Cadaqués

The name Cadaqués comes from the Catalan *Cap de Quers* or *Cap d'Aques*, meaning Cape of Rocks. The town has fished these waters for centuries, with its own fishing ordinances recorded from an early date. French troops occupied it in 1655, but it was returned to the Spanish Crown four years later under the Treaty of the Pyrenees.

Salting and curing industries once drove the local economy, and though that trade has shrunk, Cadaqués anchovies remain a recognised product. The town's extreme isolation — hemmed in by mountains on the landward side — shaped its own distinct variant of Catalan, different enough to have generated dedicated publications.

That same isolation drew artists. Salvador Dalí's family had a summer house here, and he returned from New York in 1948 to settle at Port Lligat, a cove within the municipality. Marcel Duchamp made Cadaqués his summer home from 1958. Picasso, Joan Miró, Richard Hamilton, and many others followed. Early tourists arrived from around 1905, largely from Barcelona, Figueres, and Girona, but they spread to more accessible areas and left much of Cadaqués untouched. A hard frost in 1956 killed off the olive groves, but many are now being replanted as part of sustainable land use within the Cap de Creus natural park.

The **Casa Museo Salvador Dalí** at Port Lligat, just north of town, is the most visited site in Cadaqués. Dalí and his wife Gala bought a group of fishermen's huts and connected them into a labyrinthine house. Opened to the public in 1997, it contains his studio, library, personal rooms, garden, and pool.

The **Castell de Sant Jaume** is a fortress with the status of a national cultural asset (*Bien de interés cultural*).

The **Museu de Cadaqués** is the town's municipal museum, hosting exhibitions regularly focused on Dalí.

The **Church of Santa María** stands at the highest point of the old town, surrounded by the narrow lanes of the historic quarter. Built in Gothic style, it is painted white throughout, with a square-based bell tower that becomes octagonal near the top. Its baroque altarpiece is considered essential viewing. The church also hosts the **Festival Internacional de Música de Cadaqués**, a significant gathering of musicians, soloists, conductors, and composers.

The **Cap de Creus Natural Park**, declared in 1998, is the easternmost point of the Iberian Peninsula. It covers around 14,000 hectares — roughly 11,000 terrestrial and 3,000 marine — making it the only natural park in Spain with both land and sea zones, and the largest uninhabited stretch of the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Its cliffs, coves, and small islands are well known to divers. At the cape itself stands the Faro de Creus lighthouse (within Cadaqués municipality), a film location, and now home to a geology museum and a tourist information office with walking route information for the park.

There is no direct train to Cadaqués. From Barcelona, take a train from Plaça Catalunya (at the western end of Las Ramblas) north to Figueres — about 90 minutes — then walk straight out of the station to find the bus terminal on your left. Buses to Cadaqués run frequently from Figueres, taking roughly an hour.

The company Sarfa (sarfa.com) also runs a daily direct service from Barcelona's North Station (*Estació del Nord*, near the Arc de Triomf metro stop, about 35 minutes' walk from the city centre). Timetables vary by season and are significantly reduced on public holidays — if you are catching a flight, be aware that gaps between departures can reach seven hours. Local buses also connect Figueres and Cadaqués, and organised tours operate from Figueres.

Driving from Figueres is straightforward via the C-68 towards Roses, then following signs to Cadaqués. Fish restaurants in Cadaqués are highly regarded across the region.