Walking the Picos de Europa

This was a fab getaway! Awesome scenery, really great walking, well organised and such a gorgeously rustic cosy lodge with really great food and hospitality...loved all of it :)

It was a great week which far exceeded our expectations. Good food, comfortable hotel, magnificent views, and a really informed, enthusiastic and attentive guide who had the knack of making us all feel as if we had his undivided attention. The hotel owners, Jim and Pilar, went out of their way to satisfy our diverse dietary requirements and provided a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

One of the best holidays I have ever been on....go do it now!

This was a great walking week. The scenery in the Picos is spectacular and the walks a good variety building up over the week. This lesser-known area of Spain was very rewarding and Arenas was an excellent base.

This was a lovely trip! The 'Picos De Europa' area in northern Spain is vast but little known and there are very few tourists compared with elsewhere in Spain. It is surprisingly 'Alpine' in feel, with beautiful with high, pointed mountains, interspersed with some lovely, flowery meadows. Goats, wild horses and light-brown cows with big bells wander around everywhere. We very much enjoyed walking in this area, with our friendly, competent leader, Nacho. The lovely, family-run hotel is simple but comfortable and very friendly - nothing is too much trouble. The home-cooked food - a choice of three main courses daily - is surprisingly good and the lunch 'rolls' were MASSIVE with lots of filling! Any fairly fit walker would love this trip and I would highly recommend it.

Varied walking in beautiful mountains

Based in Arenas de Cabrales, known as the gateway to the Picos de Europa, a group of 15 explored the region which offered a varied terrain through forests, shepherds paths, green valleys, a gorge, river paths as well as being among limestone peaks. There was beautiful wild flowers such as orchids and blue thistle as well as wildlife where we spotted griffon vultures, chamois, brightly coloured butterflies as well as cows with their bells clanging around their necks. The Hotel Torrecerredo was our base for all our days walking. It's a small family run hotel with staff that went above and beyond to make our stay a welcoming and memorable one. The restaurant served delicious traditional 4-course meals and the bar stocked all our post walk requirements at very affordable prices. Five minutes from the hotel is the village Arena de Cabrales. This is a picturesque village which offers many bars and restaurants offering tasty meals and a few souvenir and outdoor shops as well as local produce shops selling their famous Cabrales cheese.

The Picos is a fantastic area with wonderful scenery and mountain terrain. To walk in the Picos was a great way to see the area and get up and close to the peaks. The hotel was great with a lovely terrace bar over-looking the valley and peaks and it was a great way to end the day with a beer in hand here (who needs telly). The food at the hotel was amazing and the staff at the hotel went out of their way to ensure that all guests had a memorable experience - I know I did. I am vegetarian and did not struggle at all for food, the hotel caters for vegetarians and there was always a veggie option available - even packed lunches.

Excellent holiday in a beautiful area for walking. The walks were well organised and gave us a great introduction to the area. Importantly, the accommodation, the staff and particularly the food was outstanding. I thoroughly recommend this holiday.

Our 4th Exodus holiday and as always it met our expectations and we would highly recommend it. Lovely hotel, small and friendly in a beautiful location with great views. The rooms are simple but very clean and and the food is really great with lots of choice and plentiful. Nobody will go hungry. I do not eat meat and was impressed with the variety of choice of meals that I could eat. We enjoyed sitting on the terrace having a beer after a day walking. The barman is really friendly and provides peanuts or crisps with your drinks. The walking was great not too strenuous but a decent length. We started our walks at 9.00 and were usually picked up in the mini-bus around 4 - 4.30. The people in our group were great, very friendly and chatty which added to the enjoyment of our holiday. The ages of our group were mixed and as usual for an August holiday many were teachers.