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Platja de l’Home Mort, with Platja de Rosés beyond.
Catalan coves… Platja de l’Home Mort, with Platja de Rosés beyond. All photographs by John Weller
Catalan coves… Platja de l’Home Mort, with Platja de Rosés beyond. All photographs by John Weller

10 of Spain’s best quiet and easy-to-reach beaches

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The authors of a new book, Hidden Beaches Spain, pick five quiet spots along usually busy coastlines, plus five reachable by train
Spain’s best beaches: for families and walkers

Platja de L’Home Mort and Platja de Rosés, Costa Barcelona

Costa Barcelona stretches from Blanes, north of the Catalan capital, to Cunit, 100km south. It has a temperate climate and fertile land where olives, vines and oranges grow in abundance. South of Sitges, stroll through woods of pine, oak and mastic trees and through a low tunnel beneath the railway line to reach Platja de l’Home Mort and Platja de Rosés: twin sandy/pebbly beaches where clothes are optional. In the adjoining cove – Playa del Muerto – a rainbow flag flutters and a sign proclaims it the first gay nudist beach in the world.

Where to stay
Camping El Vedado
(pitch for two from €26, bungalows for four from €80) is a mountain campsite 25km north-east of Barcelona in the Sierra de la Marina natural park, perfect for a cool night’s sleep in the hotter months.

Where to eat
Bar La Era
, 48 Ctra. de les Costes, 15 minutes east in Sitges, serves a good-value menú del día set lunch and great coffee.

Playa de los Baños de Claudia, Costa de la Luz

On Andalucía’s Coast of Light the Estrecho natural park is a long glorious swathe of coastline from Cabo de Gracia in the west near Bolonia to Punta Carnero in the east. The vast Playa de Bolonia sand dune is considered a national monument. Head east along the coast on foot, and beyond a vast chaparral pine forest, and there is this small cove with natural pools revealed at low tide. Two lines of volcanic rocks protrude from the water like an alien runway. Enjoy views across the strait of Gibraltar to north Africa.

Where to stay
Hotel Tarifa Lances
(doubles from €94 B&B), 25km east of Baños de Claudia, is a four-star hotel popular with windsport devotees, with incredible sunsets and views of north Africa from the roof terrace.

Where to eat
Restaurante Chilimosa
, also in Tarifa, does superb homemade vegetarian and vegan food.

Playa La Rijana, Costa Tropical

A stone’s throw east of the Costa del Sol this coast has a warm climate, good for cultivating grapes, lemons and walnuts. Despite the holiday resorts, it has plenty of pristine beaches and coves to delight nature lovers, eco-tourists and slow travellers. Playa La Rijana, a half-hour drive east of Motril, is a quiet bay in an agricultural corner, with calm waters and a pebbly beach. At twilight, the pink light gives the surface of the water a pearly luminescence. No dogs.

Where to stay
Limonero B&B
(doubles from €65 B&B) is in the middle of the Andalucían village of Gualchos, 10km north of Playa La Rijana, and has four rooms in rustic Andalucían style and a shared kitchen.

Where to eat
Bar Manolo
, on Salobreña beach, 40km to the west, serves paella, fresh sardines, beer and good coffee.

Playa de Sotogrande, Costa del Sol

Photograph: Richard Bradley/Alamy

UK tourists arrived on the “sunshine coast” in their droves in the 1970s in a bid to swap dreary northern Europe for sun-drenched beaches, tapas and Spanish wine. Thankfully, this long stretch of coast still has pristine spots. This beach, just south of Torreguadiaro is 4km long and backed by dunes, lagoons and Mediterranean cork forest. On a clear day, when the poniente (western breeze) is blowing, it’s possible to see the Rock of Gibraltar and the north coast of Africa.

Where to stay
If the idea of a pastel-painted houseboat community floats your boat, check out Boat Haus, which has floating studios, for two, with a view of the Rock of Gibraltar, from €84.

Where to eat
Seafront Bar and Restaurant DBlanco in La Alcaidesa, a short stroll south of Sotogrande offers seafood, especially tuna, cooked over holm oak charcoal, but also has choices for vegans, vegetarians and those with food intolerances.

Cala Sardinera, Costa Blanca

The Costa Blanca stretches for more than 200km of Mediterranean shore, with fine sand or white-pebble beaches,clear blue water, natural parks where flamingos feed in saltmarshes, and ancient castles, watchtowers and fortresses. Cala Sardinera is a wild beach with a mix of coarse sand and stones reached after a hike through pine and mastic trees, rosemary bushes, pink centaury and sea asters. Sheltered by the Cap Prim headland, Cala Sardinera is reached via a footpath from the Creu del Portitxol monument, following signs for Mirador del Portitxol until reaching the top of the headland. Then take the narrow path to the left as far as the steps to the beach.

