Palafolls

You see the castle from the motorway. It’s the only thing that makes you slow down. Park near the cemetery and walk up the track. The climb takes five minutes.

The view is the point. You see the Tordera delta, the plastic of greenhouses, the coast. On a clear day, Montseny is on the horizon. The castle ruins are just that: stretches of medieval wall, an empty courtyard, some signs. It was a lookout for the old Girona road. Now it watches traffic on the C-32.

The centre and two churches

The old town is small. A few streets, a couple of squares. You walk through it quickly.

Sant Genís is the original church, now a ruin outside the centre. The working parish church is Santa María, built in the late 1800s. It’s neo-gothic outside, quiet inside. Wooden pews, cool air.

Between them sits the municipal library, a concrete block by Enric Miralles. It doesn’t try to fit in. Some find it ugly. It’s dry when it rains.

Lunch and local food

Bars are scattered along main streets. The food is standard for the area: butifarra amb mongetes, escalivada, pa amb tomàquet. Look for a menú del día on weekdays. It’s for people who work here—simple and filling.

Walking by the river

Head to the Tordera for space. Farm tracks follow it for kilometres. The path is flat, between fields and poplars.

There are no landmarks here. Bring water; there are no services. Mosquitoes gather at dusk in summer. In winter, it smells of wet earth from the banks.

Festivals and practical notes

The Festa Major is in early September with rides and concerts in the square. Carnaval is smaller, with homemade costumes ending with the burial of a sardine. Sant Genís festivities happen in late August. These days bring more cars and noise.

Palafolls takes a morning: castle, centre, maybe a river walk. Don’t park in the old centre; leave your car on an avenue and walk in. The nearest train station is in Malgrat de Mar. It works as a short stop if you're already crossing this part of Maresme. Most people drive past it to get to a beach