S'AGARO COSTA BRAVA

This exclusive villa development, on a headland between the beaches of Sant Pol and Sa Conca, was begun around 1924, when industrialist Josep Ensesa commissioned Girona architect Rafael Masa to design the first houses. Built in his classical noucentista style, the resort is an attractive mix of Italianate villas, landscaped gardens and a coastal promenade around a succession of rocky coves. Masa's work was completed in the 1940s by Francese Folguera, who designed the neo-baroque church at the centre of the resort. Film stars and politicians have long flocked to S'Agara's famous hotel, Hostal de la Gavina, designed by Masa as a Gothic villa and given a more austere classical style by Folguera. Like the rest of the resort, the hotel is elegant and attractive, but has an air of exclusivity which can be off-putting.