FAQs

At Catalan Adventures, our experienced, locally based team is dedicated to offering you a truly authentic Catalan experience. Every holiday/tour includes a personal welcome meeting and round-the-clock support throughout your trip. Our mission is to ensure you have an unforgettable adventure and leave with memories that will last a lifetime.

Our “self-guided holidays” give you the freedom to start your holiday any day you want and travel along a trail at you own speed with all the tools and information you need to make it a great adventure. All your needs are taken care of, so all you have to do is focus on enjoying every moment, taking in the rich culture, history and spectacular scenery this region of Europe has to offer.

We think that travelling light is key to ensuring a really enjoyable and relaxing time. So put your camera, binoculars and bits and pieces in a day rucksack and leave all the heavy stuff to us.

Every morning we’ll pick up your bags containing anything you don’t need for your day. By late afternoon, we’ll have them waiting for you at your next evening’s accommodation.

Once you submit your booking request via the “BOOK NOW” button on the tour page, we will check accommodation availability for your start date. When availability is confirmed, we will ask you to provide a deposit of €100 per person to confirm the booking. Then 56 days before the start of the holiday, you will make the final payment and we will send you all documentation including the GPX-files.

We operate an online secure payment system via our Book Now page using credit card (except American Express) as payment method; we also accept Bank Transfers in Euros.

Your payment is held in a trust account until completion of the holiday. This provides your financial protection in compliance with the Package Travel Directive (EU) 2015/2302.

We strongly recommend that you are adequately insured for your holiday.

If you wish to alter your holiday arrangements, we will do our best to accommodate you, of course, subject to availability.

If you have to cancel your holiday you must notify us immediately. We apply a scale of cancellation charges. Please see our terms and condition on our bookings page.

In the very unlikely event that we have to cancel your holiday or make material alterations, we will notify you as soon as possible and offer you the choice of an alternative holiday or a full refund.

We are pleased to offer discounted rates to groups of 6 or more people travelling together on the same tour. For more details, please contact us.

Of course, you will need to be reasonably active, but we want our guests to enjoy rather than endure their holiday, so you do not need to be super-fit. All our walking and cycling holidays are graded. Please see the individual holiday for information. Please don’t hesitate in calling us if you need more advice!

We regularly take bookings from walkers who are solo travellers, so you would be most welcome. Please note that a supplement is payable to cover accommodation, arrival/departure transfers, luggage transfers and administration costs etc.

We like to think that parents are the best judge of what their children will be happy with on holiday. This includes just how active and interested they might be in the particular activity you are interested in. We’re not passing the buck, just being realistic, please contact us and we’ll be happy to offer you some advice.

Some of our accommodations are pet friendly, however some are not. If you want to come with your pet get in touch and we will try and tailor something for you with dog friendly hotels.

If you have new boots for the occasion, best get them worn in before you come to avoid any discomfort during your walking holiday. If you’ve chosen one of our longer tours and don’t walk regularly, it is probably a good idea to go for an energetic stroll or two in preparation.

Yes, we would be delighted to organise the tour according to your needs, be it to add extra nights, shorten the stay or change accommodations upon your request (subject to availability, prices upon request). Please contact us and let us know the changes you’d like to make.

Yes, if you want to change hotels less frequently, we can tailor your holiday. Be aware that it will mean more transfers if you still want to complete the same tour. Please contact us and let us know the changes you’d like to make.

Despite knowing that everyone has their own packing routine, here are some of the essentials we consider important for a comfortable walking holiday:

• Walking boots

Your most important item is, of course, a pair of comfortable walking boots with ankle support and a sole that provides grip, as some of the terrain can be rugged at times. Make sure you’ve worn them before to ensure they are well-fitting – there’s nothing worse than using a new pair of walking boots and finding out they don’t fit or even create blisters.

• Waterproofs

Just in case… we hope you won’t need it as you should mainly be walking in dry weather and warm sunshine. However, a lightweight waterproof is a good idea to have with you as there’s never a guarantee for weather conditions.

• Layers

You just can’t go wrong with this general clothing advise: A moisture-absorbing base layer, a warming mid-layer and water- and windproof outer layer to protect you against the weather. Especially in spring and autumn the weather can be unstable at times, with these layers you can easily adapt and be comfortable in changing weather conditions.

In the summer months you will need less warming clothing, generally airy active wear will suffice.

• Backpack

Bring a daypack to carry everything you need during the walk, especially water and a picnic. A capacity of 20-35 litres should be adequate. A backpack with hip belt and chest strap can provide extra comfort.

• Walking Poles

This is not a must but can come in handy as some of the ground is a little rugged; walking poles can help with stability and reduce strain on your knees.

• Important Extras

If not travelling during the winter months, a hat, swimwear, sunglasses, sun protection as well as mosquito spray will be a good addition to your walking kit. The later can also be purchased locally at a pharmacy if needed. A small first-aid kit is another item not to be missed in your daypack.

We provide pannier, helmets and all the bike tools, spare inner tubes, tyre levers, pump etc. Similar to our walking holidays you will mostly be cycling in dry weather, in warm sunshine, so casual, comfortable, summer cycling clothes will generally suffice and of course sun protection cream is essential. In the winter months it can be a little cold so you should bring some warm clothing, preferably layers and some waterproofs, just in case.

Accommodating special dietary requirements is rarely a problem, especially if we know in advance. Please let us know and we will pass your details on to the relevant accommodation providers.

Where evening meals are included in our prices, or where evening meals are available at the accommodation, vegetarian and vegan options are generally available as standard on the menu.

You can find out when the holiday is available in the “Availability & Prices” section on the holiday page and you can start your holiday any day you want during that period (subject to accommodation availability).

Check out the “Availability & Prices” section on the holiday page to find out what is included

Yes, all our holidays include an arrival transfer from the airport, train station or perhaps a hotel you’re staying in before you start your holiday with us (please see the “Travel Options” section on the holiday page).

Only some of our tours include a departure transfer (please refer to the “Availability and Prices” section of the tour page).

The departure options are also listed in more detail in the “Travel Options” section of the tour page.

For an optional extra, we can always offer departure transfers upon your request.

All our walking/cycling holidays are different, and some days there may be more kilometres to cover than others. Distances and terrain are detailed in our holiday descriptions in the “Itinerary” section of each tour page.

All our accommodations offer en-suite rooms and have been selected for their character, comfort and friendly atmosphere. There are also some optional upgrades on some of our holidays, for example an upgrade to a sea-view room.

We include a continental breakfast on all our holidays. Evening meals are included only where specified in the descriptions of the holiday in the “Availability and Prices” section on the tour page.

One of our guides will meet you at the agreed pick-up location and transfer you to the first accommodation. Once arriving at the hotel, you will have a welcome meeting to make sure all your questions will be answered.

Generally, trails are well marked with signposts and trail markers along the path. Additionally, you will be supplied with all documentation needed to navigate along the trails, containing detailed written route notes with pictures as well as GPX-files to follow along on your phone.

All our documentation carries our office number and our “out of office hours” emergency contact number. You can contact us for advice or help by phone at any time day or night.

We are flexible in our approach because we want you to enjoy your break. We can generally accommodate special requests of this nature by arranging a specific taxi transfer (pay locally) or it may be possible for you to keep our driver company at the time of the luggage transfer.

Yes, you will meet one of our guides at the beginning of your holiday and possibly for any other standard or optional transfers.

Depending on the time of the year, you will encounter very few or some more walkers along the trails, however, the trails never get very crowded at any time of the year.