Sitges for all audiences
Locals, artists, bohemians and a committed international gay community have made of Sitges what it is today, a cosmopolitan and elegant destination full of shops, art galleries and top restaurants.
Its old town and lively beaches alone would make it worth a visit; although Sitges gives for more, much more.
Known worldwide for its prolific leisure agenda , in Sitges there is no room for a pin while some of its most international events take place. Every August, in the ** Festa Mayor de la ciudad**, the city lights up with spectacular fireworks and even a traditional correfoc , where tons of gunpowder accompany colorful popular dances.
June is when the streets appear carpeted with million flower petals to celebrate Corpus Christi. The ** Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia ** takes place in October and throughout the year there are art and music exhibitions or culinary festivals among which the grape harvest stands out, a cultural event in the malvasia city , the most characteristic type of grape of the vineyards of the region and from which the characteristic 'Malvasía de Sitges' is extracted.
It's about a sweet wine which is made only from the variety of the same name, the malvasía de Sitges, and which is perfect to enjoy with desserts such as a sugar coke
Modernism in its purest form through the streets of Sitges
And the fact is that there is always something to do in Sitges, even simply the pleasure of walking to visit the modernist legacy which can be found dotted around the old part of the city.
Santiago Rusinol He was the painter and writer who at the end of the 19th century revolutionized Sitges with his modernist festivals and his workshop house, the Cau Ferrat , and the town itself was a meeting point for the intellectuals and artists of Modernism.
The streets of Sitges accumulate a good handful of references to this aesthetic, such as the ** Bonaventura Blay House, the Manuel Planas House or the Pere Carreras House **, as well as the interior of the Prado Theater , and the same Cau Ferrat , which brings together in its bosom an example of the art of the moment.
Typical holiday buildings in Sitges
But everything has happened here. A few years before the arrival of the modernists, it was the rich merchants who established their vacation accommodation here, attracting artists and writers looking for inspiration in the blue waters, white houses and wild landscapes of the Garraf Coast .
The reputation of Sitges as a place where the European intelligentsia went was sealed when, at the end of the 19th century, picasso and his contemporaries also began to relax here. And here follows his legacy.
Garraf
If the cultural menu of the city is complete, we could say that the gastronomic It is also not served cold. With a strong Catalan accent and special emphasis on fish and shellfish (the majority coming from the nearby port of Vilanova), the rice and tapas They are, of course, the most popular dishes to taste in Sitges.
For the former, nothing like a table in The Nansa , which since 1963 has been feeding the palates of locals and tourists with typical dishes, such as ‘sitgetana rice casserole’ (rib, sausage, shrimp, Norway lobster, cuttlefish and clams) .
For the latter, a classic like The wire It cannot be missing in any self-respecting gastronomic route.
Established in its genuine premises since 1956 , the Andreu family He has achieved the impossible in his own words: “we are not just a village bar: we are the village bar, the meeting point for many people from Sitges”. and they are right.
You have to try your homemade vermouth and its most traditional tapas , such as squid and bravas, considered to be the best, or almost, in all of Catalonia.
They do not sell tobacco, they do not serve must or cider and you can only drink coffee in the breakfast shift.
Not far from El Cable, we must go back to 1913 to talk about the first beach bar known in Spain, the beach bar , located in the middle Paseo de la Ribera, on the Fragata beach , the most popular in Sitges.
History confirms that the beach bar It was a whole nucleus of the cultural world in Sitges and the meeting place for gatherings. If only because of his past and his privileged views of the photogenic church of San Bartolomé and Santa Tecla It is well worth a visit.
The sun goes down and the nocturnal people wake up in the city that seems to never sleep.
If during the day Sitges is a hive of walkers and restless travellers, at night it is the nerve center of the party and fun. This is demonstrated in the Primer de Maig street , better known as the 'street of sin' , where dozens of places with decibels through the roof compete for who attracts the most people.
For those looking for something more leisurely, the terrace of the Bacardi House it is an excellent place to sit and, cocktail in hand, watch the night go by in the heart of Sitges old town, the place where it all began. The least nocturnal, find their particular refuge in the hotel MiM , one of the newest boutique establishments in the city.
Located 100 meters from the beach , about the hotel many things stand out, but they are its rooftop terrace, with pool and restaurant, and its spa (it has a complete and exquisite hydrotherapy circuit), the real jewels in the crown.
This masterpiece of sustainable architecture it is also one of the hotels most committed to the environment, and is located just 100 meters from one of the most lively beaches in the Mediterranean, Sant Sebastian.
And although we have come here to play, that is why we are in Sitges, in their rooms calm and rest reign , something that the traveler will surely appreciate after the intense days of leisure in Sitges.
Sustainable architecture in Sant Sebastià
Add and continue, because the penultimate bet of the British luxury chain soho-house he has also chosen the Garraf to give life to his **Soho Beach House**. And it's never enough Nick Jones , owner, gentleman and creator of the exclusive British club whose penultimate whim is a Beach House on the Costa del Garraf itself, smaller than usual, with the same profile of exclusivity and 17 rooms.
The inauguration of what will be the fashionable beach club in Catalonia is designed to end of July, leaving for the end of August the hotel that will accompany you.