Where to stay
Casa Babel
(doubles from €75 B&B) is in the small hill town of Villalonga, with rustic decor, four-poster beds, and healthy breakfasts.

Where to eat
Bar Las Olas
, five minutes’ drive north-west of Sardinera, is where the locals go for a good-value menú del día, including veggie options.

BEACHES WALKING DISTANCE FROM A STATION

Playa de Carro and Playa Fábrega, Galicia

Beaches and coves surrounded by gorse-covered hills and cliffs dominate northern Spain’s Costa Verde. Playa de Carro, a 25-minute walk from Loiba station, offers dips in tidal pools, and views from the cliffs of the twin arches of Peña Furada and the volcanic rocks that resemble witches’ hats. Reach the beach via a narrow track around the hillside, and a “magical portal” through the rocks leads to adjoining Fábrega beach.

Where to stay
There are Atlantic views from a modernist apartment called Hidden Secret on the Cliffs, which sleeps three from €185 a night, (four-night minimum).

Where to eat
In Loiba, stop at Bar El Puente for Galician coffee strained through a muslin sieve.

Playa El Portillu, Asturias

Leafy hillsides surround yellow-sand beaches on this section of the Costa Verde. To reach Playa el Portillu, walk west on the main road from Poo station, then take the path beside Camping Las Conchas and follow the coast path for 1.2km until you see the path to the beach on the right with 34 steps down. At low tide, it’s a vast golden beach. There’s more sand round a headland to the east, and a huge rocky islet and a secluded cove to the west. Check tide times and bear in mind that at high tide the beach will shrink to the size of a tablecloth.

Where to stay and eat
Hotel-Restaurant La Farola del Mar
in Playa de Póo has rooms with sea views and some of the best sunsets in Asturias (doubles from €60 B&B). The restaurant serves regional dishes, including meat from its own farm near Llanes.

Cala Bramant, Costa Brava

The Camí de Ronda is a series of ancient smugglers’ paths that offer hikers a scenic route along Spain’s north-east coast. Starting at the village of Portbou and extending south to the province of Barcelona, the trail passes wild and secret coves. On the protected Punta del Cap Ras peninsula, a half-hour walk from Llançà station, Cala Bramant is a circular cove reached after a short, steep descent, with crystalline waters beneath rock formations covered in marram grass, wild carrot and golden thistle. It’s perfect for snorkelling.

Where to stay
Friendly La Goleta (doubles from €62), by the fishing harbour in Llançà, is 50 metres from the beach.

Where to eat
There are no services near Cala Bramant. We bought filled rolls at the beach bar on Platja de Garbet, to the north of Punta del Cap Ras.

Cala Xelin, Costa Dorada

On this coast south-west of Barcelona, there are so many secluded and unspoiled calas (coves) around the white fishing village of Ametlla de Mar that the villagers are referred to as caleros. Olive and almond groves overlook water where marine life flourishes – a snorkeller’s paradise. At the end of a steep path a half-hour walk from L’Ametlla de Mar station, Cala Xelin is a wide, coarse- sand beach among Aleppo pines and mastic trees, with rocks at either side for jumping off. Rocky bluffs offer shade.

Where to stay
Camping Miramar
(pitch from €19, caravan from €118 for two nights), 24km north-west of Cala Xelin, is a chic beachfront campsite with rentable retro caravans in pastel colours, an excellent restaurant and regular nightly entertainment.

Where to eat
Child-friendly Restaurant Les Veles in nearby Calafat has a terrace, a colourful Spanish menu and an extensive list of wines and cavas.

Playa de Aramal, Costa Cantábrica

On Spain’s northern coast lies Costa Cantábrica, where beaches with blue water border fragrant meadows. Playa Aramal, reached after a short taxi ride from Pesúes station and a 15-minute walk, is a small but charming golden-sand cove accessed via a honeysuckle-edged path 15 minute’s walk from Pechón. The beach is enclosed by steep, rocky hillsides covered with ferns, speedwell and clover. Aramal sees few visitors, and the small cave is a lovers’ hideaway. At low tide, it’s possible to stroll a short way east to livelier Playa de Amio, where local families congregate.Where to stay and eat
Camping Las Arenas
(pitch from €35) sits above the Tina Mayor estuary, two kilometres west of Pechón and has hilltop pitches with views across the Bay of Biscay. Its restaurant has a terrace overlooking the river mouth and serves fish and pizzas cooked in a wood-fired oven.

Hidden Beaches Spain: 450 secret coast and island beaches to walk, swim & explore, by Lola Culsán and John Weller is out now (Wild Things Publishing, £18.99). Guardian readers can get 20% off and free P&P with code GuardianSpain21

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