Picos de Europa to the Coast

Perfect if you are looking for a trip combining easier mountain walking with some time spent on the coast, this tour offers the perfect contrast of coast and mountains. With daily walks of between 8 and 23km (possible to shorten the longest day) and ascents of up to 600m, this will be suited to anybody with a relatively good fitness level who wants to do some mountain walking without a huge effort. Stay overnight in comfortable hotels with great locations, offering warm hospitality and great food.

Classic Routes | If you’re the active, outdoorsy type, who’s interested in taking on the great routes of the world or looking for a challenge, then our Classic Routes are for you. We’re talking the West Highland Way, Tour Du Mont Blanc and the Passau to Vienna Danube Cycle Path, to name but a few!

Inn to Inn Walking | Walk from place-to-place changing accommodations each night. Generally staying in B&B’s, inns, and guesthouses.

Coastal Walking, Off the Beaten Track, Alpine Walking

This walking tour is graded Easy-Moderate. Walks are between 4-7 hours and there is an ascent/descent of between 250m to 600m each day. We have chosen some of the easier walks in the Picos so that anybody with a relatively good level of fitness should be able to enjoy this tour. However, as you are in a mountainous area you should expect some rocky terrain which can become slippy when wet and there will be some steep drop-offs. There are two more difficult walks. One is the Cares gorge walk which is 25km long in total and involves a fair bit of ascent (600m). However, it is possible to return from part way and not do the full walk and all of the ascent is near the start of the walk. As this walk also involves walking alongside a steep drop for most of the way, we provide an option for anybody with vertigo issues to travel with their luggage to Arenas de Cabrales and do an optional loop walk from there instead. And on Day 3, you have the option to take a de-tour to the summit of Horcados Rojos. If you choose to take this de-tour, this day would be graded more as strenous rather than Moderate. 

We specifically select your accommodation to ensure that you enjoy every minute of your stay. They all offer a warm welcome to walkers, traditional hospitality and delicious local food.

The hotels we normally use are detailed below. We may sometimes have to use alternative hotels subject to availability but if this is the case we will always let you know when confirming your booking.

Solo Walkers

This holiday is unfortunately not available to solo walkers due to the remote nature of some of the walks.

Single Rooms

If you require single rooms within your party we would be happy to accommodate you although there is a single room supplement payable.

Meals

A delicious breakfast is included each morning and 4 dinners whilst at the Tama and Sotres Hotels. The accommodations are happy to provide a packed lunch - this should be requested on arrival. Or you can pick up lunch in the village or stop along the trail. Your route notes have details for each day.

The routes on this trip are generally way-marked but can be unclear at times so you will need to follow the route notes and maps provided. You will also have access to the Macs Adventure Smartphone App enabling you to follow the route using your phone’s GPS so using this combined with the provided route notes and maps means you should have no problems finding your way.

This holiday is available to start any day of the week between the beginning of May and end of October, subject to availability.

The weather in this part of Spain is most comfortable for mountain walking at this time of year, and whilst sudden mists are common they usually burn off by mid-day. As with all mountainous areas and particularly because of the proximity of the mountains to the coast in this area, the weather can also change suddenly and there can be sudden rain-showers, or even snow at any time of year so you should be prepared for all weather conditions with waterproof gear and plenty of sunscreen!  We also recommend checking daily weather forecasts whilst you are out there and taking care when crossing streams which may fill up during the spring and autumn.

From Bilbao Airport - Take a bus or taxi (Approx 25€) to the centre of Bilbao. From Bilbao bus station take a bus to Unquera (2.5 to 3hrs). From Unquera an included transfer will take you to Tama.

From Santander Airport - Take a bus or taxi to the centre of Santander (15mins). From Santander bus station take the bus to Unquera (1hr 20mins). From Unquera an included transfer will take you to Tama.

Airlines flying to Bilbao include Easyjet and Vueling from the UK, and you can fly via European hubs with airlines such as KLM, Lufthansa, and Air France.

For Santander, fly from the UK with low-cost airlines such as Ryanair and Vueling. Or you can also fly with Iberia or British Airways

Take one of the regular buses to nearby Llanes (20 min). From here there are regular buses to Santander (2hrs), Asturias (3hrs) or Bilbao Airports (4h15).

Your bags will be transferred between your accommodation as per your itinerary. We ask you to limit your luggage to one bag of up to 20kg per person.