Self-Guided Walking Holiday Spain • Aragon Active

Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain

The perfect way to explore the spectacular Spanish Pyrenees

Price per person
4 nights from €485

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Trip Overview

Overview

Holiday Price
4 nights from €485 per person

“We were so impressed with the care put into planning routes for us, which catered perfectly to our interests, abilities and the weather conditions….we would come back in a heartbeat to this special part of the world.”
Jason & Dianne. Namibia.

Our Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain is based in the heart of the Spanish Pyrenees, in rural Aragon. This is one of Europe’s most unexplored and unspoilt regions.
Ideal for anyone with a love for nature and the great outdoors, this holiday is perfect if you like to explore on your own, at your own pace.
We provide the local knowledge, route cards, maps, weather forecasts, advice, driving directions and picnic lunches, leaving you free to enjoy the walking.

You will be staying at our exceptional, renovated farmhouse, close to two parks. The National Park of Ordesa and Monte Perdido, a UNESCO world heritage site, and the Natural Park of Sierra de Guara. The Natural Park of Posets-Maladeta, with it’s high concentration of 3km high peaks is also reachable.
The farmhouse itself is also within the Geopark of Sobrabre, a UNESCO site of particular geological importance. This location means we have a vast choice of walks all within easy reach.

The price is per person on a 7 night stay, it includes bed and breakfast, all refreshments, three evening meals at the farmhouse (three course with wine and coffee), daily picnics, route cards and maps. Shorter stays are welcome, minimum 4 nights, and are on a pro-rata basis. Flights and hire car are not included. See our Getting Here for more information on hire cars and flights.

We are Simon and Lucy, your hosts. We live here all year round and have done so for the last 11 years, so we know the best places to recommend!

Itinerary

Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain Itinerary

Of course, the fact you are staying with us, in our amazing farmhouse, means we are always on hand to offer advice, and answer any questions.

Our route cards for the walks include points of interest to look out for, both geological and cultural, as well as information on the flora and fauna. We will make the final decision on your walking route together, either the night before or over breakfast. This will be based on an up to the minute weather forecast, and how you are feeling on that particular day.
Our knowledge base and advice is not just limited to the walks. We recommend marvelous restaurants, some with spectacular views, cultural trips and sightseeing visits, giving you endless options for the holiday. You can even have a vulture spotting day or hire one of our mountain guides (speak to us at time of booking for prices).

Did you know the Ordesa National Park is a World Biosphere Reserve and a ‘Special Protection Area for Birds’? We have more than 1500 species of flowers, 171 species of birds, over 131 species of butterflies, of which 8 are endemic, and 32 different species of mammals.

The bullet point itinerary below gives an idea of just some of the possibilities.

Please note: this is strictly a no-smoking holiday.

DAY 1:

Arrival at Casa Allué, Albella.
Dinner and a chance to relax.

DAY 2:

Morning walk in the Ordesa National Park. (3-4 hours). Picnic lunch.
Afternoon and meal out in Ainsa.

Looking down the Ordesa valley in the Ordesa national Park on Aragon Active Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain

DAY 3:

Valley walk in the Ordesa National Park (3-5 hours). Picnic lunch.
Afternoon visit to Torla.
Dinner in Albella.

DAY 4 :

Easy day. Visit to a bodega .
Walk in the Sierra de Guara (2-3 hours). Picnic Lunch.
Evening meal out.

Visiting a bodega in the Somontano region of the Pyrenees on Aragon Active Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain

DAY 5:

Option to have a guided walk with our mountain guide. (5-6 hours).
Picnic lunch.
Dinner in Albella.

DAY 6:

Walk to an amazing canyon (4-6 hours). Picnic lunch.
Meal out.

A medieval bridge in the Ordesa National Park on Aragon Active Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain

DAY 7:

Option to go on a guided vulture watch.
Lunch at a mountain restaurant.

DAY 8:

A flexible timetable depending on departure times.

A lammergeir in flight on Aragon Active Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain

Accommodation

The base for our Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain is our 17^th century farmhouse, Casa Allué. It nestles on the hillside in the small farming hamlet of Albella, within the Pyrenees Geopark and close to the National Park of Ordesa and the Natural Park of Sierra de Guara.

The Farmhouse

We undertook a major restoration project to transform Casa Allué into both a family home and a “must stay” destination.

The transformation complete, we have created a home from home. The bedrooms are spacious with luxury en suite bathrooms and thermostatic rain showers. All have mountain views with plenty of natural light. Four have stone balconies, perfect for star gazing, as the night skies here are breathtaking.
Each room is named after the wildlife that surrounds the house.

