What is a "self-guided" or "independent" walking tour and how does it work? We understand a "self-guided" or "independent" walking tour as a way for independent minded travelers like you to enjoy a walking holiday on the dates that suit you, without the restrictions of scheduled departures and itineraries of guided groups. You walk at your own pace, starting each morning whenever you like, stopping wherever you like. To plan one of our self-guided walking tours, you just need to do the following: 1. Choose your itinerary from one of our standard walks, or contact us to work out your own custom itinerary to suit your needs. 2. Decide on your preferred tour starting and ending dates. 3. Arrange your own transport to Spain and tour starting point and back home from the tour ending point (see below). We take care of the rest! (or most of it) The following should help you in understanding how the tour works... Return to top of page ARRIVAL INFORMATION PACKET On arrival in your hotel on the first night of the tour, you will receive a package from the front desk of your hotel with detailed walking notes, local maps and other information necessary for completing your itinerary. The contents vary according to the tour as follows: Self-Guided Walking: Camino de Santiago - Way of St. James Full colour English guidebook with detachable walking notes and see-through note pouch Local maps city and town maps Additional daily instructions required to get you through the itinerary, including relevant bus and train timetables for any necessary public transport Ziplock bag to protect daily instructions. Other Self-Guided Walking Tours (Sierra de Gredos, La Garrotxa, Las Alpujarras) Local town and village maps 1 regional topographic map (1:50,000) with walking routes marked Various colour photocopies of local topographic maps (1:25,000) with walking routes marked Detailed daily route notes required to get you through the itinerary. Ziplock bag to protect daily instructions. Return to top of page TRANSPORT / TRANSFERS Transport & Luggage Transfers Between Tour Starting & Ending Points Between tour starting and ending points, all personal transport required (taxis or hotel vehicles) to complete the itinerary will normally be included in the tour cost, and where not, will be explicitly explained in the itinerary you receive when you request detailed information. NOTE: We do NOT cover any transport necessary to complete itineraries by BUS or TRAIN. However, such transport is rarely ever necessary - in fact, at this time, it is only required on some of our "shorter" itineraries along the Camino de Santiago in order to travel between León and the starting point of actual walking, such as Villafranca del Bierzo or Sarria. In these cases, we provide you with train or bus timetables and prices, etc. and detailed instructions on how to use such services. Once you begin the walking days of your tour, if your itinerary involves your walking from one base hotel to another, your luggage is transported for you, usually by taxi or sometimes by hotel staff. Just leave your bags down by reception or the front desk when you check out in the morning, before leaving the hotel to start walking. When you arrive in your new hotel that afternoon or evening, you will find your bags waiting for you. Airport Transfers / Transport to & from Tour Starting & Ending Points On most of our standard self-guided tours, you make your own way (at your own expense) to the tour starting point hotel and from the ending point hotel onward. Should you require assistance in arranging your transport within Spain (to and from major or local airports) to and/or from tour starting or ending points, we will provide you with information to help you plan your train or bus travel - websites, timetables, schedules and prices, etc. In most cases, prior bookings are not necessary as these are not heavily trafficked routes and tickets can be purchased shortly before departure time. Tickets for certain RENFE (Spanish National Railways) trains can be booked in advance. If necessary, we can arrange a local taxi or minibus service for airport / train or bus station pickups and transfers, as well as transfers between major Spanish cities, etc. and tour starting / ending points. Please consult us Getting to & from the Camino de Santiago Getting to & from the Sierra de Gredos Getting to & from Las Alpujarras Getting to & from La Garrotxa Getting to & from the Camino de Santiago On our standard 8 day tour, the starting city is León, reached by air from Madrid and Barcelona on Iberia Airlines, and train or bus from Madrid and other cities. The León airport is a 15 min (15€) taxi ride to the city centre. The starting points for longer itineraries along the Camino de Santiago - such as Burgos, Pamplona or St. Jean Pied du Port can mostly be reached by air and/or train - please consult us. The ending point - Santiago airport has flights on several Spanish carriers (Iberia, AirEuropa and Spanair) to Madrid, Barcelona and Málaga among other domestic destinations. There is also train and bus service to Madrid and other destinations. The Santiago airport is a 15 min (15€) taxi ride from the city centre. Getting to & from the Sierra de Gredos To reach Avila - the starting point city for most of our standard self-guided tours in the Sierra de Gredos, the most convenient Spanish airport to fly into is Madrid's Barajas Airport. Once in Madrid, Ávila is best reached by train (about 75 min. / 15€). There are several departures daily. From Madrid's Barajas Aiport, a 15" taxi transfer gets you to Chamartin Railway Station to catch a train to Ávila. There are bus services back to Madrid (about 2 hours / 12€) from Arenas de San Pedro, the ending point of the spring / autumn itinerary. The ending point of the summer itinerary is Avila - take a train back to Madrid. Getting to & from Las Alpujarras On our standard 8 day tour, the starting point is the village of Capileira, reached by bus from Granda. Granada is reached by air from Madrid, Barcelona and various major European cities. Granada can also be reached by train or bus from Madrid and other cities. The Granada airport is a 15 min (15€) taxi ride to the city centre. Getting to & from La Garrotxa Once on the tour, all personal transport required (taxis) to complete the itinerary will normally be included in the tour cost, and where not, will be explicitly explained in your itinerary received when you request detailed information. Return to top of page FLIGHTS We do not arrange flights. For our tours, you will need to arrange a flight on your own, via a travel agent, or through our local or regional agent. Return to top of page MEALS A certain number of meals are included on all tours - this is described in the tour description page on the website, or has been agreed to as part of a custom tour. We think meals are a very important part of your tour