Spas and spa towns, sources of well-being

The thermal waters are the main attraction of Caldes de Malavella, as indicated on the municipality's coat of arms, where a girl bathes in a tub with a silver cauldron on each side.

The presence of geothermal activity in the subsoil has led to sodium chloride- and sodium bicarbonate-rich waters that spring up at sixty degrees, and has enabled the construction of thermae, a space for resting and personal well-being. The Romans, who already appreciated its value, called the town Aquae Caldae and built a large spa over Sant Grau. Today there are several thermal centres that exploit the waters.

The municipality also serves up valuable medieval heritage, with features such as the Caulers village or the Malavella castle.

The town's main attractions are its fine sandy beaches, such as Francàs, Coma-ruga or Sant Salvador.

The capital of Baix Penedès is the birthplace of the great cellist of international fame Pau Casals, whose footsteps can be followed in his museum-house, at the house where he was born and at the parish church of el Salvador Transfigurado, where he started playing.

Another distinguished son of the town is Àngel Guimerà, of whom there is also a mueum-house. In addition, el Vendrell has the Museo Deu, the Fundación Apel·les Fenosa and the Archaeological Museum.

This municipality is an important communication hub (where motorways, roads and railway lines meet at the aggregate village of Sant Vicenç de Calders), a feature that it characterised it for a long time, as the Via Augusta passed through the municipality.

The heritage of its thermal waters has marked the history of this small El Maresme town. The proximity of the spa to the beach has made it a point of reference for medicinal treatments. In addition to the curative properties of its waters, it boasts a valuable architectural heritage, such as the Casa Ugalde and the houses in the Catalan Art Nouveau and noucentista style lining the charming Passeig dels Anglesos on the seafront. The most highly prized artistic treasure is the Palau Foundation, a foundation that exhibits the priceless works by Picasso belonging to the art collection of Josep Palau i Fabre.

La Garriga is one of those towns that help you understand their surrounding landscape and the uses their inhabitants have put it to. Its potential as a spa town stretches far back, to the Middle Ages, although it reached its zenith at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, alongside the Catalan Art Nouveau. It was then that the spa complexes and the first summer holiday homes were built. The Roman town, the mediaeval castle and the bomb shelter, together with the Catalan Art Nouveau Eixample district, complete its offerings, together with routes through its surroundings.

Among its secret caves and granite mountains the famous bandit Serrallonga took refuge, with the town dedicating the Serrallonga is back! festival to him every September and dressing itself in Baroque and bandit style. Also important is the Living Via Crucis, a tradition more than 300 years old and which has been declared of National Tourist Interest.

The capital of la Selva is located in a green area full of thick forests, between Montseny and las Guilleries. The waters of the municipality have many medicinal properties, a fact that has led to the construction of several thermal spas.

Santa Coloma de Farners offers this heritage by means of an itinerary that includes the spa and its springs and which, along with the route of the ten chapels, is one of the foundations of its attraction for tourists.

The city is also well known for being the birthplace of Salvador Espriu, one of Catalonia’s most famous contemporary poets.