Overview
Holiday Overview:
Why choose a Catalan High Pyrenees Self Guided Walking Holiday?
The Catalan Pyrenees are dramatic and unspoiled, dotted with stone villages clustered around Romanesque churches. This is magnificent walking country, enjoying the warmest climate of all the Pyrenean range, and our route continues to delight walkers with its combination of superb walking through unspoiled mountains and welcoming inns. Watch short-toed and booted eagles soar above as you walk along ancient paths, and look out too for griffon vultures, choughs, wild boar, chamois and fire salamanders.
Our route takes you into one of the loveliest regions of the Spanish Catalan Pyrenees, an area largely unknown to outsiders that nevertheless boasts great scenic beauty, handsome villages and age-old traditions. This is the heart of Catalonia, where the red and yellow Catalan flag flies proudly. As you walk from village to village, you discover two distinct landscapes – the final mighty peaks of the Pyrenees, with spectacular views of the range from Puigmal to Mount Canigou, and the warm, wooded hills of the Garrotxa towards the Mediterranean. Discover, too, Catalan food and wine, with delicious sausages and cured meats, trout from the rivers, and robust wines from the coastal plains.
We believe this is one of the best areas in the Pyrenees to walk and we’re sure with the spectacular mountain scenery, great mountain walks, fantastic accommodation and delicious Catalan cuisine, you will have a fantastic mountain adventure!
Itinerary
Itinerary:
Catalan Self Guided High Pyrenees Walking Holiday (7 Nights)
Nights: 7
Grade: 2-3 (click here to see our walking grades)
Terrain: farm tracks and mountain trails
Day 1: You will arrive at the the beautiful small mountain town of Ribes de Freser. Ribes de Freser in situated in the Vall de Nuria (Nuria Valley) and is surrounded by majestic peaks of 3000 meters.
Accommodation: 3* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Ribes de Freser. Three generations of the Pau Sola family welcome you to this friendly, comfortable hotel centrally located in the small spa town of Ribes de Freser - the hotel has been in their family since 1919. The restaurant (very popular with locals) serves unpretentious and highly enjoyable mountain fare based on traditional family recipes. We include the recently modernised 3 star rooms in the annexe across the road from the main building which houses the reception, dining room and bar areas. There is also a roof terrace with a hot tub and stunning mountain views.
Day 2: With a full day in Ribes de Freser, you take the scenic rack railway (pay locally) for the dramatic journey to the sanctuary of Nuria, one of Catalonia’s holiest sites, high in the mountains, 1,960 metres above sea level. There is time to climb above the monastery to admire the breathtaking views before you return on foot to Ribes de Freser along a magnificent trail down through the valley passing a beautiful Romanesque church en-route. (12km, 4hrs)
Accommodation: 3* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Ribes de Freser. See above
Day 3: Today you have a spectacular walk along undulating paths and tracks to the panoramic Collada Verda Pass (1,500 metres), from where you descend gradually through a wild valley to Llanars. To shorten the day, we offer an optional transfer at the start of the day. (16km, 5hrs or 22km, 7hrs)
Accommodation: 4* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Llanars. This high-quality, Alpine-style hotel is set in pleasant gardens, offering excellent accommodation and refined cuisine. The spacious bedrooms, most with a balcony, have uninterrupted views of the dramatic scenery. The public areas are beautifully furnished, and there is a spa incorporating an indoor pool, a sauna and a jacuzzi, use of which is free of charge.
Day 4: On your day in Llanars there are various options: a challenging high route along the ridge of the Serra de Cavallera (1899m) with a choice of descents is our favourite option in fine weather (16km, 6hrs); or you can head along quiet mountain roads via a splendid viewpoint to Santi Isidre (1,345m), which overlooks the Ter Valley (7km, 2.5hrs); for a gentler day, stroll to the neighbouring market town of Camprodón, two kilometres away, with its 12th-century bridge, Romanesque monastery, small shops, bustling, ancient centre and interesting Art Nouveau quarter. (5km, 2hrs)
Accommodation: 4* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Llanars. See above
Day 5: A short but thoroughly enjoyable route leads high above the valley, with sweeping views in clear weather. You pass the astonishing village of La Roca, which seemingly clings to the rock on which it is built, then cross a mix of pastureland and forest to reach Setcases. (12km, 4hrs)
Accommodation: 3* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Setcases. This is an attractive hotel which enjoys lovely views of the surrounding mountains. The pleasant restaurant serves delicious regional cuisine. Set in the large gardens is a small outdoor pool, while inside there is another swimming pool, a jacuzzi and facilities for spa treatments (pay locally).
