This is the first time to join the hiking package. Overall arrangement are perfect but the hotel ranking have big difference and not consistency. We have 1 or 2 nights staying in 1* pension, there is no kettle and no cup in the room. Overall the pensions are clean, only one need to carry luggage up to second floors because no lift. Breakfasts and dinners are good.
Wonderful walks with a super guide José is such an engaging and encouraging guide. The views from the tops of the mountains were fabulous. José’s explanations of the local area were wide ranging covering the history, agriculture and much more. The walks were at times quite challenging but José was very good at keeping us all together and ensuring everyone was able to manage the walks. His talks strategically placed for recovery on strenuous sections. The lunch sandwiches were fantastic (prepared by Josè). The hotel was comfortable and the food, which was substantial, was prepared by Raquel who runs the hotel. She was always very friendly and welcoming. We made use of the bar and terrace after the walks for a relaxing beer. Definitely take sticks as some downhill sections have loose stones underfoot.
The trip was enjoyable and rewarding. The days were quite long, 7 - 8 hours. The accommodation was usually 30 -45 minutes further along from where the trip notes ended for the day. There wasn’t a lot of time to stop and look around en route. Accommodation was really good with excellent hosts. Quite a lot of the walk was on hard surfaces, a bit hard on the feet at times. The views were spectacular, especially when near the coast. Our weather was perfect except for some rain on day 1, which didn’t matter too much.