Contemplating nature makes us return to our most primary essence and humble ourselves before its immensity. There have always been people especially sensitive to this contemplation who have studied and analyzed in detail nature, and who have disseminated their knowledge through natural exposures of different styles. In Blanes, we are very proud to have two extensive gardens both in beauty and variety, born of the purest love in nature, to their knowledge and dissemination: they are the Jardí Botànic Marimurtra (Botanical Garden Marimurtra) and the Jardí Tropical Pinya de Rosa (Pinya de Rosa Tropical Garden).
The Jardí Botànic Marimurtra is an authentic open-air museum with 16 hectares in which visitors can travel to different parts of the world through vegetation. It is considered the best Mediterranean Botanical Garden in Europe, it has also been declared a Cultural Asset of National Interest by the Generalitat de Catalunya. The name of Marimurtra defines well the space it occupies within the territory: on the one hand the Mediterranean Sea, which is seen from many corners of the Garden through spectacular views resulting from its elevation and steep topography; on the other hand, the myrtle (Myrtus communis), an aromatic plant very common in the Mediterranean area.
In the Jardí Botànic Marimurtra you will find an extensive and varied collection of plants: cacti and crass plants from the arid regions of South Africa and Central America, large subtropical plants such as palm and araucaria, ponds with aquatic plants, exotic plants, medicinal , aromatic, and a large collection of ferns present in areas of the Catalan mountain. In total, more than 4000 plant species, most exotic, with special specimens by age or size, highlighting among them, the collection of palm trees, aloes, cicadas and cacti.
This great natural reality, began in the mind of a great lover of science and botany, Karl Faust, a man who dedicated much of his life to create, care and preserve the Jardí Botànic Marimurtra. German by birth, Faust had always shown great curiosity about nature, but his parents lead him towards a business life that led him to Barcelona, and in which Faust triumphed by accumulating certain wealth. After fifty years, he decided to resume his passion and invested his fortune in the purchase of land with a perfect climate to be able to transplant plants from arid and subtropical climates to study them carefully. These lands were in Blanes, in the area of the first cliffs of the Costa Brava, a place with a beauty that surely had its weight in the choice of the site. His intention was to build a Botanical Garden as a meeting place between scholars and apprentices, far from the frenetic pace of the city, a small paradise dedicated to science and the ideals of nature, a true research and pedagogy center.
One of the most beautiful and charming corners of the Jardí Botànic Marimurtra is the Temple of Linné (in reference to the leading scientist and botanist who made the first great classification of living beings). It is the culmination of the visit to the Garden and also the end of a long staircase, from which you have one of the best panoramic views of the Mediterranean Sea at the beginning of its dance with the Costa Brava. It is right in this place where Les Nits del Marimurtra (Marimurtra Nights), a summer concert by renowned artists, is made every year.
The Jardí Tropical Pinya de Rosa is another example of love of nature expressed in the exhibition of more than 7,000 different species that come from tropical climates, either from their natural habitat, or from nurseries and private collections.
Its creator was the industrial engineer Don Fernando de Caralt, who, like Karl Faust, dreamed of the creation of a Botanical Garden, in this case, exclusively of tropical vegetation. The place comprises about 50 hectares and its location next to the Mediterranean Sea, makes visitors enjoy unbeatable panoramic views. The large, sometimes sheer extension of the estate has been compensated by the creation of a large number of connected roads and fantastic viewpoints that, together with the whole, combine science and art. The visitor can also see ponds, rafts and water wells to cover a farm, which is located within the farm.
Of the entire collection, those of Aloes, agaves, yuccas and Opuntias stand out, some of them considered among the best in the world. In 2003, theJardí Tropical Pinya de Rosa was declared a Natural Site of National Interest by the Parlament de Catalunya.
The Blanes Gardens are emblems of the city, visiting them will return your love for the purity of nature, do not miss them!
