Best things to do in Salou in 2024 with your family!

Salou is the big resort town on southern Catalonia’s Costa Daurada (Golden Coast). For families in need of sun and sand, it matches all the criteria. All along the coast, you will be able to see broad resort beaches or hidden little coves, and the amenities, attractions and infrastructure are up there with anything Spain has to offer. Spain’s top theme park, PortAventura is right next door, and with it you will get golf courses and a world-class water park. And if you need a change in attractions, you will visit the UNESCO-listed history and culture of Tarragona in ten minutes by train from Salou. Below are the best things to do in Salou with your family.

Top 10 best things to do in Salou

1. PortAventura World
2. Llevant Beach
3. Salou’s fountains
4. Avenida Jaume I
5. Portaventura Caribe Aquatic Park
6. Coves of Cap de Salou
7. Capellans Beach
8. Dining out
9. Roman Tarragona
10. Tarragona Walls and Part Alta

1. PortAventura World

Thi most-visited theme park in Spain also ranks in Europe’s top ten. It is a day-out that everyone in the family can get enthusiastic about. The littlest guys and girls will love the well-choreographed exhibits, playgrounds, amusements and the new SésamoAventura, a Sesame Street area. Bigger kids and grown-ups can look forward to a set of record-breaking white-knuckle roller coasters. New features also seem to crop up every year, across the park’s five themes areas: Far West, Mediterrània, México, China and Polynesia. If you are really into adventurous rides then the Hurakan Condor should be in the list. It is a drop tower, 100 metres in height and visible for miles around.

2. Llevant Beach

Right in front of the town is Salou’s main beach, where you will be able to spend easy summer days relaxing in the sun. With a wide area of fine golden sand, it runs along the waterfront for just over a kilometre and its convenience to the hotels and apartments in the resort make it the family option. There is much more to keep kids occupied of course, with play areas at stages along the beach. The wave here is also moderate, with currents partly shielded by the Cap de Salou headland to the east.

3. Salou’s fountains

It all started with the Font Luminosa, which was constructed in 1973 by Carles Buigas, the same man responsible for Barcelona world-famous fountain in Montjuïc. From Easter to the month of November, you will get to witness a light and sound show after sunset. The whole exhibition is synchronised to music as 100 jets propel water in a dazzling array of combinations. In recent years, you will able to see the Cybernetic Fountain, and it is even more complex. This one consists of thousand jets and even creates a water labyrinth in the middle that you have to try to negotiate.

4. Avenida Jaume I

On the rim of Playa de Llevant, tourists will find this broad marble-paved promenade. For locals and tourists, it is a place to see and be seen, in the most exciting part of the resort. On the upper side, you will find Salou’s best shops, bars and restaurants over which climb the hallmark apartment towers of a Mediterranean resort. The promenade is decorated on both sides by palm trees and a monument to James I the Conqueror. This 13th-century king is a Catalan national icon, recognised with reclaiming the county of Barcelona from the French and taking back cities from the Moors.

5. Portaventura Caribe Aquatic Park

Like Portaventura’s theme park, you will see this water attraction cut above the usual water park on the Mediterranean. Across 34,000 square metres landscaped with palms and tropical undergrowth, you will also find pools, high-speed plunges and slides. The youngest members of the family can make waves at the Zona Indoor, with shallow pools and safe obstacles that they can climb over. Bigger kids and grownups in need of an adventure or thrill can hit the King Khajuna, which drops you from 31 metres at a 55° angle.

6. Coves of Cap de Salou

If resort beaches are not your liking, you will not have to travel far. Just around the headland to the east to discover some enticing little beaches. You will find the Cala de la Vinya, Cala els Crancs, Cala Morisca, Cala de la Font and Cala de la Penya Tallada, and all can be reached by car, or on foot if you are feeling brave. Development on the cape is insignificant, and these coves are traced by little more than rough limestone spurs and aromatic Aleppo pine trees.

7. Capellans Beach

Between the cape and Llevant Beach is a happy sign. This impressive little beach is in the more peaceful part of the resort, wedged between two promontories. The waters are calmer and shallower than at Llevant Beach, so it is a better option if you are visiting with not much experienced swimmers. Despite not being the longest beach in the area, Capellans has quite a wide area of sand, so even when it gets really busy in summer it won’t feel quite as packed as Llevant next door.

8. Dining out

About 50 kilometres south of Salou, you will find the vast rice fields at the Delta of the River Ebro, so rice has long been a big part of the local diet. That famous Spanish dish paella began just beyond the delta in Valencia. And as with many coastal resorts in the area, paella is offered by a lot of restaurants. Ask around and check reviews to avoid the tourist tricks. In case you need clarity, paella is a delicious medley of shellfish and squid simmered with saffron-infused rice. Arròs Negre is possibly a bit more Catalan – A similar preparation to paella, only with cuttlefish or squid, and dyed black with squid ink.

9. Roman Tarragona

One of the first cities of the western Roman empire is just 10 minutes away by train. Tarraco was the first major Roman town and the capital of Tarrconensis, which comprised most of modern Spain. As you would expect, this has left Tarragona with a tremendous wealth of Roman buildings and fortifications. Down by the water is the amphitheatre, and a little way up the hill is the provincial forum, controlled by the Pretorian tower. There is also a large museum full of artefacts on this site. Just outside the city, you can see Tarraco’s spectacular canal, a funerary tower, Roman quarry and a triumphal arch.

10. Tarragona Walls and Part Alta

The walls of Tarragona was one of the renowned Roman general Scipio’s first projects after he landed on the Iberian Peninsula in the 3rd century BC. Tarragona was a base of Roman works for the Punic War. The walls have of course evolved over the last 22 centuries, but the lower sections of the walls are clearly Roman, as you will see at the medieval Torre de l’Arquebisbe. The walls surround the highest part of Tarragona (Part Alta), and within you will get a chance to witness the wonderful, steeply graded web of streets where you can find the best restaurants. There are little hints of Tarragona’s Roman past all around, with some buildings maintained by original Roman walls.

I would not be surprised if halfway down the list, some of you might have already started packing your bags. Do visit the above mentioned most beautiful places in Salou with your family for an awesome experience. Book your Spain package with Pickyourtrail and carry on, live life, live in Spain. Also, leave a Whatsapp inquiry for more options!