I will be travelling by train from France to North East Spain in June 2001. I want to stay somewhere accessible by train. I cannot decide between Tarragona, Blanes or Llanca. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Tarragona, actually on the Costa Dorada, is a great town if your looking for both history and beach. It boasts many Roman ruins including an amphitheater and a museum with mosiacs, artifacts and ruins. I think a week though may be a lot of time to spend there unless you're planning on using some days soaking up the sun. It doesn't have the impressive coastline of the famed Costa Brava. Sitges is also a quaint town located between Tarragona and Barcelona. Are you going to Barcelona? As for Blanes, I wouldn't go there unless your sole intention is to soak up some rays on the beach. Culturally, it's uninteresting. They do have a nice beach but the coastline isn't that of some of the towns north of there. By the way, June may not give you the weather you need to hang out on the beach. To see the coast, you really need a car or to travel by bus. The train won't take you to the postcard spots of the Costa Brava. The third town you mentioned, Llanca, I unfortunately can't help you with. It's quite close to Portbou which is enough of a reason for me not to ever go there. The only memories I have of Portbou are of endless hours in the train station awaiting the morning train to Barcelona. Perhaps someone else has been there and can give you a positive account. Hope this helps.

Thanks for your suggestions Nevado. I will probably go to Tarragona for a few days and stay in Barcelona for a few days also. I will check out the buses along the coast, also.