Around Sitges - your guide
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General information
Not only is it beautiful but it offers 4km of sandy beaches
and bays, a busy festive calendar with some truly amazing
fiestas, first-rate tourist facilities, dozens of bars, cafes,
restaurants and some great designer shops. Sitges is sophisticated,
chic and cool, on the doorstep of Barcelona and, with more
than 300 sunny days per year, a great place to visit all year
round.
Sitges has been described as "The Jewel in The Mediterranean
Crown", a "Mediterranean Paradise", and all
of our guests have commented that, apart from having had a
fab time (of course!!), that Sitges is much better than they
had imagined.
But perhaps one of the most unique qualities that Sitges
has to offer is that it has such a relaxed and cosmopolitan
atmosphere welcoming visitors from all over the world and
all walks of life, this being one of the reasons why such
a large international gay scene has developed giving Sitges
its fame. Please visit www.gayinsitges.com for more information.
If you can't sit on the beach for too long, other activities
available in Sitges are cycling, golf, paragliding, roller-blading
along the palm-fringed promenade, sailing, tennis and waterskiing.
About 15 minutes from the town are the superb facilities
of Club Natacio Sitges where you can buy a day membership
and swim in their open pool or sunbathe by the side of it,
take a sauna/jacuzzi, use the gym or if you bring your own
rackets/balls, you can play tennis or squash.
It is for these reasons plus the fact that it has such a
relaxed attitude that once discovered as a holiday destination
Sitges is a place to which many people return year after year.
Sitges is also on the doorstep (25 minutes by train) of
one of Europe's most cosmopolitan cities ... Barcelona, a
buzzing, chic, cool and at times spectacular city, with its
own extraordinary architecture (Gaudi) and fabulous beaches
... a truly magnificent city which cannot be ignored and should
be visited, if only for the day.
Thank you to the boys from the Beach House for this information
Favourite restaurants:
Al fresco Café y Restaurante
Pau Barrabeitg 4 (at corner with Carrer Major)
+34 93-894-0600
Food:
Mediterranean/North African with some French influences. A
favourite in Sitges. Advance booking is strongly advised as
it gets really busy especially at high season. Do not forget
to try any of their cocktails or their cheesecake. Maybe as
starter, main course and desert! Also the service is great.
Price:
It is one of the priciest restaurants in town but well worth
it.
Beach House
C/ Sant Pau 34 (Saint Paul) off Parellades
Food:
Mediterranean and Indonesian influences. Great breakfast too!
Well the all the boys and the chef are very VERY cute! But
the food and the service is normally what wins everyone over.
There is a set price four course menu for about 20 Euros.
The menu changes almost daily and I have not yet been disappointed.
Check their website www.beachhousesitges.com for more details
and their current menu. Also this is the place to go for great
breakfast. Something that Sitges has been lacking for a long
time. Brad is the manager and Michael is the Chef. They are
two Aussie guys that know a lot about service and good food
plus all the best places to go in Sitges. They also have after
beach time 2 euro cocktails to start you up early in the evening.
Price:
Evening meal can be on the pricey side for Spain when you
purchase a few alcoholic drinks but it is well worth it. Breakfast
is very cheap and very, very good and lots of it.
Mare Nostrum
Passeig de la Ribera 60 (next to Calipolis Hotel across from
the Gay beach)
+34 93-894-3393
Food:
For some of the best seafood and paella. Reports
suggest that there isn't a better one yet. Some of the best
service we have experienced in Sitges yet.
Price:
On the pricey side but again well worth it.
Les Quatre Barres (especialitats
d'aragó i catalunya)
C/Santa Bárbara 10 (on Placa d´España)
Food:
Local style food - fish specialities. This is where you are
going to find the locals eating at lunchtime and weekday evenings.
The service is very friendly and low key. Try any of their
paellas and any local daily specialty. We are yet to be disappointed.
Avoid desserts though. Although all main courses are made
freshly, unfortunately all of their deserts are pre-packaged.
Price:
Cheap cheap cheap but so good!
La Oca
Parellades 41 - Sitges's main street that joins Placa d'España
with Cap de la Villa
Food:
Spit roast chicken. Their spit roast chicken is legendary.
You can't miss it. Rows and rows of chickens are roasted out
front all day. There is no advance booking so do not be surprised
to find a 20 or 30 people queuing to get in. It is a large
restaurant so the queues tend to move quickly. Lunch or dinner
it is great food. Truly finger-licking good. Also worth trying
are their croquettes and maybe their roast vegetables. They
will try hard to sell you more side dishes (more roast vegetables,
toasted bread with tomatoes and garlic, extra sauces) than
you can possibly eat. Just say no and they will eventually
stop. For lunch I recommend half chicken and chips (truly
scrumptious) and or vegetables. For dinner if really hungry
get some croquettes. Do not forget some cava sangria. It goes
down really nicely. They also serve pizzas but nothing great.
Sitges is not known for their pizzas or pastas. They also
do take away.
Price:
Well priced with average meal costing about 8 - 10 Euros per
person with soft drink or a little more with wine or cava
sangria.
Pescadito
Marqués de Montroig 4 - the main walking fare in Sitges.
Same street as Mont Roig Café and Pans & Co.
Food:
Tapas y Mariscos (Tapas and Seafood). Although on one the
main streets of Sitges the food is typically local with great
selection of Tapas and various fish dishes. Specials menu
changes daily with whatever fresh catch they may have. Have
yet to be disappointed. Relaxed casual atmosphere. Can eat
there most nights and there will still be something new to
try. Have anything with fish on the menu. Have some Chicken
dishes and pork but although they are ok they are not as good
at the fish dishes. All the hot and cold tapas we have had
there are good too. Can't go wrong.
Price:
Very reasonable for Spain but cheap of you come from England
with average tapas plate at about 3 to five euros and main
plates from 7 to 10 euros.
Can also try:
Santa Maria Restaurant on Passeig de la Ribera - seems to
be very popular all the time but have not eaten there for
a long while.
Gabriel - have heard some mixed reports but it looks nice.
I will try it next time I am in Sitges.
The café to
be:
Mont-Roig Café
c/Marqués de Montroig 11-13
The above street has also been nicknamed "The Valley
of the Thousand eyes" (thanks to Greg for the title),
which actually just says it all. Before or after the beach
is the perfect place to get ready or rest from a day in the
sun. They serve snacks and many types of coffee. A personal
favourite is the Caffe Granisado but some may find it a bit
too strong. It has an almost chicory type flavour to it. For
a quick snack try their salads or the Bikini Sandwich (Ham
and cheese toasted/brevilled sandwich). The best thing about
Mont-Roig (pronounced in Catalan as Munt Roich with an almost
silent i) is its openness. If you are lucky enough to grab
a seat at the front of the café, you can watch the
world go by, especially the very cute boys. Highly recommended!
By far, still my favourite place to people watch, relax and
for a morning coffee. Some of their breakfast menus are not
bad at all either.
If you happen to go to any of these restaurants and the
experience is not as good as mine please let me know. As you
know things do change from time to time and will depend on
some of you to let me know of any problems.
Bars and Clubs:
There is a very wide selection of bars and clubs in Sitges
to cater for every taste. I have my favourites but that doesn't
mean every one will like them. When you arrive it would be
advisable to pick up a copy of the Gay Sitges map which lists
all of the gay bars and clubs. Also daily at around 3 or 4pm
most clubs distribute flyers about all the current specials.
Most popular bars are in order of attendance:
El Cantil, XXL, Bourbons and finally Mediteraneo which stays
open till about 3:30 am. Of course a lot of people also like
to sit for hours outside Parrots pub on c/Marqués de
Montroig. It is tacky but it is great for people watching
outdoors.
Most popular clubs:
Trailer (Foam parties on Wednesday and Sunday nights, Dark
room party men only on Thursdays I believe)
Atlantida (outdoor club) on Tuesday nights host a gay night
which is very popular. Because it is at the far edge of town
they provide free bus transport in front of Calipolis hotel
which in front of the Gay beach.
Organic has various specials during the week for the serious
clubbers out there. A lot of boys either go out to Salvation
in Barcelona on Saturday night and then take the free transport
or even the train to Castelldefels to go to Souvenir.
Souvenir is like Trade used to be. The music is, most of
the time, truly exceptional. Actually a lot of boys simply
wake up early in the morning only to go to Souvenir taking
the 6:20am train from the station. You cannot miss it. Just
follow the huge crowd at the station! It closes at around
1pm if I remember well, a difficult thing as I had lost track
of time and was having a brilliant time when I was last there.
Shopping:
There is a thriving artist community still living in town
and you will find a lot of small galleries with some excellent
art. Shopping can be a little more expensive than Barcelona
but you will not find any large department stores. There are
only small boutiques dotted all around town which makes a
very refreshing change. Also for those who really like to
spend on furniture you will fine some really good furniture
stores. Most of them can ship anywhere in the UK.
Useful websites:
www.ilovesitges.com
www.gayinsitges.com
www.beachhousesitges.com
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