The last resort on the Costa Brava before the French border, Cadaques is reached by a small winding road, twisting over the mountains from Roses, the nearest major center. Scenically, Cadaques is a knockout: crystal-blue water, fishing boats on the sandy beaches, old whitewashed houses, narrow twisting streets, and a 16th century parish up on a hill.
Cadaques is an up-market resort for arty adults rather than families. There's a lively cafe society at night with jazz bars, and you can take part in the sardana on Sundays at 10pm.
In the old days the superstars of the avant guard - Picasso, Buñuel, Lorca - and their entourage came to visit Salvador Dalí's eccentric house in nearby Portlligat - follow signs from the main road into town. Recently opened to visitors, €5, Dali's house may be visited in small closely- monitored groups, so in summer they are often booked solid for the day. Call 972 25 80 63 for visitor information. To anyone familiar with Dalí's work, the windswept lunar landscapes around the bay of Portlligat are bound to ring a bell. In the same way that the architect Gaudi's work was influenced by the strange rock formations of his native Reus, Dalí's surreal landscapes are in fact quite faithful recreations of the weird topography of Portllitgat and nearby Cap de Creus. Portlligat has a scuba diving center open March - November. Call me for information.
Visitors early this century to Cadaques included Garcia Lorca, Man Ray, Eluard, Duchamp, Magritte, Breton, and Albeniz. Visitors in the late '40s included Walt Disney, the duke of Windsor, the ex-king of Italy Umberto de Savoy, and many, many millionaires. Local hostelries proudly display evidence of their patronage. In the 60´s, Cadaques became a distinctly hip place, hosting an interesting floating community. There are still plenty of beautiful people around and more than a few Mercedes, but it all falls short of, say, Southern-France snobbery, and in the off-season, the local artistic community gives Cadaques a somewhat bohemian feel.
The sights in Cadaques are aimed at art lovers. The Perrott-Moore Museum, Vigilant 1, (€4) displays a collection of graphic art assembled by Dali's former secretary, and is a taster for the Figueres museum. You can admire several early sketches by the young Salvador, and read fan mail from the rich and famous. In keeping with the surreal subtext there is a vintage car with effigies of Dalí, Picasso, Buñuel, and Lorca. A small municipal Museu d'Art at Carrer Narcis Monturiol 15 (near restaurant La Galiota) has local paintings plus a sprinkling by big names such as Toulouse-Lautrec. The apse of the large and rather plain Santa Maria church has a splendid baroque retablo of 1763 by master Pau Costa. Santa María is also the site of a summer Baroque Music Festival.
Restaurant El Pescador on c/ Nemesio Llorens, which is around the harbourside, to the right as you face the water from Mulberry park, has very good paella, and you can eat indoors or out on the pavement. Es Baluard, built into an ancient fortified wall, also on Nemesio Llorens 2 (25 81 83), closed Thursdays, is highly recommended for fresh fish and grilled meats.
Afterwards, have a ron cremat on the sea-front terrace at Marítim, Plaça Dr. Tremols, or if it´s early enough, at the busy local 'Casino' just beside where the dry riverbed, or rambla, flows into the sea. This is where locals and vacationers mix, with serious dominoes and card games serving as the ice-breaker. There's an interesting pottery shop at Costa Brava on the Passeig del Mar 12.