On the Costa Dorada in the Catalonia region of Spain, south of Barcelona, you will find three smallish towns which seemingly merge into one- the towns of Cambrils in the south, Salou in the centre and finally La Pineda in the north.
La Pineda is the quieter, more relaxed neighbor
to the rowdier and livelier Salou which lies in the middle of the three towns,
with Cambrils being a fairly typical finishing town. La Pineda is a popular
destination for those with young children, couples wanting a summer get away or
families wanting a relaxing holiday. Itâs not the party town that Salou is,
though there is still a buzzing atmosphere along the palm tree lined
promenades in the height of summer.
Southern Spain has a tendency to have long summers and mild winters that donât get
particularly cold, with minimal rainfall across the year. However as La Pineda
lies in northern Spain
you will find it receives more than 1000m precipitation on average across the
year and winters can get quite chilly- particularly in the coldest month of
January. However it is this heavy rainfall and cooler winters than contribute
to the region being much greener and lusher than parts of southern Spain.
Summer is a great time to visit, though
this is the idea everyone has so be sure to book ahead and prepare your self
for crowds as July and August are the busiest months of the year. The average maximum temperature in the warmest months is about 28 degrees and there are
many days which see the mercury rise over 30 degrees. The minimums during this
period only fall to 19 degrees, which generally occurs when the cooling sea
breezes come through and when then sun sets. (Which wonât happen until after
9pm, after the region has basked in 10 hours of uninterrupted sunlight and
clear skies!)
Just outside of La Pineda in nearby Vila-
Seca, you will find Port Aventura, which is Disney style theme park owned by
Universal Studies- this is a popular spot for families to take their children
to enjoy the rides and theme park activities that it offers.
There is also the Aquopolis water park
which lies in the heart of La Pineda, a perfect summerâs day escape from the
heat. Though if water parks arenât your thing, youâll find the ocean
temperature at a perfect 20 to 25 degrees throughout summer- an ideal temperature
for a mid day break from the blistering Spanish sun.
(see here for average water temperatures across the year)
Summer is the driest time of the year, with
July only recording 19 mm of rainfall on average for the month. Rain begins to
pick up by September, before peaking at the wettest month of October where
average precipitation is 86 mm. The wettest times of the year is late autumn
and Spring- so bear this in mind if you were planning a trip in the off season.
Winter brings daily minimums of about 5
degrees and maximums of 14 to 15 degrees. January is the coldest month, though
there isnât as much rainfall during winter, with January and February each
recording about 31 to 36 mm of precipitation across the month. Average sunshine in winter falls to about 5 hours per day as the sky becomes slightly more
overcast and the threat of rain is more common than in the summer months.
While rainfall is heavier in Autumn and
Spring, it is fairly consistent across the year. Winter records 8 days of rain
per month, Summer records 7 to 10 days (10 days in June, 7 in July and 8 in
August) and Autumn and Spring see about the same- so you can see that rain is
likely an any time of the year, though in summer it will fall in the form of
light summer showers which actually come as a relief from the heat.