Spain Guide
Valencia and Murcia
Benicàssim
BENICÀSSIM, a few kilometres north of Castellón, is famed for its Moscatel wine, and was once well known as a wine-producing area, although today the town is much more of a tourist resort, and better known for its annual music festival. Very few vineyards remain, but you can take a wine-tasting tour at Bodegas Carmelitano on c/Bodolz 10, just off Avda. Castellón (summer 9am–1.30pm & 4–8pm; winter 9am–1.30pm & 3.30–6.30pm; 964 30 08 49; €2).
Although Benicàssim is heavily developed for package tourism, budget accommodation is easy to come by. Hotel Residencia Canada, c/La Pau 1 (964 304 611, www.hotelcanadabenicassim.com; €36-50), has sunny, en-suite rooms, especially good value for single travellers. From the same owners is the more upmarket Hotel Montreal, by Terrers beach at c/Les Barraques 5 (964 300 681, www.hotelmontreal.es; €71-100), with comfy, polished-floor rooms, swimming pool and sun-dappled garden terrace, and a buffet-style restaurant open in the summer. For the utmost in pampering (and prices) try El Palasiet, Pontazgo 11 (964 300 250, www.palasiet.com; €201-250), a spa-hotel overlooking Playa Voramar, about 3km from town. In addition to elegant, pale-toned rooms, the luxe hotel features a thermal centre with thalassotherapy treatments – think whirlpools with algae – along with sweet-chocolate facial peels and onyx-stone massages. As for campsites, Camping Florida, Sigalero 34 (964 392 385), is close to the beach, with a pool and tennis courts. In the centre of town, restaurants line c/Santo Tomás, including delicious Spanish and Italian cuisine at Manduca, c/Santo Tomás 69 (t964 301 718).
There's a regular bus service from Castellón to Benicàssim: buses leave from the bus stop on Avenida Pintor Oliet roughly every fifteen minutes in summer, every thirty minutes in winter. There are also five daily buses to Vinaròs, two of which stop at Peñíscola en route. There are also fairly regular trains for both Vinarós and Castellón, leaving from the small, usually deserted station, ten-minutes' walk north of the centre .