Every year in late July, Blanes hosts one of the most prestigious international fireworks competitions in the world. Companies from a dozen or more countries compete over several nights, launching their displays from the sea into the sky above the beach and the castle. The competition has been running since the 1950s and the standard is exceptionally high — these are not ordinary municipal fireworks but carefully choreographed pyrotechnic programmes set to music.
The beach fills with tens of thousands of spectators on each competition night, and accommodation in Blanes and neighbouring towns is booked solid. If you are visiting the Costa Brava in late July, it's worth building your itinerary around one of the competition nights. The best viewing positions are on the beach south of the harbour and on the hillside above Marimurtra, from where you can see both the fireworks and their reflections in the water.