Salou Factfile -
Location: Tarragona, Catalonia, Costa Dorada (Costa Daurada), Spain.
Population: 22,096 (2006)
Salou History: Despite the fact that Salou is a mostly made for tourism resort, and the first impression is of a sprawling mess of apartment blocks and hotels, it does have a long history going way back to the times of the Greeks and Romans who both used it as a port over 2,000 years ago, in fact the name comes from the Greek Salauris. Many centuries later Salou was the departure port for forces under Jaime I of Aragon, heading for the Balearic Islands to free them of their Arab stranglehold. In the ensueing centuries, Salou became a pirates haven, a regular stopping off point for Barbary Pirates, sailing the surrounding coastline, a defensive tower (Torre Vella) was constructed by order of the Archbishop of Tarragona in 1530 to help defend against these pirates. After the opening of a railway line in 1865, Salou began to grow and prosper, but it took almost 100 years for tourism to arrive in a big way. The lighthouse on Cape Salou was built in 1858.
Overview: Salou today is the major tourism centre for the Costa Dorada (Golden Coast), attracted by its beautiful beaches, wonderful climate, wide range of tourist facilities and popular theme parks (Port Aventura and Costa Caribe), holidaymakers arrive in their thousands, especially during the hot summer months. Salou's promenade (Passeig Jaume I) is one of the best loved landmarks in the resort and it stretches along the coast behind the main beach - Llevant beach, which at 1,200 metres is the longest beach in Salou and has an area set aside for assorted sports activities during the summer months. Salou has many fine beaches, many carrying 'Blue Flag' status for cleanliness and safety. Salou is particularly popular with British tourists, most of whom arrive at the nearby Reus airport just 15 minutes drive from the resort.
Location: Tarragona, Catalonia, Costa Dorada (Costa Daurada), Spain.
Population: 22,096 (2006)
Salou History: Despite the fact that Salou is a mostly made for tourism resort, and the first impression is of a sprawling mess of apartment blocks and hotels, it does have a long history going way back to the times of the Greeks and Romans who both used it as a port over 2,000 years ago, in fact the name comes from the Greek Salauris. Many centuries later Salou was the departure port for forces under Jaime I of Aragon, heading for the Balearic Islands to free them of their Arab stranglehold. In the ensueing centuries, Salou became a pirates haven, a regular stopping off point for Barbary Pirates, sailing the surrounding coastline, a defensive tower (Torre Vella) was constructed by order of the Archbishop of Tarragona in 1530 to help defend against these pirates. After the opening of a railway line in 1865, Salou began to grow and prosper, but it took almost 100 years for tourism to arrive in a big way. The lighthouse on Cape Salou was built in 1858.
Overview: Salou today is the major tourism centre for the Costa Dorada (Golden Coast), attracted by its beautiful beaches, wonderful climate, wide range of tourist facilities and popular theme parks (Port Aventura and Costa Caribe), holidaymakers arrive in their thousands, especially during the hot summer months. Salou's promenade (Passeig Jaume I) is one of the best loved landmarks in the resort and it stretches along the coast behind the main beach - Llevant beach, which at 1,200 metres is the longest beach in Salou and has an area set aside for assorted sports activities during the summer months. Salou has many fine beaches, many carrying 'Blue Flag' status for cleanliness and safety. Salou is particularly popular with British tourists, most of whom arrive at the nearby Reus airport just 15 minutes drive from the resort.
© Spain and Spanish 2008 - Salou
Salou Spain
Costa Dorada Resorts - Salou
Salou Spain - Information - Map - Weather - History - Holidays
Salou Map:
Salou is located near to the cities of Tarragona and Reus in the region of Catalonia.
The map to the right has 'zoom' and 'pan' features which enable you to use the buttons on the top left to zoom in and get a detailed street map of Salou, or pan around to view any number of the surrounding towns, resorts and villages including Reus, Tarragona, Vilafortuny, Cambrils, La Pineda, Vila-Seca, Sant Miguel, Torredembarra and Mont Roig del Camp.
Salou is situated on the C-31B and can be easily accessed from the A-7 and AP-7 motorways, the nearest airport at Reus is just 15 minutes drive away, the International Airport at Barcelona is about 1 hours drive.
