Figueres castle shuttle bus draws 907 riders in a month

A shuttle minibus linking the centre of Figueres with the Castell de Sant Ferran carried 907 passengers in its first month. Figueres City Council says the result shows the pilot scheme was well received.

The shuttle was one of several measures the council introduced this summer to promote tourism in the capital of the Alt Empordà. The others were a combined ticket for four cultural sites, a joint day-and-night Dalí offer, and permanent promotional displays in the town centre.

A cheap ride up the hill

The minibus ran from 20 July to 23 August. It linked the Rambla and the Teatre-Museu Dalí with the Castell de Sant Ferran, the fortress above the town, in both directions.

The full route was 1.5 km. The outbound trip to the castle runs uphill. The service operated from 11am to 5pm, the hottest part of the day, and a single trip cost €0.50.

Some passengers travelled free. These were holders of three local transport cards:

• T-Menors, for young people up to 18 who are registered on the Figueres municipal register (the padró)
• T-social reduïda, for people on low incomes
• T-estudiant, for students registered in Figueres who are enrolled in official courses

Electric castle buses could take over

Next summer the service could look different. The council and the new operator of visits to the castle, Actiescola and Terramar, will work towards using the electric buses that already carry visitors inside the fortress.

These vehicles have 25 seats and open sides. At present they are not registered and do not have the permits needed to run outside the castle grounds. The council has not said when this might change.

Four sites, one ticket

The Figueres City Pass also launched this summer. It gives entry to four cultural venues: the Casa Natal Salvador Dalí, the artist's birthplace, the Museu del Joguet de Catalunya (Catalonia's toy museum), the Museu de l'Empordà and the Castell de Sant Ferran.

So far 131 visitors have bought it. Of these, 41% came from Spain, 38% from France and 7% from Italy.

The pass costs €19. Buying the four tickets separately would cost €34. It is sold online through the Casa Natal Salvador Dalí website, and holders have 30 days to visit all four venues. The pass will remain on sale now that the summer is over.

Dalí by day and by night

A second offer, "Dalí. Nit i Dia" (Dalí. Night and Day), was agreed between the Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí and the city council. It combined the Teatre-Museu Dalí's traditional August night opening with a daytime visit to the Casa Natal Salvador Dalí.

The joint ticket was on sale from 1 to 23 August, while the museum opened in the evenings. It cost €29, compared with €39 for the two tickets bought separately (€24 plus €15). In total, 243 people bought it.

At the birthplace, visitors follow an immersive route through Dalí's childhood, his private rooms and the landscapes that shaped him. The night opening offers a quieter, more exclusive visit to the Teatre-Museu Dalí.

Promotion now permanent

The council has also installed a digital totem outside the church of Sant Pere. Its screen shows promotional videos, images and posters. It will stay there all year.

Projections of Dalí's works will also remain in place permanently. They appear on the facades of the Torre Galatea at the Teatre-Museu Dalí, the Sala d'Exposicions l'Escorxador exhibition hall and plaça Catalunya.

Why It Matters

For a town whose visitor numbers are dominated by the Teatre-Museu Dalí, these figures offer an early sign that people will go further when the route is made easier. More than 900 trips in five weeks suggests that the uphill walk has been one barrier keeping visitors away from the castle. It is worth watching whether the jump to electric buses can be sorted out before next summer. That depends on registration and permits, which are not yet in place.

The City Pass numbers are more modest, but the buyer profile stands out. With French visitors making up 38% of sales, the offer seems to reach the cross-border market that matters so much to the northern Costa Brava. For those staying in Empuriabrava or Castelló d'Empúries, a single ticket covering four Figueres sites may make an easy day trip inland, especially outside the beach season.

The permanent totem and projections fit a wider effort across the region to improve how visitors find their way around and learn about local heritage. A similar focus can be seen in Empuriabrava, where heritage signs were recently renewed. Figueres is also adding to what it offers, with the old prison gardens opening in October.

The next thing to watch is whether the City Pass keeps selling through the autumn and winter. Any figures the council publishes later should show whether Figueres can attract visitors beyond the main summer months.