Sights of Calella de Palafrugell

A pilot and aircraft designer Nicolai Woevodsky, the World War I hero and the husband of Fräulein Maria Petrovo-Solovovo, moved to England after the 1917 Russian Revolution and served in the British Air Force for several years. In 1927, he purchased a large plot of land in a picturesque corner of the Catalan seaside, where he built a castle and beautiful gardens with his new love, an English lady Dorothy Webster.

A few years of hard work on the part of the Russian officer and a British aristocrat turned 17 hectares of wild nature into a botanical garden with a collection of over a thousand species of tropical and subtropical plants. In 1969, the Woevodsky couple gifted the gardens to the Spanish government, with one condition — that everything in them be preserved exactly as it was.

The bank La Caixa, presently in charge of the botanical gardens of Cap Roig, has been overachieving in this regard: the gardens now host sculptures by popular masters and artists, adding to the artistic atmosphere of Cap Roig, which would definitely have been appreciated by Nicolai and his wife.

In 2001, the botanical gardens gave a home to the international music festival Festival de Cap Roig, now hosted here annually in July-August. The festival holds concerts of many genres, boasting big names like Sting, Julio Iglesias, Charles Aznavour, Sinead O’Connor, Leonard Coen and many more.

Visitor information
The town closest to the botanical gardens is Calella de Palafrugell. Driving from Barcelona, follow AP-7 and C-31 and after passing Mont-ras, take exit 331 and follow Avinguda de Catalunya towards Jardins de Cap Roig.

Opening hours:
April to September: 10 am to 8 pm daily.
October to March: 10 am to 6 pm daily, in January and February weekends and holidays only.
Festival opening hours: open until 4 pm.
Closed: December 24, 25, 25, 31 and January 1, 5, 6.

The Canadell beach (Platja Canadell) is a sand beach wedged between the cliff of La Trona in the south and the cape separating Calella de Palafrugell and Llafranc in the north. The beach is 200 m long and 27 m wide.

The residential area next to the beach is noted on the list of the cultural heritage objects of Catalonia—most of the buildings here are fishing huts built back in the 18th century. In the late 19th century, wealthy Catalans started erecting lush summer residences next to simple accommodations of fisherfolk. One of the residences hosted the summer stay of the famous Spanish writer Josep Pla, who was born in Palafrugell.

Directions: enter Plaça Port Bo, Calella de Palafrugell into your GPS.