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Figueres

Fourteen kilometres inland from Catalonia's glistening Golf de Roses lies Figueres, birthplace of Salvador Dalí and now home to the artist’s flamboyant theatre-museum. Although Dalí’s career took him to Madrid, Barcelona, Paris and the USA, Figueres remained close to his heart. In the 1960s and '70s he created the extraordinary Teatre-Museu Dalí – a monument to surrealism and a legacy that outshines any other Spanish artist, in terms of both popularity and sheer flamboyance. Whatever your feelings about this complex, egocentric man, this museum is worth every euro and minute you can spare.

Beyond its star attraction, busy Figueres is a lively place with a couple of interesting museums, some good restaurants, pleasant shopping streets around Carrer de Peralada, and a grand 18th-century fortress. It’s well worth staying to see the town breathe after Dalí day-trippers board their buses at sundown.

Top attractions

These are our favorite local haunts, touristy spots, and hidden gems throughout Figueres.

  • Museum

    Teatre-Museu Dalí

    The first name that pops into your head when you lay eyes on this red castle-like building, topped with giant eggs and stylised Oscar-like statues and studded with plaster-covered croissants, is Salvador Dalí. An entirely appropriate final resting place for the master of surrealism, it has assured his immortality. Exhibits range from enormous, impossible-to-miss installations – like Taxi Plujós (Rainy Taxi), an early Cadillac surmounted by statues – to the more discreet, including a tiny, mysterious room with a mirrored flamingo.

  • Wildlife Reserve

    Centre de Reproducció de Tortugues de l'Albera

    This long-running little wildlife sanctuary is a haven for Hermann's tortoises, and a force for educating people about these threatened little armoured tanks of the Pyrenees. There's an introductory film (Catalan, Spanish, English, French or German) explaining menaces to the region's tortoises, but the biggest thrill is a stroll around the boardwalk outside, to peep at the 140 tortoises ambling among rocks and flower beds. The well-signposted sanctuary is just north of Garriguella, a teeny town 13km northeast of Figueres.

  • Museum

    Museu de l’Empordà

    Extending over four floors, the local museum time travels from ancient amphorae to 7th-century sculptures to rotating installations of contemporary art. You'll find some exceptional early 20th-century works, including lush charcoal drawings by Juan Núñez Fernández, who was Dalí's drawing teacher. Other highlights include landscapes by the watercolour master Ramon Reig Corominas and portraits and still lifes by Marià Baig Minobis.

  • Fort

    Castell de Sant Ferran

    Figueres' sturdy 18th-century fortress commands the surrounding plains from a low hill 1km northwest of the centre. The complex is a wonder of military engineering: it sprawls over 32 hectares, with the capacity for 6000 men to march within its walls and snooze in military barracks.

  • Museum

    Museu del Joguet

    This museum has more than 5000 toys from throughout the ages – from the earliest board games involving coloured stones, to intricate dolls’ houses, to 1920s dolls with baleful stares that may haunt your dreams, to choo-chooing train models, to Catalonia- and Valencia-made religious processions of tiny figures. It's a mesmerising display, with plenty to amuse the kids, and a section devoted to Dalí's childhood. Admission is reduced by 30% if you flash a Teatre-Museu Dalí ticket.

  • Monastery

    Canònica de Santa Maria de Vilabertran

    In Vilabertran, 2.5km northeast of central Figueres, you'll find a serene 11th-century Romanesque church with three naves, a Lombard bell tower, and an elegant cloister.