Gastronomy and wine tourism

Getting away with your friends for a couple of days is one of those plans that brightens up your life. It is hard to agree on a weekend, a place, a budget, and it is even harder to get all your obligations taken care of: work, kids, parents and the never-ending to-do list ..., but when you finally manage to do it and suddenly have 24 or 48 hours to share, take care of yourself and celebrate your friendship, you rediscover yourself and relish the happiness of doing what you love most. This is what Gemma and her friends do, as each year one of them takes charge.

Get ready to explore (or re-explore!) enchanting spots that are steeped in history, nature, culture and authenticity. They are just a stone’s throw from Barcelona and have so much to offer. Here are 10 ideas to fill you with energy and make you want to hit the road!

Less than an hour from Barcelona, an array of unique experiences is waiting for you among flowering fields, medicinal plants and traditional knowledge. Visit producers who passionately care for the land and offer activities such as workshops, guided walks and flower picking. Nature, sustainability and local charm in their purest form. Read on and be amazed by these lively corners.

Delve into the culture of olive oil in the regions of Barcelona and discover why this liquid gold is so much more than a cooking ingredient. Visit places where the authenticity of the landscape merges with the ancient history of olive tree cultivation, discovering all the tradition and flavour of olive oil, and the passion it arouses. Don’t miss out on these unique experiences and the chance to taste a selection of high-quality olive oils, each with its own unique personality.

Enjoying culinary pleasures is one of the great attractions of travelling, but with it comes great responsibility, since the way in which food is produced can have a negative impact on the ecology and biodiversity of the places we visit. To ensure that our culinary choices don’t harm local natural resources or compromise the capacity of future generations to continue savouring top-quality ingredients, we should start asking ourselves the following question more often: Is it sustainable? Here are five simple tips that will help you answer it.

To enter the domains of the Penedès DO is to open oneself up to a world of sensations where everything is possible. You can taste the elixir extracted from the xarel·lo grape variety, smell the numerous species of medicinal plants, enjoy a waterfall and thrill to the sight of a human tower being crowned by the enxaneta (typically, a child of about five years old). Accompany us on this route through Alt Penedès, a land that leaves its mark.