L'Estartit: The Month We Based Ourselves Here (and I Met My Husband)
- Jul 10
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 19
Before we ever thought about moving to Spain, we spent a month in L'Estartit, mid-September through mid-October, chosen mostly because the reviews about the beach being great for families kept showing up everywhere I looked. They were right, and by the end of the month I understood exactly why.
Why It's Great for Families With Small Children
The beach itself is the obvious reason: clean, sandy, flat, soft waves, no surprises, exactly what you want when you've got little ones in the water. But it's the whole feel of the town that makes it work for families specifically. It's chill rather than lively, there are good playgrounds scattered around, and there's basically no singles scene here at all, we noticed almost everyone around us was either a couple or a family with kids. That matters more than people expect; it changes the whole rhythm of a place, quieter evenings, fewer late nights, an easier pace that suits families rather than fighting against it.
The Beach and the Illes Medes
A boardwalk runs the length of the beach, lined with seafront restaurants, and looking out from the sand you can see the Illes Medes, two small islands just offshore. They're a protected nature reserve, and landing on them is only allowed one weekend a year, so don't plan a trip around setting foot there. You can kayak or take a boat tour around them any time of year, and even just as a view from the beach, they're a nice thing to look at while the kids play.
Our Rhythm: The First 8 Days vs. the Rest of the Month
My mom came with me for the first 8 days, and because that's how long she was there, we used that window to visit every town on our Costa Brava list except Figueres, building out what became a real itinerary. Once she left and two friends flew in, the pace changed completely, we slowed way down and focused mostly on drinking cava. It ended up being one of the best trips I've ever had with my mom, and we've had a lot of good ones. Ronda is right up there too, if you want to see what that one looked like.
My First Chiringuito
L'Estartit is also where I had my first real chiringuito experience, and it hooked me instantly, the whole beach-bar, feet-in-the-sand, drink-in-hand culture. It's also where we learned an unspoken rule the hard way: walking around while eating is not really a thing in Spain. We kept noticing people looking at us a little strangely before we put it together.
One Timing Warning
We were there toward the end of the season, and the second week of October changed everything. Starting October 1st, restaurants began closing one by one and we couldn't figure out why. About a week later, the tramuntana wind picked up, and almost everything shut down at once, including our chiringuito. That's when it clicked: once that wind starts, the beach stops being pleasant and there's barely anything open. If you're planning a late-September or October trip, know that the season has a real, sudden end date, and plan your last week or two with that in mind.
Do You Need a Car?
L'Estartit is connected by bus from Girona, so it's technically doable without one. But if you actually want to visit the surrounding Costa Brava towns the way we did, it's a much better experience with a car. We'd only skip the car entirely if this were a single day trip or an overnight tacked onto a Barcelona itinerary. For anything longer, here's what to know about driving in Spain before you go.
Where to Stay
We stayed right on the seafront, which is what made watching the Pirate Festival from the balcony possible in the first place, and it's what I'd recommend if being close to the boardwalk and the beach matters to you. If you want to see what's actually available to book along the seafront right now, here's a live look:
If you're planning a Costa Brava trip that includes the Dalí Castle at Púbol, L'Estartit makes a genuinely convenient base for it too, close enough for an easy day trip, without needing to relocate for one stop.
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Written by Sherri: an American who spent years traveling solo, including time living in Peru, before settling into a full-time digital nomad life with her husband and young kids for over four years. She's now been in Europe for 3.5 years, most of it in the Valencia area of Spain. Everything on Travel-Casa is written from firsthand experience or knowledge picked up along the way.
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