Hike Spain and France

Activity Level	Medium Challenging
Accomodation Standards
Start/Finish	Girona/Figueres
Distance	75km / 47 Miles
Tour Type	Hiking Guided Tour
Availability	April/May/Sept/Oct/Nov

Overview

Experience 8 Day Adventure, hiking the Catalan and French Coastal trail
Immerse in Surrealism by visiting Salvador Dali house and Museum
Discover Romanesc arquitecture in St. Pere de Rhodes
Wine tasting in Spain & France
Expert Leaders offering environmental and cultural awareness of destination
Support vehicle in all the Hikes
Natural Protected Areas protocol for minimizing impact

Distance Instructions

Itinerary

DAY 1. GIRONA - CADAQUÉS (5KM)

Meet up with your guide and fellow travelers at Girona Train Station. Transfer to Cap de Creus
Natural Park, the most easterly point in Spain and probably one of the wildest spots on La Costa
Brava that played as a backdrop to Salvador Dalí’s artistic mind. We will take a stroll to the rock
that influenced his painting “The great masturbator” and stop for lunch at the Light house.
From here we will be transfered to the painter’s house, in Port Lligat.
Free afternoon to relax and enjoy the enchanting village of Cadaques known as the pearl of the
western Mediterranean. Its history traces back to the Greco-Roman times, being also an
important fishing settlement throughout the entire span of the Middle Ages.

DAY 2. CADAQUÉS- PORT DE LA SELVA (12KM)

Short transfer to the trailhead in the Natural Park of Cap de Creus. Our hike today is through
strikingly dramatic rocky landscape surrounded by surreal shapes, we meander through the Park
to Port de la Selva, a quaint little village by the sea. We will follow part of the GR-11, marked
with white and red stripes. This route is one of the long distance trails of Europe, in this case the
long traverse that joins the Cantabric sea and the Mediterranean sea through the Pyrenees
Mountain range. Afternoon wine tasting through the history of empordà wine. We dine at a
local restaurant.

DAY 3. PORT DE LA SELVA- COLERA (13KM)

Today our coastal path will take us from Port de la Selva to Colera discovering wild beaches and
lush vegetation all together creating a breathtaking landscape. After leaving Port de la Selva
we follow the trail along the bay, coming across some viewpoints ideal for photo-stops such as
the light house of s’Aranella built in 1910. From here our route continues through coves and
over headlands bringing us to the harbor of Llançà. Next landmark is the village of Colera,
where the green color from Albera mountain range leads into the Mediterranean Sea. Enjoy
lunch in town before short bus ride to St. Pere de Rodes monastery visit. Thus Considered
together with Santiago de Compostela, one of the most important pilgrimages in the Iberian
Peninsula during the middle ages.

DAY 4. COLERA- CERVERE (10KM)

From Colera to Portbou, we will walk our final stretch of the trail in the Spanish territory, where
we will start seeing vineyards, and breath taking views of Costa Brava and Pyrenees Mountains.
These, will accompany us for the rest of the trek into France and all the way to Argeles. Once we
leave Portbou, we will be crossing the border to France through the trail known as ” The Way To
Exile”, from the end of the Civil War ( 1939), when more than 350.000 people fled to France
through the same trail over the mountains. We will find historical landmarks from this period but
also from WWII. The little charming coastal town of Cervere will welcome us into France.

DAY 5. CERVERE - BANYULS (10KM)

We start where we finished off the previous day in order to continue with this itinerary of the
French Coastal Trail, as we leave Cervere behind we will enter the Natural Marine Reserve of
Cervere- Banyuls, where coral reef is preserved and marine life protected, all the way to
Banyuls. Outstanding landscape as we walk across the region, with vineyard terraces and
amazing shaped rocks all along the trail, giving the name of Red Coast to this part of the French
Mediterranean Littoral. As we arrive to our destination in Banyuls, a very quaint fisherman
village, we will discover the historical winemaking traditions dating back from the Greco-Roman
times as we visit one of the local cellars. Have some free time to explore the town before a
transfer back to Colliure for dinner and accommodation.

DAY 6. BANYULS- PORTVENDRES (13KM)

Morning transfer sends us to Banyuls to start our walk, a highlight of the trek, as in the coastal trail
today we will be walking into beautiful beaches an striking wild cliffs, with the visit of really
important heritage sites such as the harbor of Port Vendres and Paulilles Beach. Always with the
Med Sea on our right, we will walk right into a former Dynamite Factory, closed in the 80’s but
reopened as an open air museum, also we will visit how they repair the local fishermen’s boats
and check out the watch towers of defense of WWI and WWII. We trek to Cape Bear with its
slender lighthouse facing the Gulf of Leon giving us an incredible panorama to arrive to Port
Vendres, important harbor, strategic enclave and home to world-famous artist like Charles
MackIntosh, from Glasgow. Free time for lunch and transfer to Hotel.

DAY 7. PORTVENDRES - ARGELERS (12KM)

Our last day in France begins in Port Vendres where we start our walk along the cape, come across
several abandoned bunkers used by the German troops during WWII, and continue all the way
through the coast until Colliure, the legendary enclave, with its royal castle, outstanding from the
skyline of the beautiful coastal town, so popular with artist, bohemians, wine lovers and world
travelers. From the cliffs of Colliure, our trek takes us through rolling hills and forests, down to the
beach of Argeles, the final stretch of the trail. It’s hard to imagine that this tourist resort was once
one of the most important concentration camps at the end of the Spanish Civil War. Today, a long
sandy beach, palm trees and plenty of cafes, bars and restaurants to celebrate life and the successful
end of our coastal trek! After lunch, we will take our private bus to Figueres, check in Hotel and after
some free time, we will meet again for a special Farewell Dinner.

DAY 8. FIGUERES MUSEU DALÍ & DEPARTURE

After breakfast, we will visit Salvador Dali Museum in Figueres with a private guide. From 12pm
Continue with own travel arrangements.

What's Included

INCLUDED

7 nights Accommodation 3/4* Hotel
7 breakfasts + 5 dinner + 2 lunches
Full support Van with snacks + water
Skip the line tickets to Dalí's Museum
8 full day leader expert on tour
Daily maps of the route
Walking sticks and water bottle

EXCLUDED

Accommodations

Extensions

Information:

PRE STAYS & POST STAYS in Barcelona.
Further information and booking please contact: hola@walkingcostabrava.com
Walking tours are led in Catalan, Spanish, English and French by professional licensed guides.
Walkingplanets! Is fully covered with Hiscox Insurance Company Ltd with a policy of 300.000€.