Benicassim is another one of those unexpected surprises. The town is a popular place to stay with “northerners” but it hasn't been spoilt by over commercialisation and the weather is just as hot and the sea just as warm as it is down south. The campground was lovely with shaded pitches under gums, pines and mulberry trees. There was the usual bar and pool and the fresh bread was to die for. There was even supermarket straight across the road and another a block away. We bought fresh Atlantic salmon and had thick pan fried fillets for two nights. The price – €7.50/kilo.
We took to the bike again and cycled along the beachfront in the opposite direction to the Green Way. The cycle tracks run all the way along the beach promenade. There are several beaches all the way along the coast to the south but its difficult to tell where one ends and the next begins – bit like Northie, Elurea and Wanda but not. We cycled for over ten kilometres to the port of Castellion.
The beaches are clean and the water is crystal clear but there is no real tide here in the Mediterranean and the sand isn't white, or yellow for that matter (no matter what they say in the travel brochures or on travel programs). The sand here is a strange grey/brown and finer than the sand in most of Oz, although it is similar to the volcanic sand in parts of north Queensland. The predominant coastal mountain rock is shale not sandstone and I guess that is where the colour comes from.
The weather is hot and the water is warm yet the beaches are mostly empty. Most of the beachside apartments are shuttered up and even the weekend crowd of locals isn't what I expected. It's hard to believe that all this vacation accommodation can pay for itself during just July and August. It is only the camping grounds that are mostly full at tis time of year.
We caught the bus into Castellion de la Plana, the only major town between Valencia and Tarragona. It is a bit rough around the edges but the centre of town is really nice. The central market square is very old but quite charming with a beautiful fountain surrounded by an ancient church, the town hall and the magnificently preserved market building. The rest of the central district is full of pedestrian shopping streets all preserving that classic Spanish style. There are dozens of open plazas, usually with a fountain in the middle and shaded with trees, where you can sit in one of the many cafes or bars and relax.
Benicassim is now one of our favourite places and where we have stayed the longest. There is something about this stretch of coast that is so appealing to us.
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