Just east of Girona right on the coast is the small port town of L’Estartit. If you are expecting a large seaside resort town then this is on the smaller side. But it does have quite a large port for the local yachts and a number of sea-facing appartment blocks. And not to forget the entertainment park, large beach and subtle holiday vibe – at rest – of course!
Camping Les Medes is not far from the town of L’Estartit in an open area surrounded by… Not much, to be fair. Open plots of land to either side, but a short 800-metre walk gets you to the seaside.
The Site
It looks quite cool on entry. A palm-lined pool and some well-established trees for shade. No grass though… In amongst the campervans and caravans, we manage to pitch camp with the full regalia: Oztent, front tent and Defender parked out front blocking the view of the enormous caravan across the way. ‘Out front’, in this regard, actually just means managing to get all of our pieces onto the pitch. It’s okay, but nowhere near as generous as the pitches on Villemarin.
A quick trip to the ablution blocks immediately gives me a sense of the environment we’re in. It’s pretty sorted. Warmed interior. Good showers. Those sliding doors! This is a pretty good place to hang out.
Add in the heated indoor pool (along with the palm-tree-lined outdoor one), restaurant/bar as well as a very well-stocked mini-market and we’re well-set for a good week!
The Beach
A ten-minute walk will get you to the beach of L’Estartit. Around the middle of October, there are not many people. A couple of kitesurfers, a wayward stroller or two and some individuals enjoying the breeze and rose-coloured sunset.
Soft sand underfoot adds to the mellow mood. You could easily walk for a couple of kilometres in a southerly direction. There is not much besides a campsite with (behind the dunes) pitches near the beach, a small resort (abandoned at this time) and (what seems to be) a nature reserve.
Look left and you look onto the port of l’Estartit. The beach we’re standing on is a pretty cool spot – I mean, look at the big number of appartments surrounding the port in the distance. And this long and wide beach can also play home to a ‘wild’ camp in your campervan.
Longer than expected
It’s probably a no-brainer – in some respects – that you plan for a stay at a site for a certain amount of time. This was no different in choosing to park here for at least four days considering the amount of work needing to be done as well as some ‘down time’.
So this found us in between the campervans and some rather large caravans. These guys looked like pros…
It is at this point that I may need to explain that this is not, completely, a holiday road trip. We do need to get some work done in order to fill the fuel tank and to provide a meal at the end of the day. So these types of campsites are (sorry if you’re expecting high adventure) good environments for productivity.
So, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that we stay for over two weeks. And why? It’s a good place to be productive – with no distractions besides spending time on the beach.
There are numerous campsites near the town of L’Estartit. No problem there. Ditto if you are a sailor – with or without a boat – or a surfer (in all forms), or just enjoy nature then this might be a good destination. It doesn’t seem as overdeveloped as other places on the ‘costas’ (if that’s your thing).
Camping Les Medes is very nicely set up. There are two pools (indoor and outdoor), a restaurant/bar, a good supermarket, excellent ablution blocks and a good vibe going around the place. Check it out if you can’t get a spot on the Molino campsite at the beachfront (which may come with some wind). Yeah, it gets a good thumbs up from our side on value for money, amenities and closeness (yes, that’s a word) to the beach…