Hotels in Sitges, Spain

A little about Sitges...

Sitges is a small city about 40 kilometers south west of Barcelona renowned worldwide for its Film Festival and Carnival. Between the hills and the sea, it is known for its much-frequented beaches, nightspots, and historical sites.

Today, Sitges can be considered a dynamic cultural oasis, basing its economy on tourism and culture offering more than 4.500 hotel beds, half of them in four-star hotels. The firm commitment for quality infrastructures has converted Sitges into a first-class destination in terms of tourism of congresses, conferences, seminars and company meetings in the Mediterranean area. For over 100 years, Sitges has been celebrating nonstop –between the months of February and March, according to the liturgical calendar- Carnestoltes, or Carnival.

The festivities begin on Dijous Gras, or Fatty Thursday, with the arribo, King Carnestoltes’ spectacular arrival. From the moment this character appears until the burial of the sardine – late afternoon on Ash Wednesday – you could well say that life in Sitges moves to a new beat. Here there is even room for youngsters to step into the limelight with children’s ruas, or Carnival parades, on Sunday and Tuesday afternoon.

Folk dances and xatonades (traditional local salad served with assorted omelets) are also characteristic carnival elements. The two most important moments are the Rua de la Disbauxa, or the Debauchery Parade, on Sunday night and the Rua de l‘Extermini, or Extermination Parade, on Tuesday night. Some forty-odd floats with more than 2.000 participants leave a jam-packed Sitges completely breathless.

Museums:
Cau Ferrat Museum : Cau Ferrat was the house-cum-studio of artist and writer Santiago Rusiñol ( b. Barcelona 1861; d. Aranjuez 1931 ), one of the leading figures of Catalan Modernisme.

Maricel Museum : The American Charles Deering (1852-1927) had the Palau Maricel built to house his art collection in an attempt to copy the precedent set by Cau Ferrat.

Museu Romàntic "Can Llopis": The Museu Romàntic "Can Llopis" is a perfectly preserved 19th century house which allows us to take a closer look at the lifestyle of a family of Catalan householders who lived their splendour during the years of Romanticism.

Beaches: Sitges has 17 sand beaches. Four of them are in the East: the first one called Les Botigues at the beginning of the coast, next to the beachs of Castelldefels and the other three are following the coast of Garraf (Road C-31). There are eleven urban beaches and two in the west.

Motor Racing: Sitges is part of the long history of motor racing in Catalonia, from 1908-1920 events were staged over public roads from Sitges to Canyelles to Vilanova i la Geltrú, and from Mataro to Vilassar de Mar and Argentona. In 1922 and 1923 the Real Moto Club de Catalunya ran the Penya Rhin Grand Prix over a 9 mile circuit around the town of Vilafranca del Penedès until it was replaced by a short lived purpose built circuit, the banked Autodromo Sitges Terramar, which is still visible at 41°14'18.35?N, 1°46'50.20?E. Albert Divo won the only Spanish Grand Prix held at the banked 'Sitges Terramar' driving a Sunbeam.