Cala Montjoi & the elBulli Cove
Tucked inside Cap de Creus Natural Park, 8 km south of Roses along a winding mountain road, Cala Montjoi is a sheltered pebble-and-sand cove of startling beauty — and the site of elBulli, the restaurant that was voted best in the world five times and changed the way the planet thinks about food. Even though the restaurant is now a foundation and museum, the bay itself is freely accessible and utte
The beach and its extraordinary backstory
The cove is backed by pine-covered hills that drop steeply to the water, keeping it sheltered and calm even when the tramuntana wind whips the open bay at Roses. The water is a deep, clear green-blue and the beach is never as crowded as the town beaches, partly because the road in is narrow and slightly nerve-wracking to drive.
The elBulli building — a low, whitewashed structure with a terrace overlooking the water — is currently being transformed into the elBulli 1846 museum and creative lab, a project by Ferran Adrià. Check the elBulli Foundation website before visiting; guided tours of the exterior and grounds have been available on specific dates.
Making a day of it
Bring a picnic assembled from the Tuesday market in Roses: pa de pagès, anchovies, Garrotxa cheese and a bottle of white Empordà wine. There is a small beach bar at Cala Montjoi in summer serving cold drinks and basic snacks, but no restaurant open to the public.
The snorkelling directly off the beach is excellent — the rocky outcrops on both sides of the cove shelter sea urchins, octopus and schools of bream. A kayak rental outfit sometimes operates from the beach in July and August, allowing you to paddle around the headland to smaller, completely deserted coves.
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