Calella de Palafrugell

Calella de Palafrugell once served as the main port for Palafrugell and the surrounding Bisbal region. In the early 19th century it exported wheat, flour, beans, wine, coral, and above all cork stoppers — in just four months of 1823, nearly 2.4 million stoppers left the port. A customs officer was a permanent fixture until the early 20th century.

As steamships grew larger, trade shifted to bigger ports like Palamós and Sant Feliu de Guíxols, and cargo passing through Calella fell from 727 tonnes in 1860 to just 0.3 tonnes by 1912.

The old maritime quarter of Port Bo is the heart of the village. The church of Sant Pere and the Torre de Calella, a watchtower built in the late medieval period, are the main historic structures. On the Cap Roig headland sit a castle and a botanical garden.

The Camí de Ronda, the coastal path that threads along the entire Costa Brava, passes through here, connecting beaches, cliffs, and coves.

The nearest airports are Girona and Barcelona. From Girona airport, take the bus into Girona city, then a bus to Palafrugell (around 1 hour 30 minutes total); from Palafrugell, take a local bus to Calella. There is no train station in Calella; the closest is Caldes de Malavella, but routing through Girona is more practical.

SARFA (Grup Moventis) runs regular buses from Barcelona, Girona, and Caldes de Malavella. Parking is widely available for free — paid parking is unnecessary — but parking violations are enforced quickly, including on weekends. As of January 2024, the village and its access roads have 4G coverage from MasMovil and Orange, and 5G from Movistar and Vodafone.