an event space for poetry readings and creative writing workshops. Come nighttime, and the coffee shop turns into a bar with live music and fine wine.

In the historic-cultural centre of Girona, with an entrance from the Platería pedestrian shopping area, you will find Librería Geli. This bookstore first opened its doors in 1879 and has become one of the best bookshops in Girona and one of the oldest in Catalonia. It has a collection of more than 200,000 titles that it constantly updates and classifies into specialized sections, such as Law, Psychology and Self-help, Computer Science and Philosophy.

In Barri Vell, the old town of Girona, you can find Portal del Colleccionista, an antiquarian bookshop. Cortés Lopéz, the owner, is passionate about his books; he has a multitude in Russian, English, French, Spanish, and Catalan. Visit the shop for its antique feel; you may find yourself holding a leather-bound parchment manuscript from 1792; it feels like your transgressing the boundaries of time.

EPILOGUE

The stunningly beautiful region of Catalonia is much more than just the famous Costa Brava and Barcelona. Only 15 minutes from the city of Girona you can find their international airport. This makes Girona an ideal first stop on your travels through the region of Catalonia, or if you plan on heading to Andorra or southern France. Girona is a city that deserves a tedious travel itinerary, with a recommended two days at least to see the old town and pamper yourself through the dozens of delightful restaurants.

For more information, check out the local tourist website, www.girona.cat.

Inspirations