View The Farmhouse

We love to cook and we prepare all your meals using only locally sourced, or our own organic produce. We can cater for all dietary requirements. The flavour is definitely Spanish, but often with a twist!
But it’s not just the accommodation and food that make our holidays stand out! See our section What Makes Us Different!
And for more information on our farmhouse, Casa Allué, visit our page Guest House Accommodation.

Getting Here

How to Get to Albella

When considering the options below why not add on a couple of nights to include a city break.

Flying to Zaragoza

Our nearest airport is Zaragoza. Ryan Air offer flights all year round from London Stansted.
Arrival time in Zaragoza is normally 16.40 and departure 17.05.

Flying to Barcelona (El Prat) & Madrid

Barcelona and Madrid are hubs for international flights from outside Europe. If you are arriving from the USA, Canada, Australia or another international destination these are the best options.

There are also flights from many UK airports. All the low cost airlines fly to both cities.

If you are looking for cheap flights try Momondo or Skyscanner.

Hire Cars
A hire car is a must on our Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain. All the major hire car companies have bases at the airports, Europcar, Avis, Hertz, and Goldcar. Auto Europe is a good starting point for booking a car.
From Zaragoza it is two hours to our base in the Pyrenees.

Travel Times By Car From Other Airports
Barcelona (El Prat) 3¼ hours / Zaragoza 2¼ hours / Pau 3¼ hours / Toulouse 4 hours / Bilbao 4½ hours / Reus 4 hours / Lourdes (Tarbes) 3½ hours / Pamplona 2¼ hours.

Ferries
Brittany Ferries have three routes from the UK direct to Spain: Portsmouth-Bilbao, Portsmouth-Santander and Plymouth-Santander.
The ferries are a great way to travel and have private cabins, restaurants, bars and viewing decks. All of the routes allow you to take your own car and crossings take around 24 hours.

Driving through France
A lot of our guests drive through France.

You need to allow about 15 hours driving from the northern ports. Breaking the journey with a stop-over in Limoges or Lyon area is recommended.

Taking the ferry one way and then meandering back through France over a few days is also an excellent option.

Reviews

Just Some of Our Reviews for this Holiday…

“One of us is more into hiking than the other and Lucy gauged perfectly our needs and sent us out each morning with plans that suited our ability and interest level. Back at Casa Allué, we had truly lovely, healthy meals. We are careful eaters and the fare was wonderful.
One day we booked a bird (read vulture) viewing trip with Simon. He is clearly devoted to conservation of these remarkable creatures. Up, up, up we went for a day with his spotting scope and a delicious lunch with warm coffee. I hope to return with other hiking friends for another trip. Snowshoeing anyone?”

Patricia & Gates. North Carolina. USA. Self Guided Walking Holiday Oct 2019

“My experience couldn’t have been better. Our spacious, well appointed rooms were on the first floor….full length, west facing doors opened onto a step out balcony with views of the Pyrenees mountains. The sunsets were divine. I left my balcony doors open at night and drifted off to the sound of tinkling bells as sheep grazed on the surrounding hills. I’m a vegetarian and Lucy and Simon were more than accommodating.
No worries planning your day…Lucy and Simon are a wealth of information regarding hiking/walking, where to eat, what to see, and up to date on the weather. Don’t hike and want to catch up on relaxation…the library is filled. I’ve traveled a fair amount and this place was the crowning jewel. Thanks again, Simon and Lucy for a wonderful stay.”

Sandra. California. USA. Self Guided Walking Holiday July 2018

Sunset at Casa Allué on Aragon Active Self Guided Walking Holiday Spain

“Simon and Lucy went out or their way to make our holiday the best we have ever had. In the run up to the holiday they gave clear information, responded very quickly to queries and gave us great tips on which airport to fly and when would be a good time to come.

The house. This is at least as beautiful as shown on their website photos. Simon and Lucy have an eye for detail and everywhere was immaculately clean. Our room had lovely furnishings, a comfortable bed and modern high quality en suite. Lovely waterfall shower.

Meals – Get them to feed you! Their food is fantastic and the local wine that comes included with the meal is fantastic. The hamlet of Albella is tiny, 3 or 4 large old houses and probably about 10 mins drive up a windy road and we chose to eat at Casa Allué every evening

Service – Faultless! Nothing was to much problem. Every morning Simon and Lucy would look at the weather, check with us what we felt like doing and come up with suggestions.”

Gavin & Helen. Cambridge. Self Guided Walking Holiday August 2017