Holiday cottages in Terrades

If you like hiking, mountain bike routes and cultural tourism, Terrades is for you. This small rural municipality of Garrotxes d'Empordà, an area between the plain of Alt Empordà and Garrotxa, is nestled in a small valley formed by the mountains of the Serra de la Mare de Déu del Mont. In addition, it has several architectural and religious monuments that are worth seeing.

The first documents that mention Terrades date from the 11th century, but it is not until the end of the 18th century that it begins to acquire more relevance. On the one hand, during the Roussillon War it suffered the consequences of the battles fought in the neighboring town of Sant Llorenç de la Muga. Later, in 1811, it was the scene of the battles between Napoleon's French troops and the guerrillas commanded by priest Rovira. Already in the 20th century, in the middle of the Spanish Civil War, part of the town was destroyed by the explosion of a gunpowder magazine installed in the church.

The four essentials of this small rural town are: the hermitage of Sant Sebastià , which, although it has been restored on several occasions, dates from the 12th century, the parish church of Santa Cecília , built in 1954 as a replacement of the old Romanesque church that was completely destroyed during the Spanish Civil War and the hermitage of Santa Magdalena , restored in the 15th century and located in an exceptional viewpoint. However, you can't miss the sanctuary of Mare de Déu de la Salut, built in the 17th century on the remains of an old farmhouse.

Terrades passes, precisely, on the GR 2, the trail that connects the Alt Empordà with the Vallès Oriental and therefore has magnificent excursions ideal for walking or cycling. At the beginning, you can do the route of the villages, which goes from Les Escaules to Terrades, by mountain bike. Others, which you can also do on foot, are the route that goes to Santa Magdalena - fantastic for the whole family -, or the one that goes to Espadats de Rocacorba . For the latter, however, you must be fit.

If you stay in a rural house in Terrades during the month of April, you can enjoy the beauty of the cherry blossom fields. In addition, in collaboration with the Figueres Association of Friends of Japan, the Hanami festival is usually celebrated there.