Tossa de Mar Costa Brava

One resort on the crowded southern coast stands out head and shoulders above its neighbours. The beach alone would be enough to draw visitors, with safe swimming and sheltered sunbathing in an idyllic bay, and several smaller coves within easy reach. But what makes Tossa special is its walled medieval village (Vila Vella), standing proudly above the bay as it has done for more than 800 years.

Climb up from the main beach, Platja Gran, pausing to glance back at the sea through the arched window of an abandoned church, and you soon reach this attractive village. It was established in 1186 by the Abbot Ripoll on the promontory Mont Guardi. Beneath here, just behind the beach, is the Vila Nova New Town, a warren of back streets and 19th century houses around the parish church.

Tossa was one of the first places on the Costa Brava to attract foreign visitors. The painter Marc Chagall spent the summer here and called it his 'blue paradise'. The Museu Municipal, in the former Abbot's palace, contains letters from Chagall, who was delighted that the museum was to display one his paintings. The museum also hires out audio guides for use on self-guided walks around the Vila Vella.