Part of the Costa del Azahar guide · South: Castelló and the Plana

Castelló and the Plana is the southern end of the Costa del Azahar: the coast of Castellón province from the city of Castelló de la Plana and its seaside district, El Grau, south to Almenara at the border with Valencia province, about 30 km in a straight line. Behind it lies the Plana, a flat plain of orange groves crossed by the Millars (Mijares) river, with the towns of Almassora, Vila-real, Borriana, Nules, Moncofa, Xilxes, La Llosa and Almenara, and the Columbretes Islands far out at sea.

Updated 7 November 2026 · How CostaMap researches its guides

At a glance

• Where the coast of la Plana Alta and la Plana Baixa in Castellón province, from the Serradal beach at the Benicàssim boundary to Casablanca beach at Almenara.
• Towns Castelló de la Plana and El Grau, Almassora, Borriana, Nules, Moncofa, Xilxes, La Llosa and Almenara on the coast; Vila-real and La Vall d’Uixó a short way inland.
• Best for a city break with beaches, quiet family beach towns, wetland birds, the Coves de Sant Josep and the Columbretes.
• Getting there Castelló station and Cercanías line C-6, which stops in almost every town of the Plana on its way to València; València airport is about 67 km from Castelló and Castellón airport about 27 km, both in a straight line.
• On CostaMap the Castelló Co-Cathedral, the Columbretes Islands, the Coves de Sant Josep, Moncofa, two campsites and seven town guides.

Map of Castelló and the Plana

The map shows the places on this stretch that have a CostaMap page. Tick a place type to filter, and click a marker to see the place in the panel.

Towns and villages

From north to south; seven of them are on the regional tourist board’s Costa Azahar route.

Castelló de la Plana

The provincial capital has its old centre around Plaza Mayor: the Gothic co-cathedral of Santa María and El Fadrí, the free-standing Gothic bell tower almost 60 m high, with about 200 steps to the top. Nearby are the Baroque town hall, the 17th-century Lonja del Cáñamo, the Mercado Central of 1949 and Ribalta Park, a 19th-century romantic park. The nine-day Magdalena festival celebrates the city’s foundation with the Romeria de les Canyes and a parade of gaiates (Comunitat Valenciana). See our Castelló de la Plana guide and the Castelló Co-Cathedral.

El Grau de Castelló

El Grau, the seafaring district about 4 km east of the centre, has the port, a wide choice of restaurants and the old lighthouse, which was taken down piece by piece and rebuilt where it stands now. The Planetari, by El Pinar beach, has science exhibitions under a large dome and the information centre of the Columbretes Islands (Comunitat Valenciana). The boats to the islands leave from the Real Club Náutico in the port; see our Columbretes Islands guide.

Almassora

Almassora, in la Plana Alta, sits at the mouth of the Millars (Mijares). It was founded by the Christians in the 13th century, and remains of its 17th- to 18th-century walls survive around the old centre with Plaza Mayor and its arches, the Baroque church of La Natividad and a museum with amphoras from shipwrecks. The Gothic bridge of Santa Quiteria crosses the river towards Vila-real. On the coast, Benafelí and Pla de la Torre are its two beaches, and the river mouth is a wetland for birds (Comunitat Valenciana). See our Almassora guide.

Vila-real

Vila-real lies about 8 km inland from Castelló. The tourist board highlights the 18th-century Neoclassical church of San Jaime, the 13th-century walls with the Torre Motxa, the porticoed Plaça de la Vila and the monastery of San Pascual Bailón, with the saint’s sarcophagus and old cell and what it calls the largest rolling bell in the world. The El Termet area is part of the protected landscape of the Millars river mouth. The San Pascual festival is in May (Comunitat Valenciana). See our Vila-real guide.

Borriana

Borriana (Burriana) keeps part of its medieval street plan, with 19th- and 20th-century manor houses and the 13th-century church of El Salvador and its bell tower, the Templat. Two watchtowers, the Torre del Mar and the Torre de Carabona, survive nearby. Its beaches, L’Arenal and Malvarrosa-Grao, run either side of the port, and the Millars river mouth and the Clot de la Mare de Déu are its natural areas. It is also a water-sports town (Comunitat Valenciana). See our Borriana guide.

Nules and Mascarell

Nules has streets decorated with ceramic altars, some from the 19th century, and several small churches; the chapel of San Joaquín and San Miguel, known as El Fort, holds the Enrique Giner Medal Museum. Its highlight is Mascarell, a hamlet enclosed by walls since the 13th century, about 1.5 km from the centre. Civil War trenches and bunkers survive outside the town. On the coast, the L’Estany wetland lies right behind the beach, with picnic tables, and four beaches run from Les Marines to L’Alcudia (Comunitat Valenciana). See our Nules guide.

Moncofa

Moncofa, with 8,339 inhabitants (INE 2025, Spanish Wikipedia), has an old village about 1.5 km inland and six beaches, from pebbly Pedraroja in the north to L’Estanyol near Xilxes. Every 23 July the town re-enacts the landing of its patron saint, Mary Magdalene, on the beach (Comunitat Valenciana). Belcaire beach is the one for dogs. See our new Moncofa guide and Camping Monmar, on the coastal plain of Moncofa.

La Vall d’Uixó

La Vall d’Uixó, about 9 km inland from Moncofa, is known for the Coves de Sant Josep, an underground river visited by boat. Next to the caves, the Iberian and Roman settlement of Sant Josep is open on guided tours and the town keeps a stretch of the Línea XYZ, a Civil War defence line of 1938 (Comunitat Valenciana). See our new Coves de Sant Josep guide and the La Vall d’Uixó town guide.

Xilxes (Chilches)

Xilxes sits halfway between Castelló and València. The tourist board points to beach sports and paddle surfing, the church of La Asunción and houses built in the 1940s by the Dirección General de Regiones Devastadas. Its marjal, a protected marsh, draws migratory birds in winter, and the Ruta dels Sentits Blue Trail and a birdwatching route cross it. Local dishes include arroz a banda, rice with beans and turnips and all i pebre (Comunitat Valenciana). HolaCamp Chilches is the campsite here.

La Llosa

La Llosa is a small village with the 17th-century church of El Salvador. Its only beach, 1 km long and 30 m wide, is 3.5 km from the village beside the Marjal wetland: sand and pebbles with no buildings, reached by a wooden walkway and a lit bridge over the La Gola canal; nudism is not allowed (Comunitat Valenciana). Els Pouets, between La Llosa and Xilxes, is a wetland fed by springs called ullals (Comunitat Valenciana).

Almenara

Almenara closes the Costa del Azahar at the border with Valencia province. Its castle has two lookout towers, L’Agüelet and L’Agüeleta, and a viewpoint over the plain. Els Estanys, three lakes in a former wetland, is one of the most valuable ecosystems in the Valencian Region and trails such as La Rodana start from the town (Comunitat Valenciana). Casablanca beach is 2,610 m of sand and pebbles with a signposted dune reserve. See our Almenara guide.

Beaches

Sand in Castelló and Borriana, then mostly gravel and pebbles further south. Lengths are from the regional tourist board; spain.info figures where they differ. The tourist board lists a Blue Flag among the certificates of the beaches marked below, without a year (checked November 2026).

• El Serradal (Castelló) – about 1,700 m of golden sand on the Benicàssim boundary, semi-urban, with protected dunes where the Kentish plover nests; reachable by intercity bus; Blue Flag (Comunitat Valenciana).
• Gurugú (Castelló) – 1 km long and 140 m wide on average, between the Camino de la Plana and the mouth of the Río Seco, with beach bars and play areas; Blue Flag (Comunitat Valenciana; spain.info gives 120 m wide, spain.info).
• Benafelí and Pla de la Torre (Almassora) – Benafelí is 450 m of sand and pebbles south of Castelló port, and Pla de la Torre is 2,200 m of sand and pebbles at the mouth of the Millars; both Blue Flag (Benafelí, Pla de la Torre).
• Malvarrosa-Grao (Borriana) – just over 1 km long, about 70 m wide, split by a breakwater into a sandy south and a pebbly north; Blue Flag (Comunitat Valenciana).
• Nules – L’Alcudia, 1,355 m of sand and pebbles; El Bovalar, almost 1.2 km, with the lighthouse built in 1992 by the architect Blanca Lleó; and quiet Rajadell, 1 km of gravel, not an officially controlled bathing area (L’Alcudia, El Bovalar, Rajadell).
• Moncofa – El Grau, 1,200 m of gravel by the town; Masbó, 800 m with palms, a promenade and a car park for more than 100 cars, Blue Flag; and Pedraroja, Belcaire and L’Estanyol; see the Moncofa guide.
• Casablanca (Almenara) – 2,610 m of sand and pebbles with a dune reserve; Blue Flag (Comunitat Valenciana).

Things to do

Where to stay by town

The choice is between the city, with its trains and sights, and the smaller beach towns of the Plana.

Getting there and around

A two-day route

By car, north to south, with a night in Castelló or El Grau.

FAQ

Other areas of the Costa del Azahar

South of Almenara the coast continues as the Costa de Valencia: Sagunto, with its castle and Roman theatre, is about 17 km from the Coves de Sant Josep.

Sources and freshness

Checked 7 November 2026. Comunitat Valenciana (the regional tourist board) on the Costa Azahar route, Castelló de la Plana, the Planetari, the Columbretes reserve, Almassora, Vila-real, Borriana, Nules, Moncofa, La Vall d’Uixó and the Coves de Sant Josep, Xilxes, La Llosa and Almenara, and its beach pages linked above (lengths, services, certificates). Spain.info (Turespaña) beach sheet for Gurugú. Population of Moncofa, roads, Castelló station, line C-6 and Castellón airport: Spanish Wikipedia (Moncofa, Castelló station, C-6, Castellón airport). Map data and straight-line distances: OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Not confirmed: Blue Flag years, bus routes and timetables, and the natural park’s own rules for the Columbretes. Town hall, natural park and cave websites could not be reached when we checked. Photos from Wikimedia Commons: El Grau port by Pacopac (CC BY-SA 4.0); El Pinar beach by Juan Emilio Prades Bel (CC BY-SA 4.0); Columbretes by JavierValencia2005 (CC BY-SA 4.0); El Fadrí by flmv (CC BY-SA 4.0); Mercado Central and Plaça Major by Joanbanjo (CC BY-SA 3.0); Coves de Sant Josep by Joanbanjo (CC BY-SA 4.0); co-cathedral dome by Miguel Ángel García (CC BY 2.0); Beniesma beach in Moncofa by Juan Emilio Prades Bel (CC BY-SA 4.0); Peñíscola by Simon Burchell (CC BY-SA 4.0); Benicàssim by Martin Cox (CC BY 2.0); Vinaròs port by Juan Emilio Prades Bel (CC BY-SA 4.0).