Salou Weather: Salou enjoys a superb all year round climate with plenty of sunshine and very low rainfall. Salou enjoys a generally dry climate with long hot summers and mild winters, the average annual temperature is about 20° C. Salou has a huge range of hotels and is mostly a 'package holiday' style resort, although there is a decent range of privately owned holiday accommodation to be found in the area.
Salou is located near to the cities of Tarragona and Reus in the region of Catalonia.
The map to the right has 'zoom' and 'pan' features which enable you to use the buttons on the top left to zoom in and get a detailed street map of Salou, or pan around to view any number of the surrounding towns, resorts and villages including Reus, Tarragona, Vilafortuny, Cambrils, La Pineda, Vila-Seca, Sant Miguel, Torredembarra and Mont Roig del Camp.
Salou is situated on the C-31B and can be easily accessed from the A-7 and AP-7 motorways, the nearest airport at Reus is just 15 minutes drive away, the International Airport at Barcelona is about 1 hours drive.
Salou Weather: Salou enjoys a superb all year round climate with plenty of sunshine and very low rainfall. Salou enjoys a generally dry climate with long hot summers and mild winters, the average annual temperature is about 20° C. Salou has a huge range of hotels and is mostly a 'package holiday' style resort, although there is a decent range of privately owned holiday accommodation to be found in the area.
Salou Beaches: The Salou area in all has some 34 'Blue Flag' beaches and these include the main beaches Llevant Beach, 1,200 metres long sandy beach, and Poniente Beach (Platja de Ponent) about 1,000 metres long, again sandy. Other nearby beaches include Capellans Beach (Platja dels Capellans), Llarga Beach (Platja Llarga), Cala Crancs Beach, Cala de la Font Beach and Penya Tallada Beach.
Salou Markets: The main street market for Salou is held on Mondays in the old town just off Calle Barcelona, other markets are held nearby in Cambrils (Wednesday), Tarragona (Tuesday and Thrusday), Reus (Monday and Saturday) and La Pineda on Fridays.
Places to Visit: Port Aventura - a huge theme park and one of the biggest attractions in the region, try out the Dragon Khan 'Mega-Looper' for starters, it is also said to have the fastest Roller Coaster in the whole of Europe (the Furius Baco), it also features a multi-media show called 'Fiesta Aventura'. You can also visit the Costa Caribe Water Park, with its great range of pools, shutes and slides. For a bit of culture take a trip to the historic city of Tarragona where you will find plenty of sites of historical and cultural interest, or even Barcelona which is only an hour away, but there is so much to see and do here you will need much more than just a day.
Salou Hotels: You will find an excellent range of hotels and holiday accommodation available in Salou and most of the major tour operators offer package deals to the resort or you might want to book your own accommodation on the internet where you will find a good choice of hotels and privately owned rental accommodation, search for the best deals, book your own flights and don't forget to book airport transfers to Salou so that you don't need to hang around for local taxis when you arrive. You can find a selection of holiday rental property here: Salou Holiday Rentals.
Salou Markets: The main street market for Salou is held on Mondays in the old town just off Calle Barcelona, other markets are held nearby in Cambrils (Wednesday), Tarragona (Tuesday and Thrusday), Reus (Monday and Saturday) and La Pineda on Fridays.
Places to Visit: Port Aventura - a huge theme park and one of the biggest attractions in the region, try out the Dragon Khan 'Mega-Looper' for starters, it is also said to have the fastest Roller Coaster in the whole of Europe (the Furius Baco), it also features a multi-media show called 'Fiesta Aventura'. You can also visit the Costa Caribe Water Park, with its great range of pools, shutes and slides. For a bit of culture take a trip to the historic city of Tarragona where you will find plenty of sites of historical and cultural interest, or even Barcelona which is only an hour away, but there is so much to see and do here you will need much more than just a day.
Salou Hotels: You will find an excellent range of hotels and holiday accommodation available in Salou and most of the major tour operators offer package deals to the resort or you might want to book your own accommodation on the internet where you will find a good choice of hotels and privately owned rental accommodation, search for the best deals, book your own flights and don't forget to book airport transfers to Salou so that you don't need to hang around for local taxis when you arrive. You can find a selection of holiday rental property here: Salou Holiday Rentals.