Sant Pol de Mar (Maresme)

Sant Pol de Mar is a small fishing village on the Costa del Maresme, between Calella and Canet de Mar, about 45 km north-east of Barcelona in a straight line. Catalunya.com, the official Catalan tourism site, describes white houses, narrow quiet streets, rocky coves and sandy beaches; the station of the coastal railway sits right on the seafront, below the Sant Pau hermitage on its headland. It suits a car-free beach day or a quiet weekend; skip it if you want a big resort or nightlife.

Quick facts

• Names: Sant Pol de Mar (Catalan); San Pol de Mar in Spanish. The name comes from the 10th-century hermitage of Sant Pau (Catalan Wikipedia).
• Where: the Maresme coast in Barcelona province, Catalonia, at the mouth of the riera de Vallalta (or riera de Sant Pol), with the Montnegre massif behind (catalunya.com).
• Coordinates: 41.6030, 2.6238 (village centre, OpenStreetMap).
• Size: 8 km² and 5,178 inhabitants (catalunya.com); OpenStreetMap gives 4,311 for the village itself (2025).
• Beaches: El Morer, La Platjola, Les Escaletes, Les Barques, Sant Pol, Can Villar, La Murtra and Les Roques Blanques (catalunya.com).
• Main festival: Sant Jaume, 25 July.

Getting there and parking

By train: the Estació de Sant Pol de Mar stands on the Plaça de l’Estació, between the village and the beach of Les Barques (OpenStreetMap). It is on the coastal line that catalunya.com describes for the neighbouring towns as the R1 Rodalies between Barcelona and Blanes. The railway reached Sant Pol in 1859 (catalunya.com). The Museu de Pintura on the Plaça de la Vila is about 320 m from the station.

By car: the N-II coast road runs past every beach; spain.info names it as the access road for all of them. Spain.info notes parking at El Morer beach and a car park in the Parc del Litoral behind Can Villar beach. We could not confirm parking charges.

By bus: the town hall runs an interurban bus that links Sant Pol with neighbouring Sant Cebrià de Vallalta and gives access to the Hospital de Calella (catalunya.com).

What to see

The Ermita de Sant Pau, on a promontory above the sea, is the shape that defines Sant Pol from the whole seafront. It was a Benedictine monastery at least since the year 955; only part of the hermitage remains, built in the 11th century. Catalunya.com suggests climbing the hill of Sant Pau for the view of the Maresme coast from Sant Pol to Barcelona.

The church of Sant Jaume is late Gothic, of the 16th century, and uses an older defence tower as its bell tower. Inside is a Baroque carving by the Sevillian sculptor Juan Martínez Montañés. It can only be visited during mass: catalunya.com gives every day at 8 pm, and on Sundays and holidays also at 11 am.

The Museu de Pintura grew from a 1960s painting prize and holds about 200 works, including Ramon Casas, Ramon Pichot, Joan Miró and Perejaume, with usually four exhibitions a year (catalunya.com).

Along the riera stand the Modernista towers of the early 20th century, the Escoles Públiques (1910) and Can Planiol (1910), with a façade of white, blue and red tiles. The Passeig de la Punta is a viewpoint built between the cliffs and the sea. Near the mouth of the riera stands Can Villà, a 16th–17th-century farmhouse with a Gothic window (catalunya.com).

Beaches

Catalunya.com calls the beaches “the town’s great lure” and “not at all crowded”. Sizes below are from spain.info (Turespaña) beach sheets; all have calm water on the sheets and golden sand.

• Les Escaletes: 225 m of rock and sand by the village, with the Sant Pol sailing club at one end and several restaurants nearby (spain.info).
• Les Barques and Sant Pol: the village beaches on either side of the station (OpenStreetMap); the old fishing boats are kept on the sand here.
• La Platjola: 114 m, between a small viewpoint and a big rock that separates it from El Morer, with access for people with reduced mobility (spain.info).
• El Morer: 270 m by 50 m, quiet, with parking, toilets and showers (spain.info).
• Can Villar: 788 m by 40 m, with a view of the whole village under the Sant Pau church; Red Cross lifeguards, a restaurant and a beach bar, and the Parc del Litoral with parking behind (spain.info).
• La Murtra: the longest, 1,258 m, an isolated sandy beach with sunbed and umbrella hire (spain.info).
• Les Roques Blanques: 419 m, named after the white rock mass at its end, reached from the N-II (spain.info).

Food, festivals and tours

Sant Pol is known for its food, based on fresh fish and garden produce such as strawberries. For twenty years, until 2018, the village had Carme Ruscalleda’s restaurant Sant Pau, opened in 1998 in an 1881 mansion and awarded three Michelin stars (catalunya.com). It has closed, so do not plan a trip around it.

• Fira de Sant Pau, end of January: the giants of Sant Pol dance the old dance of the almorratxa.
• Gastronomic exhibition in June.
• Festa Major de Sant Jaume, 25 July; Corpus brings a flower carpet and a procession.
• Firamar in August, a maritime fair with a habanera festival.

In June, July and August there is one guided walk a month, “The Fishermen’s Sant Pol”, past the Casa dels Pescadors, Les Barques beach and the Caseta del Motor (catalunya.com). We could not confirm dates or prices for 2027.

A little history

Sant Pol grew up around the old monastery as the maritime quarter of Sant Cebrià de Vallalta and became independent in 1599. Bourbon troops burned it in 1713; the saying “Sant Pol, quina hora és?” (“Sant Pol, what time is it?”) and the legend of the sundial come from those years (catalunya.com).

Accessibility and safety

Best time to visit

Summer is best for the beaches and festivals (catalunya.com). Late spring and September are quieter for the walk to Sant Pau; autumn and spring are the rainiest seasons.

Nearby alternatives

• Calella Lighthouse, 2.0 km away: the 1859 lighthouse and viewpoint on the next headland north.
• Camping Globo Barcelona, 3.0 km away: a campsite on the coast at Canet de Mar.
• Lluís Domènech i Montaner House-Museum, 3.9 km away: the architect’s summer house in Canet de Mar.
• Castle of Santa Florentina, 3.9 km away: the medieval house rebuilt by Domènech i Montaner above Canet.

Distances are in a straight line from the village centre.

FAQ

How do I get to Sant Pol de Mar from Barcelona?

By train to Sant Pol’s own seafront station on the coastal line, or by car along the N-II. It is about 45 km from central Barcelona in a straight line.

What are the best beaches in Sant Pol de Mar?

Les Escaletes and Les Barques are in the village; La Platjola has step-free access; Can Villar has lifeguards and services; La Murtra, 1,258 m long, is the most isolated.

Is there parking in Sant Pol de Mar?

Spain.info lists parking at El Morer beach and a car park in the Parc del Litoral behind Can Villar beach. We could not confirm charges.

Is the restaurant Sant Pau still open?

No. Carme Ruscalleda’s Sant Pau closed in 2018 (catalunya.com).

Sources and freshness