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Roses on the north east Catalonia coast is a mecca for lovers of rural tourism, but also serves as low key Costa Brava tourist resort (a big waterpark and good beaches are in the area). Roses is also a most convenient base on the northern Costa Brave from which to push out and explore. Natural parks and stunning marine reserve territory are within easy reach, plus just to the west sits down to earth Figueres, home to the Dali Theatre Museum. Created by Dali himself, this onetime theatre holds the largest collection of Dali paintings, sculpture and furniture in the world.
The big nature reserve draw near Roses is the Cap de Creus Natural Park. The stunning rocky coast of the Costa Brava reaches its peak of beauty here on the Roses coastal strip with its mix of rocky coves, cliffs, islets and bays. Download the Cap de Creus park leaflet via the park weblink right. Car Hire from Girona Airport is recommended for the flexibility to push out and appreciate this stunning area of north east Catalonia. A number of historic sites are in the area, of which the Benedictine Monastery of Sant Pere de Rodes atop of the Verdera mountains overlooking the sea north of Roses near El Port de Selva is a highlight! Roses itself is thought to have once been an ancient Greek settlement. The town has the reminance of a 16th century seaward wall and citadel.
The Gulf of Roses south of Roses town stretches in a 15km curve with huge sandy beach, increasingly attracting new tourist visitors. Attractions within Roses, easily accessible via the C260 from Figueres, are the 16th century fortress and Ciutadella. The Romanesque church of Santa Maria is also worth a nose. Roses port is still a thriving fishing port, with marina area which serves up a lively nightlife. Tourist attractions in the area are numerous, including the Aqua Brava Waterpark (see weblink right), go-karting, mini golf and sailing cruises around the Cap de Creus coast north. Roses also hosts a number of annual festivals including a big Blues Festival in July (see Roses Tourist guide right for details).
South of Roses town is more stunning natural park territory - the Parc Natural dels Aiguamolls de l'Emporda. Largely marshland, three reserves form part of the park. The Estanys reserve consists largely of cane fields, floodplains and bullrushes. The Llaunes reserve has coastal lakes, saltmarshes and dunes whilst the Illa de Caramany reserve in the centre of the Fluvia is a hub for nesting birds. For information on the park head to the tourist information centre El Cortalet, Cra de San Pere Pescador km 13,6 17486 Castello D'Empuries. Tel. 972 45 42 22. For more information on both Aiguamolls De L'Emporda Natural Park and the Cap de Creus north checkout the Calalunya Natural Parks webguide right.
Roses Tourist Information Office, Av.Rhode, 77-79 17480 Roses, Emporda. Tel. (0034) 972 257 331.
"I want my museum to be like a single block, a labyrinth, a great surrealist object. It will be a totally theatrical museum. The people who come to see it will leave with the sensation of having had a theatrical dream". (Salvador Dali on the Dali Theatre Museum's creation, Figueres). The Dali Theatre Museum in Figueres, one of the highlights in the Northern Catalonia region, is a work of art in itself as Salvador Dali intended it to be. It's a tour of Dai's life, career and artistic work - a complete evolution of Dali himself as Antoni Ptxot and Montse Aguer suggest in their book on the Dali Theatre Museum well worth purchasing as the definitive guide and memory of your visit.
Prepare for a wowing of the senses even before you enter the Dali Theatre Museum in Figueres - the Diver in diving suit on the exterior walls is a symbol of immersion into the subconscious! You arrive through the Vestible straight into the spectacle of the Courtyard Garden welcomed by Art deco giant gilded Oscar type mannequins, the Rainy Taxi - a Cadillac with Mannequin and chauffeur that floods with water on the inside intermittently, plus a mix of grotesque monster carvings and twisted sculptures on the walls and the looming statue of Queen Esther by the Austrian artist Ernst Fuchs. The Garden Courtyard, one of the most spectacular introductions to an art gallery you're ever likely to encounter, holds a particular fascination for visitors, especially kids who clamour round the flooding Rainy Taxis. Adjacent to the Courtyard is the old Municipal Theatre's main stage - look up to see Dali's amazing geodesic cupola glass dome roof which creates a different effect by night. A nod to the great Spanish architect Herrera, creator of El Escorial north of Madrid. From Dali's homage to North American actress Mae West in his 'Mae West Room' to the ceiling of the Palace of the Wind, you do indeed exit with a sense that you've just experienced a theatrical dream. See the Dali Theatre Museum/Dali Foundation's weblink right for more examples of pieces in the Dali collection held here at the Dali Theatre Museum Figueres.
Dali Theatre Museum, Gala Dali Square, 5 E-17600 Figueres. Tel. (00 34) 972 677 500.
Two other Salvador Dali important sites in the area include his houses at Pubol and Portlligat. House Museum Gala Dali Castel, Gala Square Pubol, E 17120 La Pera. Tel. (00 34 972 488 655). House Museum Salvador Dalia, Portlligat E-17489 Cadaques. Tel. 972 251 015.
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