Walking holiday in Gran Canaria
| country: | Canary Islands |
| trip type: | Moderate walking holidays |
| departures: | 2008: 15 Nov 2009: 7 Mar |
| price: | From £715 (8 days) excluding flights. Price based on two people sharing. Single supplement £60. Price includes accommodation, some meals and transport. We can book train tickets or help research flights from the UK |
the amazing things you'll be doing
Gran Canaria is just a four hour flight from the UK (in the same time-zone), and the awesome landscapes of its central highlands – with tall towers of volcanic rock, deep valleys filled with exotic vegetation, and woods and meadows between – rise above 1900m. The island is of course well known for its beaches, but the interior remains to be discovered, with its isolated villages, fascinating cave sites, exotic flora and ancient Caminos Reales pathways, and the winter six months between Nov and April provide perfect walking temperatures averaging 20ºC.
Spend a week exploring Gran Canaria’s Highlands on a small group walking holiday, from a comfortable single-centre base. Holidays include accommodation, all breakfasts and lavish packed-lunches, 2 dinners, 3 days of organised walks, a handbook of local information and self-guided walks, the support of a knowledgeable manager, airport transfers to/from a designated flight, and local transportation.
Accommodation: Stay in the pretty pueblo of Tejeda, set amongst terraced hillsides and some of the most dramatic scenery of the island at the head of a huge ravine. The boutique Hotel Rural Fonda de la Tea has traditionally decorated, en-suite rooms leading off a typical Canarian “patio”, and lovely views. It is in the centre of the town, within easy walking distance of museums, shops and other amenities.
Walking: The itinerary allows for great flexibility, as each guest is free to walk as much or as little as they like. Three days of organised walks alternate with days of self-guided walking, and on any day guests can choose to take an alternative self-guided walk or simply to relax and explore independently. The organised walks may be subject to change depending on current conditions and guest enthusiasms.
Spend a week exploring Gran Canaria’s Highlands on a small group walking holiday, from a comfortable single-centre base. Holidays include accommodation, all breakfasts and lavish packed-lunches, 2 dinners, 3 days of organised walks, a handbook of local information and self-guided walks, the support of a knowledgeable manager, airport transfers to/from a designated flight, and local transportation.
Accommodation: Stay in the pretty pueblo of Tejeda, set amongst terraced hillsides and some of the most dramatic scenery of the island at the head of a huge ravine. The boutique Hotel Rural Fonda de la Tea has traditionally decorated, en-suite rooms leading off a typical Canarian “patio”, and lovely views. It is in the centre of the town, within easy walking distance of museums, shops and other amenities.
Walking: The itinerary allows for great flexibility, as each guest is free to walk as much or as little as they like. Three days of organised walks alternate with days of self-guided walking, and on any day guests can choose to take an alternative self-guided walk or simply to relax and explore independently. The organised walks may be subject to change depending on current conditions and guest enthusiasms.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Transfer from Las Palmas airport and enjoy a welcome dinner. |
| Day 2: | Follow a pilgrim path to the Acusa plateau and visit the aboriginal caves of Acusa Seca on an organised walk. (9.3 miles, altitude gain/loss 520m). Or head out on a short self-guided walk into the great Tejeda Ravine. |
| Day 3: | Take a self-guided walk through forests of Canarian Pine to the monolith of Roque Nublo from the pretty village of La Culata (5.3 miles, alt. gain/loss 530m). Or you might relax at your hotel, and enjoy Tejeda’s cafés and shops. |
| Day 4: | Set out from the attractive town of Valleseco to explore the tranquil north of the island (9.5 miles, alt. gain 825m /alt. loss 550m). Or choose a self-guided walk from Tejeda, maybe circuiting beneath Roque Nublo to La Culata. |
| Day 5: | Today’s self-guided walk ascends the lush Barranco de la Mina to reach high pastures (5.8 miles, alt. gain/loss 430m). Or spend the day in Tejeda and maybe visit a museum or two. |
| Day 6: | Your last organised walk takes you from the highest point on the island along the amazing central ridge, with stunning views (11.9 miles, alt. gain 200m/alt. loss 1000m). |
| Day 7: | Take a final self-guided walk around the rim of the Caldera de Gáldar and then to Artenara to explore the many cave-villages in the area (8.5 miles, alt. gain 450m /alt. loss 850m) Tonight enjoy a farewell dinner in a fine local restaurant. |
| Day 8: | Transfer to Las Palmas airport. |
how this holiday makes a difference
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One of the main factors in choosing the location of our holidays is the presence of local communities which can benefit from low-impact responsible tourism. We are working closely with the enterprising former mayor of the region, Señor José-Antonio Rodriguez Rodriguez, to encourage people into the area to appreciate its unique beauty.
We aim to bring new income to small family-run enterprises and our locally based manager lives as part of the community, in a rural village. We source many of the packed-lunch ingredients directly from village neighbours: delicious fruit picked that day from gardens, and cheese from local shepherds. We support the village shops and bar/restaurants by purchasing the remaining ingredients for our packed-lunches, and dining in the evening on their delicious locally sourced produce. We encourage visits to Tejeda’s fascinating museums which describe the history of the local people and the region, and of the traditional life of a Gran Canarian peasant. We are also working with the mayor to apply pressure on the island’s parks service to try to repair a footpath to one of the most extraordinary, and currently "lost" aboriginal caves on the island. The Gran Canarians have a high awareness of environmental responsibility, especially concerning one of their scarcest resources: water. Our handbook explains this and advises on how to use water responsibly, to conserve energy and recycle waste on the island. All our local transportation is “carbon-neutral”: carbon emissions are fully offset through a scheme in place with the Carbon Neutral Company. Our brochure production and distribution is also carbon neutral through a similar scheme, and we offer all our clients the opportunity to offset the carbon emissions caused by their flights too. Our brochure and all other literature and correspondence uses recycled paper, and we operate a rigorous recycling and energy saving policy both at our UK office and all our destinations, as well as encouraging and assisting our local suppliers to do the same. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've lead the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |