Purple Tips: Costa Brava Family Holidays

For anyone looking for a great, cheap family holiday on the Mediterranean’s wonderful coastlines coastlines, beautiful coves and transparent waters, the Costa Brava family holidays are the ones to consider. There are plenty of resorts, ranging from easy on your pocket to the lap of luxury, many specialising in family friendly fun. Of course, that’s in addition to the charming local towns and villages, stunning natural scenery and golden sandy beaches with shallow waters, little rock pools to explore and great facilities.

Image via @ KevinKrejci

Beaches

Tamriu is quite a sheltered beach so it’s a great place to relax with your children. A handful of tasty local restaurants offer good value children’ts menus, while it’s only a couple of minutes drive from Begur or Palafrugell.

The beach of Playa de Pals near L’Estartit is an excellent family friendly choice. A huge stretch of sand, there is lots of room for fun and games, and great child friendly eateries and shops. Just be aware that it can get a little rough when the wind picks up.

Water Sports

You’ll find any number of water sports schools and shops right along the coast. If you are travelling with teenagers, maybe they’ll be interest in snorkelling, scuba diving or sea kayaking. For something a little more group orientated, a glass bottom boat trip doesn’t exactly count as a water sport, but is still a nice afternoon out and a lovely way to spend Costa Brava Family holidays.

Theme Parks

The AquaDiver park in Platja d’Aro has wave pools, rapids and lots of rides and pools dedicated to children. The pancake house, picnic spots and relaxed pine forest surroundings means mum and dad will enjoy it too.

Aqua Brava is home to Europe’s biggest wave pool, as well as impressive water rides like the Kamikaze, the Black Hole or the Anaconda, a huge river rafting adventure. For smaller children, the Kid’s Lagoon and Island is a good choice, while a restaurant and pizzeria will keep energy levels up.

We’re not sure where this idea originated from, but Gnomo Park in Lloret de Mar is a fun day out, especially for babies, thanks to a specially adapted area. For older children there’s bowling, trampolining, and quad bikes and as the name suggests a dedicated Gnome Farm.

You Should Read… Purple Tips: The Best in Family Fun on the Costa del Sol.

On land

The Cap de Creus National Park is a great choice for hiking and exploring, there are hidden coves and lovely flora and fauna to discover. There is horse riding a plenty, paintballing, geocaching, mountain biking and quad biking found throughout the region if your kids are into lots of activities. The Tren Turistic is also a good choice for children, the old fashioned ‘train’ has been giving tours right along the coast from Roses for years and is a nice way of soaking up the scenery.

Resorts

Where to stay, Lloret de Mar for its lovely seaside scenery and great transport connections. It’s also a good place for walking thanks to the woods that surround the town. Tossa de Mar, a fortified old town, is ideal for sun, sea and sand with a little bit extra in the form of great restaurants offering children’s menus and a couple of bars and clubs for older teens. Estartit might be one of the most popular family resorts in the area and has been accommodating British tourists for years. There is a huge range of hotels, apartments and restaurants to suit every budget.

Enjoy 2014 Costa Brava Family holidays with Purple Travel!