Day 6: From your hotel, we transfer you high up the valley into the heart of the mountains for a splendid ascent to the Coma de l’Orri (2,500 metres) and an equally breathtaking descent through flower-strewn mountain meadows where you may spot marmot and chamois. (12km, 5hrs)
Accommodation: 3* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Setcases. See above
Day 7: This last walk is a fitting climax to the holiday. You start with a steep and challenging ascent away from Setcases, across the northern flank of the Puig de les Agudes, to the extraordinary Lliens Pass (1,800 metres), where you are rewarded in clear weather with an unrivalled panorama: to one side, the dramatic Pyrenean peaks, to the other, the warm, wooded hills of the Garrotxa. You then remain high up as you continue to the similarly panoramic Fembra Morte Pass (a good picnic spot) before descending through grand landscapes to Molló, close to the French border. (13km, 4.5hrs)
Accommodation: 3* Hotel, Breakfast & Evening Meal, Mollò. This is a friendly alpine-style hotel with stepped roofs and cheerful window boxes on the outskirts of the traditional mountain village of Molló. There are pretty gardens and terraces behind the hotel and the village swimming pool is available free to hotel guests from mid-June to mid-September. Catalan Adventures guests are free to dine from the à la carte menu.
Day 7: Departure
What your holiday includes:
- Seven nights’ B&B accommodation
- Seven evening meals
- Three picnics
- Moving of luggage between accommodations
- Detailed route notes and maps
- Personal information pack including information about local history, culture, traditions, restaurants, shops and local attractions etc
Other Info
Other information (what to bring etc):
What to bring:
With regards to equipment to bring, your most important item is of course a pair of comfortable walking boots with ankle supports if possible and soles that grip, as some of the terrain can be rugged at times. And, just in case . . . a waterproof, we hope you won't need it, mostly you will be walking in dry warm weather, so casual, comfortable walking clothes will generally suffice. A hat and sun protection cream is essential and a small rucksack for carrying lunch and water is also recommended, and you might consider a walking stick, as some of the ground is a little rough.
This holiday is Grade 2/3:
Grade 1
Walks: 3-6 hours
Ascent: 50-600m
Paths: Good paths, not too steep.
Walks have a relaxed pace with time to take in the views and surroundings. If you’re a fit and active person these walks will be perfect for you.
Grade 2
Walks: 5-8 hours
Ascent: 450-750m
Paths: Good with some steeper sections
Slightly longer walks than grade 1 with routes still on good paths and at a relaxed pace although there are a couple of steeper sections.
Grade 3
Walks: 5-10 hours
Ascent: 700-1200m
Paths: Rockier, steeper paths
For those that like longer days in the higher mountains. Routes are steep in places and a good standard of fitness is required.
Travel Options
Travel Options:
The simplest way to get here is to fly to Barcelona.
Once you arrive at Barcelona airport you will need to take the shuttle train to Barcelona Sants train station from the airport.
You then change trains at Sants and take a train to Ribes de Freser. You can find the train times from Barcelona Sants to Ribes de Freser here http://www.renfe.com/EN/viajeros/cercanias/barcelona/index.html (you will need to copy and paste this link into a browser).
At the end of the holiday you will take a taxi from Mollo to Ripoll train station for your train back to Barcelona (pay locally approx 80 Euros)
Travelling via Barcelona will give you the opportunity to explore this exciting city, you could spending a couple of nights there at the beginning or end of the holiday.
The following are some of the airlines that fly that fly into Barcelona:
- Ryanair
- Easyjet
- Jet2
- British Airways
- Monarch.
- Aer Lingus
- KLM
Availability and Prices
Prices and Availability:
Prices 2012
| GBP & Euros per person based on 2 in a double/twin room | GBP | Euros |
| 17th to 27th May | £ 749 | € 824 |
| 28th May to 8th July | £ 819 | € 901 |
| 9th July to 9 Sept | £ 849 | € 934 |
| 10th Sept to 30 Sept | £ 829 | € 912 |
| 1st to 15th Oct | £ 765 | € 842 |
Stop Press……….Check out our special offers!!!!!!
What your holiday includes:
- Seven nights’ B&B accommodation
- Seven evening meals
- Three picnics
- Moving of luggage between accommodations
- Detailed route notes and maps
- Personal information pack including information about local history, culture, traditions, restaurants, shops and local attractions etc
from £699 Book Now
Images
