Platja de Fenals
Best for. Travellers who want the easy access of Lloret de Mar without the volume, who like a calm swim, a slow lunch and a garden to wander above the sand.
Best spot. The western end under the pines for shade and quiet, then the climb to the Jardins de Santa Clotilde for the finest view on this stretch of coast.
Know this. Fenals is the calmer, prettier half of Lloret. It is not a wild Costa Brava cove, so for that go north to Tossa de Mar or the Palafrugell beaches, but as an easy day with culture attached it earns its place.
Fenals is the beach you walk to when the main Lloret strand has worn you out. It sits just west of the centre, a wide curve of coarse golden sand tucked behind the wooded Turo Rodo headland, and the shelter that headland gives is the whole point. The water is usually calmer, the crowd thins, and the pines come right down to the western corner where the shade is. It is still a serviced resort beach with bars and sunbeds, not a hidden cove, but it is the gentler, better looking half of the Lloret pair, and the half a local will point you to.
What lifts Fenals above an ordinary town beach is what sits on the cliff above it. The Jardins de Santa Clotilde are early twentieth century Noucentista gardens of clipped terraces, cypresses and stone stairways that step down toward the sea, laid out so the green frames the blue at every turn. They are among the finest things to see on the southern Costa Brava and an easy climb from the sand, which means a day here can be a swim, a slow lunch and a garden walk rather than just an afternoon flat on a towel. That mix is exactly why Fenals suits travellers who treat a beach as one part of a fuller day.
The honest read is that Fenals is the right call in the Lloret area for anyone who is not here for the nightlife. It will not give you the whitewashed, clear water drama the Costa Brava is famous for, so if that is what you came for, drive north to Tossa de Mar or on to the Palafrugell coves of Llafranc, Calella and Tamariu. But for an easy, calm, well fed day with a garden and a view thrown in, Fenals quietly outperforms its louder neighbour, and the lunch afterwards tastes better for the quiet.
Clubs on this beach
Fenals has a relaxed seafront of beach bars and chiringuitos along its promenade, with seasonal sunbed hire on the sand, calmer in feel than the main Lloret beach. Specific operators, venues and prices are to be confirmed. For organised beach clubs along the coast, use the Costa Brava beach clubs guide.
Promenade beach bars and sunbed hire
The Fenals seafront has a row of relaxed chiringuitos and bars for a long lunch by the sand, with seasonal sunbed and parasol hire. Specific operators, venues and prices to be confirmed.
Platja de Fenals, Costa Brava
Fenals sits at the western edge of Lloret de Mar in La Selva, an easy walk or short drive from the town centre and around forty minutes by car from Girona, with Barcelona roughly an hour and a quarter away. That ease of access is the same reason Lloret grew into a resort, and it makes Fenals one of the simpler Costa Brava beaches to reach.
There is seasonal parking near the beach that fills early in high summer, and frequent buses serve Lloret, from where the coast path leads round to Fenals on foot. The Santa Clotilde gardens are signposted on the headland above the beach, and the main Lloret strand and old town are a short stroll east for dinner.
Photo: Promilos via GoogleBook a beach club
Tell us your dates and party size and we will help arrange a daybed or table at a club near Fenals and Lloret de Mar. We reply by email.
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Common questions about Platja de Fenals
Is Platja de Fenals better than the main Lloret de Mar beach?
For most people, yes, if you want a calmer day. Fenals sits just west of the main town beach behind a pine topped headland, so it is quieter, prettier and more sheltered, while the main strand is bigger, louder and built for the resort crowd. Families and couples tend to prefer Fenals, and the nightlife crowd stays on the main beach.
What is there to see above Fenals beach?
The Jardins de Santa Clotilde sit on the headland between Fenals and Lloret, early twentieth century Noucentista gardens of terraces, cypresses and stairways that drop toward the sea. They are one of the genuine highlights of the southern Costa Brava and an easy walk up from the beach, well worth an hour before or after a swim.
Where should you eat near Fenals?
There are beach bars and chiringuitos along the Fenals promenade for a relaxed lunch with your feet near the sand, and the wider Lloret old town a short distance away has better Catalan cooking and tapas in its backstreets. As with any resort, the tables a few streets back from the front tend to cook with more care than those right on the seafront.
Is Fenals beach good for families?
It suits families well. The water is usually calmer than the open main beach, the sand is coarse golden sand with a gentle slope, and there are showers, seasonal sunbed hire and bars within reach. Conditions are typical rather than guaranteed, so always read the daily flags, but Fenals is generally the easier, gentler choice in the Lloret area.
How do you get to Platja de Fenals?
Fenals is a short walk or drive west of central Lloret de Mar, around forty minutes by car from Girona and roughly an hour and a quarter from Barcelona. There is seasonal parking near the beach that fills early in summer, and frequent buses serve Lloret, from where it is an easy stroll along the coast path.