experience, and have tried to ensure that the food standards in all our hotels are of good standard. With the exception of breakfast, Spanish servings are normally quite generous. A picnic lunch bag is included on walking or biking days if you are doing an itinerary where there are few or no eating establishments, as is the case in many mountainous areas. If lunch is not included, this will be because you will be traveling through areas where there are plenty of eating options. This way you can decide what you want to eat for lunch - at a café along the way or buy your own bread, cheese and fruit, etc. to eat while on the trail. You can always have the hotel prepare you a picnic bag lunch. As for evening meals, we only book these for you on nights where you must eat in the hotel, as there are no other choices for eating in the vicinity. Otherwise, you are free to explore on your own in overnight stops where there are restaurants with good menu choices, etc.. A great opportunity to practice your Spanish! Spanish Mealtimes Spaniards eat their lunch and evening meals very late by the standards of the rest of the world. Lunch is usually served from 15:30 - 15:30 but this normally does not affect you since you will be out walking and will have been given a picnic lunch bag by the hotel. However, supper is a different matter - usually from 20:30 onward and rarely served anywhere before 20:00 pm, (sometimes not until 21:00!) so if you eat your picnic lunch early, you will probably want to eat a small snack along the way somewhere. In particular, on the Camino de Santiago, there are plenty of places to eat a "tapa" in the hamlets, villages and towns along the route. Look at this situation as an opportunity to adapt to local culture. We have listed meal times for the hotels where available. Breakfast - is included with accommodation at all hotels. Spaniards usually eat a very light breakfast by the standards of Anglo-saxon and other northern cultures. We have tried to arrange a more generous breakfast than normal in most hotels, but if you are used to a copious breakfast, this may not fill you up. You can always order something else at your own expense, or buy some fruit or something at a local shop to supplement your meals. Lunch - if included, will be given to you by the hotel in the morning as you check out. The normal contents are a "bocadillo" (Spanish-style sandwich on "baguette" or "barra" bread loves), some fruit, a chocolate (or similar) bar or dried nuts and fruit. We do not normally include a drink since you will be carrying water in your canteen, and can always buy what you prefer at local shops. The contents of the sandwich vary, we have not fixed a menu with hotels. Unless you tell them otherwise, they will put whatever they see fit, with selections ranging from "serrano" ham (mountain cured ham) and tomato, other cured meats such as "chorizo" sausage, "lomo embuchado" (Paprika cured pork tenderloin), "tortilla" (Spanish potato omelette), local cheese. If you have a special preference, do not hesitate to talk to the folks at the hotel the night before to see what can be arranged. Evening Meal - if included, this will be served in the dining room of the hotel where you stay (unless otherwise stated on instructions). You will be served what is known in Spanish as a menu del día or (daily set-menu) . This normally consists of 3 courses, each usually with two or more choices - first a salad or soup, but sometimes something more consistent such as lentil or chick pea stew or paella. The main course is inevitably a choice of some sort of meat, or fish, grilled, fried or baked, served with a sauce and fried potatoes, rice or pasta. Spaniards are very fond of fried potatoes - best fried in olive oil, but often sunflower oil (also healthy) is used and they are ubiquitous in most restaurants. A dessert follows, usually a choice of fruit, ice cream, flan (caramel custard). A drink is also included, with a typical choice of mineral water, local wine or soft drink. Vegetarians - Life is not so easy for vegetarians in Spanish restaurants, and the variety of items to choose from depends on how flexible or how strict a vegetarian you are. If you can eat eggs and dairy products, you are in luck because there are numerous excellent local cheeses in the areas where we run our tours. For lunch, you can arrange for "bocadillo" (Spanish-style sandwich on "baguette" or "barra" bread loves) with cheese, tomato and olive oil, for example, or "tortilla" - Spanish potato omelette. Also pimientos fritos (fried green peppers). Try asking for a "bocadillo vegetal" - vegetable sandwich. If you can handle fish, then "atún" is tunafish - can be added to omelettes or sandwiches. Ask for more "fruta" - fruit, or a "xanahoria" - carrot, etc. For the evening meal, there is usually a fish choice, and if not, some sort of omelette is always a possibility. An "ensalada mixta" - mixed salad will probably contain lettuce, tomato, onions, white asparagus, boiled egg and tuna. Fruit is widely available for dessert. If you have a special preference, talk to the folks at the hotel to see what can be arranged. Return to top of page ACCOMMODATIONS We use family-run hotels and inns, with a special emphasis on character and charm, cleanliness, friendliness and good. We have personally visited each place and know the owners or managers in most cases, so we expect that you will be well-treated. Check-in The staff at hotels are expecting your arrival sometime in between 15:00 and 18:00. If it gets much later, they get worried! Check-out All personal costs (phone calls, bar bills, etc) must be paid for at check-out time. If your luggage is being transferred that day, leave your bags at the front desk when you check out. Location of accommodations We try to use lodgings which are as close as possible to your walking route, usually in a city, town or village of interest. Your daily route notes describe how to get to each hotel. Where these have not been listed it is because the village is so small that you should easily find it. English English is spoken well in some, but certainly not all lodgings. If not English, many Spaniards speak a bit of French, although more and more young folks will try English. If nobody seems to understand a word, no matter. Remember, they are used to dealing with the needs of our clients - so you can be sure they want to communicate with you. Just smile and show your desire to communicate! You will find this reciprocated by the vast majority of people you meet along your tour. Return to top of page LOCAL CONTACT As part of your holiday package, we provide you with a Spain- based contact person(s) who can always be reached by fixed-line or cell (mobile) telephone. This person can be called at any time if you need to resolve any questions or problems regarding your tour. You are responsible for all phone costs associated with such calls.