The beach is a very pleasant one, not far off the main road out of Tarragona on the Carrier Via Augusta. There are a few houses and small apartment blocks that are on the other side of the main southern rail line (trains roar past regularly including the hi speed trains) and overlook the beach. The beach is between two small headlands. The headlands provide a nice and picturesque outlook, and the beach faces south into the Iberian sun. It’s the main nudist beach of Tarragona.
A 1 hour 15 min train trip from Barcelona to Tarragona (depending on which train you get, some are 35mins) and a 10 min bus ride from the centre of town – the travel information suggested you can walk it – but not knowing the area… The bus timetable is not that regular. The beach is about 5 or so Kms east of the railway station. The buses don’t seem to sync with the trains to and from Barca, which is very annoying. It’s about a 40min walk from the Roman amphitheatre.
To drive, make your way to Tarragona on the A7 and use the N-340 exit – follow the coast road, Carrer Via Augusta and park in the streets behind the beach. The beach is sign posted, but parking is tight and a small car is the better option and you will need to brush up on your parking skills. It’s advisable not to take a large car to this beach as you won’t be able to park it. Carrer Via Augusta, as you probably guessed, dates back to the Roman times and was the major road between Barcelona and Tarragona. You can only imagine who has used this road over the past 2000 odd years.
The sand on this beach is more your golden quartz sort of stuff, none of this dusty euro stuff here – but it still has the same, magnetic properties with your feet; you are likely to bring some home. I managed to do so after a bus ride, walk thought town, a train ride back to Barca and walk back to my accommodation.
The beach itself is 350 mts long and 35 wide, depending on the tide. Like other Spanish beaches this also has showers on the beach at regular intervals, and a kiosk that covers most of your needs. However, out of high season the showers may be turned off and the kiosk closed. There’s also a lifeguard hut with lifeguards patrolling the beach again during the high season. The water or surf didn’t really seem to be very dangerous and the team of lifeguards didn’t seem too rushed off their feet. There is a small wave occasionally and it’s a bit of stretch to call it ‘surf’ but anyway.
This beach is very popular even in the off season. The crowd is mix of ages, with couples, families, singles and groups of friends. The ratio of male/female like all European beaches is 50/50. The beach has a distinct nudist/textile division, with the nudist end being the Eastern end and the textile end the Western or the Tarragona end. People walk along the beach as with most beaches, but the nudists will cover their nether regions about half way along and uncover them on the way back. The kiosk is at the textile end you must cover up to use it. There was a discrete homosexual crowd who mainly kept to themselves; this included a couple of ladies who definitely were couples. The headland at the nudist end has the odd gent wandering about the bushes and these fellows didn’t look like they were looking at the local wildlife.
This beach seems to have its own bunch of regulars who greeted each other and engaged in conversation.
The behaviour on Spanish beaches seems to be very good. Maybe there was the odd grope or touch between couples and you won’t see anything untoward. Well apart from the two girls playing with each other’s boobs for a while before they headed off in a hurry, (maybe to finish their needle point, church choir practice or help out at the local old people’s home) but some may say that probably doesn’t count. There didn’t seem to be any creepy men who try and sit as close as they can to the ladies usually at a strategic angle we often see on some beaches, which is a pleasant change.
This beach is impeccably clean, a few ciggy butts but nothing to worry about. The beach is cleaned daily according to the information brochure, but what that means – I don’t know, in any event it’s a very clean beach.
This is a pleasant beach with great facilities, fantastic views. Apart from the lack of transport but the locals have worked it out and makes for a relaxing time.
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