My friend and I are trying to plan a trip to Spain in the Spring- any advice on a route from Bilbao to Barcelona that will include a hiking trip in the Pyrenees??
I have never been to Spain before, but I have been looking into it and I am intrigued by the northeastern region and definitely do not want to miss Barcelona. I thought a good route might be Bilbao - Barcelona. We plan on backpacking (hiking, hitch-hiking, camping) for the duration of the trip, which will be about 10-12 days long. I want to include a 3-5 day hiking/camping trip in the Pyrenees, but need a good route that will loop us north into the mountains and then southeast toward a road leading to Barcelona.
ANY advice on a route, or suggestions for resources on trail information in the Pyrenees- or even advice on whether or not this is a plausible plan - would be greatly appreciated. Thanks fellow travelers!!!
Reply to this Yes, Bilbao is a good start then go to San Sebastian which is the nicest spanish city. I would also advise to go to La Rioja (where the famous wine is produced).
Reply to this i have no advise on a trail, but your plan makes me jealous! haha
San Sebastian is a great stop and i had a friend that loved Bilbao for a semester abroad.
Reply to this San sebastian is very beautiful, but if you want to go to barcelona then you have to choose if you stay on the west side of the pyrenees and see the PAIS VASCO region, green and beautiful or you stay in the east side in catalonia region, were you can also do all your hiking /camping activities.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/69/Catalunya%2BComarques%2BCatal%C3%A0.jpg
if you have a look at this map, you will see Vall d'aran, alt urgell. I think this places are good for your activities.
I found this website, I think it can help (even if it offers accomodation).
http://www.turismerural.com/
good luck
Reply to this LaurenCG,
Last year I spent more than 6 months in northern parts of Spain. It is fantastic, believe me!
topwalks.net is a website about walking routes in Spain. Unders Huesca (Aragon) you will find a lot of routes - detailed descriptions, maps, driving instructions, road maps and GPS waypoints. I was using that web for planning my routes in Pyrenees (Huesca, Aragon) and Picos de Europa (Asturias and Cantabria). Highly recommended.
For me, Barcelona is a place to go. On the north coast I like bigger cities like Santander (Cantabria), Gijón (Asturias) and a small town like Llanes (Asturias). These places a close to Picos the Europa, which is also a wonderful place to hike.
The above mentioned website is also a good source of information about the landscapes in Spain.
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