You probably have heard (or even been lucky to visit) the beautiful and magic beaches and coves in Costa Brava. But what about best beaches near Barcelona? You don’t have to drive one hour or two to get to beautiful locations by the sea. And here is the good news: there are some beautiful beaches near Barcelona that you can easily access by public transport (rodalies renfe basically). Depending on what direction you want to head out, here are some of the options:
Heading North: Garraf region
Platja de les Casetes del Garraf
This is one of our favorite beaches near Barcelona (if not THE favorite). It is just 25 minutes by train from Barcelona, and once you get off the train you step on this little paradise located in Garraf’s city center. These little green cabins made out of wood placed right on the sand are kind of iconic (even the beach takes its name from them, “Platja de les Casetes del Garraf”), and fishermen from the area used to keep their fishing tools inside these little green houses. There is also a hotel and a couple of restaurants. If you like those little charming beaches, you will definitely like this beautiful place. Definitely one of the best beaches near Barcelona.
Sitges, ideal for a beach day followed by a nice walk
If you love spending the morning on the beach and then in the afternoon (or even in the evening), walking the streets of the town (the ice-cream call) Sitges might be your beach place. This city has a couple of beaches, but our favorite are definitely Platja de San Sebastià (between the old town and the port, usually pretty crowded since it is located in the city center) and Platja Aiguadolç (more like a cove, and a quieter place). Both beautiful beaches near Barcelona, and easily accessible by public transport, which makes it also one of the best beaches near Barcelona
Castelldefels beach
If you are one of those people who actually spend more time at the “chiringuito” than swimming or laying in the sun, this is your beach to be. Chiringuito land at your bare feet ;-) Castelldefels beaches occupy a large area of land so they aren’t that crowded as they would be in Barcelona city. And since Castelldefels is quite close to Barcelona, it is definitely a really nice place to spend a relaxed beach day with friends.
Heading South: Maresme region
Ocata (Masnou), surfer’s beach land
If you are mad about surfing, this is your beach. It is located really close to Barcelona (around 20 minutes by train), and it gets less crowded than beaches in Barcelona. And that is important specially when it comes to catching waves ;-)
Sant Pol de Mar, a beautiful little village by the sea
A beautiful village in Maresme region. It takes around one hour to get to Sant Pol de Mar from Barcelona – Plaça Catalunya station. The journey is definitely worth it, specially if you need to change the (sometimes) overwhelming city scenario for a quieter place. Spending a day (or just a couple of hours) in a little village, walking its charming streets in the old town with the sea in the background is sometimes the only thing you need.
And if you have the time and fancy to explore further beaches, we highly recommend you to head out to la Costa Brava for a weekend or a couple of days. Beaches near Barcelona are nice but beaches in the Costa Brava area are simply stunning, and here is proof: Most colorful beach in la Costa Brava, Cala s’Alguer ;-)