Dalinian Triangle Route
There is a route in Catalonia that is worth traveling at least once in your life: the one that follows in the footsteps of Salvador Dalí. Do you want to get up close and personal with the great genius of surrealism? Come with me along the route of the Dalinian Triangle.
The route has three very marked geographical points, which form a kind of imaginary triangle: Cadaqués-Portlligat, Figueres and Púbol. In all of them there is a space dedicated to Dalí in which you will discover the artist a little more in depth, in his most human and artistic side.
The Dalinian Triangle is located on the Costa Brava, within the province of Girona and is a highly recommended route to do on a weekend, at any time of the year.
Of course, you will need a car to get around. It would be practically impossible to visit all three points in a single day, and the ideal would be to have two or three full days. Keep in mind that there are 40km between Cadaqués and Figueres and another 40km between Figueres and Púbol.
CADAQUÉS - PORTLLIGAT
The route begins in Cap de Creus, north of the Costa Brava, in the small town of Portlligat, very close to Cadaqués. That was the place chosen by Salvador Dalí to live. A place full of charm, tranquility and peace, where he built his home.
The current Portlligat House-Museum was Salvador Dalí's only stable home; the place where he usually lived and worked until, in 1982, with the death of Gala, he took up residence in the Castle of Púbol, which I will tell you about later.
The Portlligat House-Museum can be visited on a guided tour of approximately one hour, which is also very worthwhile. In small groups you will tour the labyrinth of rooms that Dalí built and renovated: the workshop, the bedrooms, the library, the garden and the pool, among others. Highly recommended (or almost necessary) to book the guided tour in advance online. See schedules and prices.
Salvador Dalí's house is located directly on Portlligat beach, where you can rest after the visit. After a visit full of surrealism and curious facts, I suggest you visit the Paraje de Tudela, half an hour away by car.
In Tudela, you must leave your car in the parking lot (entry €5) and visit on foot (between 1h and 1.30h). On the walk through the Paraje de Tudela you will discover geological formations that inspired Salvador Dalí to paint at least two of his best-known works: “The Great Masturbator” and “The Specter of Sex Appeal”. Don't forget to bring water and a hat because There are shadows all along the way.
To finish the stage, go to Cadaqués for lunch or dinner and spend the night. Some recommendations for eating: Casa Anita (c/ Miquel Rosset, 16), where they say Dalí used to go to eat very often; L’Hostal Cadaqués (c/ Passeig 8), which the artist also frequented and where he also painted the welcome sign.
For sleeping, the Hotel Playa Sol is highly recommended. It has an excellent location, in front of one of the beaches of Cadaqués, a few meters from the old town; and has parking and swimming pool.
FIGUERES
Salvador Dalí was born in Figueres and, as I told you, he lived for 50 years in Empordà. That the painter decided to keep his home on the Costa Brava says a lot about the magic of the place, right?
After getting to know Dalí's house and the origin of his inspiration, it is time to see his most notable works. In Figueres you will find the Dalí Theatre-Museum, which houses a large collection of his surrealist works. See prices and schedules.
The museum building itself, as in all of Dalí's works, is a unique and original piece, with a surreal touch. He built and designed it himself in 1974. It is a neoclassical building inspired by Italian theaters and full of Dalinian elements: eggs, breads...
Without a doubt, the Dalí Museum is the main attraction of Figueres, but the Dalí Joyas space also stands out, located next to the Theater-Museum. In it you will discover the collection of gold jewelry, precious stones, drawings and paintings for the designs that Dalí made between 1941 and 1970. Tickets can be purchased separately for this space alone or in a pack that includes the Theater-Museum.
The visit to Figueres could take you half a day. My recommendation is that you stay nearby to eat, and then continue towards Púbol after eating. Two exquisite recommendations: the Sa Poma restaurant (from the Masia La Palma gastronomic hotel) which offers Catalan cuisine with Mallorcan touches, mixing family roots; and the El Molí restaurant, which is also a rural family hotel with a long experience, in which traditional Catalan cuisine stands out.
If you have more time and want to do the route quietly, another good plan would be to take advantage of the day to visit some of the beaches near Figueres and visit the museum at night, on one of its night visits (between July 30 and August 31). In that case, I recommend you discover L'Escala, Sant Martí d'Empúries, the Ruins of Empuries, Empuriabrava and Roses.
If you take Figueres as a base camp, the best option is to stay at the Hotel Pirineos, a 4-star hotel located in the heart of the city, and with a traditional cuisine restaurant where you can eat wonderfully.
PUBOL
Púbol is a small town in the interior of the Costa Brava, located in the municipality of La Pera, in Baix Empordà. This is a beautiful area and less frequented than the seaside towns where you will discover an inspiring landscape full of charm. Beautiful medieval towns, small mountains that undulate the landscape and fields of sunflowers and broom. An authentic “Catalan Tuscany”.
In Púbol is the castle that Dalí bought from his muse, Gala, in 1969, thus fulfilling his promise to make her queen of a castle. It is a castle from the 11th century that had been the center of the barony of Púbol.
Today this castle has become the Gala Dalí Castle House-Museum and during your visit you will be able to see the piano room, Gala's collection of haute couture dresses, the Cadillac that belonged to the couple and the crypt where the muse was buried.
If you get hungry or want to find a place to sleep, there is nothing better than feeling like kings of your own Empordà castle for a while. At the Castell Empordà hotel restaurant you will eat very well and you will be able to rest in the rooms of an authentic castle. Castell Empordà has a restaurant for dinner (Drac Restaurant) and a modern bar with great views of the Empordà Valley (Très Margarit).
The castle closes at 6 p.m. and is about 45 minutes by car from Figueres (40km), so another good option is to visit the Gala Dalí Castle house-museum on a third day and go with more time. In that case, my recommendation would be to take advantage of that third day to visit other towns in Baix Empordà. After walking through the idyllic town of La Pera, head to La Bisbal de l'Empordà where you can regain your strength with a delicious typical cake (“the bisbalenc”) and admire the artisan ceramics for which it is famous. Don't miss Peratallada, Palau-Sator, Monells and Pals; all of them medieval towns with a lot of charm.
Créditos de las Fotos. Licencia CC via Flickr. Por orden de aparición: Ferran Pestaña, Isabell Schulz, Jean-Pierre Dalbéra, Ferran Pestaña, Nicolas Vigier, Total13, Fabio Colombari, Turol Jones, Jordi Domenech i Arnau, Alberto Gonzalez Rovira.