Walking Holidays
Spain

Costa Brava

This beautiful Catalan coastal path in Spain starts in the shadow of the last foothills of the majestic Pyrenees mountains before heading into the Costa Brava. The coastal path passes through a variety of landscapes and sites as you alternate between hilly days with pretty rocky inlets, and easier days passing through bays with lots of wildlife interest.

Your walking trail following the Mediterranean coast starts in Cadaques, a beautiful small historic fishing port made from white-washed houses nestling at the base of green hills. Our Pyrenees Coastal Trail walking holiday between France and Spain ends in Cadaques and so the two self-guided walking holidays can be undertaken together or one after the other as a continuous linear walking trail.

Your first day passes around the rocky peninsulas and inlets of Cap de Creus and Cap de Norfeu. Secluded rocky bays nestle beneath picturesque headlands which offer great views across the clear blue sea. You'll then walk around the Bay of Roses, passing the Aiguamolis Natural Park.

After visiting the ruins of the ancient Greek town of Ampurias dating from 575BC you'll pass around another headland above the sea with typical Mediterranean vegetation. Later in the week, you'll get to explore the medieval village of Pals before climbing onto the wooded dunes known as the "mountains" of Begur. Further rocky headlands and bays lead you to the pretty bay of Llafranc.

This holiday is an ideal spring or autumn break. The Mediterranean sea keeps the Catalan coast pleasantly warm in the Spring and Autumn. 

Holiday Profile

6 nights/7 days: 5 & 1/2 days independent walking moving between guest houses

Dates

Every day from 7 April to 23 June & from 3 Sept to 27 October

Walking Profile & Grade

This self-guided or independent walking holiday is made up of 6 walks moving between hotels. The walks average about 19km with a maximum of 22km in any one day. Some sections of the trail are rough and stony in places with the odd steep section. This walking holiday alternates between hilly sections going up and down past headlands and creeks and other easier sections around wide, open bays. Daily ascents range between 25m and 600m with an average of 350m of ascent and descent per day.

This walking holiday is graded moderate. See more information about walking grades.

Accommodation & Meals

Half board accommodation in 2 & 3 star hotels

When to Travel

Our self-guided walking holiday along the Pyrenees Coastal Trail is available every day from 7 April to 23 June & from 3 Sept to 27 October. We do not run this holiday in the height of the summer due to the high temperatures and the difficulty in securing our top choice accommodation. The Mediterranean Sea keeps the Catalan coast mild, even in winter and pleasantly warm in the spring and autumn. You can expect temperatures in April of about 19°C, in May of 23°C and in June of 26°C on the coast during the day. Temperatures at altitude will be slightly cooler, especially during windy conditions. During hot weather sea breezes may keep the temperature cooler closer to the shoreline. Daytime temperatures are 26°C and in 22°C in September and October respectively.

This part of the Mediterranean coast is a relatively dry region, with the highest levels of rain in Spring occurring in April and May, although totals are still very low. September and October on average receive twice the monthly rainfall totals compared to the Spring. Average sunshine levels are high with an average of 7 hours or more per day from April through to September.

Fog is fairly rare in this region and although winds from the mountains and the coast are common they are generally less pronounced than further north. One benefit of winds blowing from the mountains is that they usually keep the skies blue. By contrast winds blowing from the South East coming in from the sea are usually associated with cloudy and rainy conditions. March and April are the windiest months.

Navigation, Walking Notes & Maps

This walking holiday follows a variety of trails. Much of the coastal trail follows the GR92 (Grande Randonnee) long distance trail which is well way-marked with red and white markings. The walk follows clear paths for the most part. The remaining sections follow local trails waymarked in various colours, whilst other sections have no or little markings. Our walking notes are detailed (more information here). They also include information about the sites which can be explored along the route. We supply one walking guide per person on this holiday. As well as the detailed walking notes we supply A4 extracts of the official walking maps. Your trail is highlighted on the maps.

Luggage Transfers

On this walking holiday, your main luggage is transferred between guest houses so you only have to carry a day rucksack with picnic lunch (supplied by the guest houses and included in the holiday price), water and spare clothes, waterproofs, camera etc. On this holiday a local taxi company is responsible for transporting your main luggage. We use the same company throughout the walking holiday, so if you have any specific requests you can ask the driver at the beginning of your trip. Please limit the weight of your bags to 15kg.

Travel Info

By Train

Eurostar, TGV and TER French trains allow access to Portbou train station in Spain from where you will be provided with a transfer to Cadaques. Changes between the Eurostar and TGV are at Lille, Paris or Lyon if you take a direct train. TGV's run from Montpellier, Perpignan or Figueres from where local train access Portbou. This journey will take more than a day for most options, except for early trains via Paris, as well as the early direct train from London to Lyon. Please use Rail Europe's train finder in our 

6 nights / 6 day's walking

• From €925
• Price per person based on 2 people sharing a room