Walking Trails of La Palma

Thursday 15^th January

Fly to La Palma airport and transfer to our hotel, the lovely Hacienda San Jorge. Surrounded by beautiful gardens and situated on the beachfront, this will be our home and a perfect base for all our adventures this week. After a welcome meeting this afternoon there will be time to relax in our new surrounds before dinner at the hotel.

Dinner included. Overnight in Hacienda San Jorge.

Friday 16^th January

We start our week exploring the capital of the island, Santa Cruz de La Palma. A stroll along its cobbled pedestrian streets takes us along vibrant Calle Real to appreciate the local architecture and beautiful listed buildings. We’ll listen to the stories of local traditions and discover the island’s history before stopping at the food market, full of evocative smells, where we’ll have the opportunity to taste freshly squeezed sugar cane juice and buy some local produce. After our visit to the capital, we’ll transfer to Ecofinca Nogales, a family run organic farm which produces exceptional tropical and subtropical fruits such as avocados, mangos, papayas, bananas and pineapples. We won’t leave without trying their delicacies! We’ll finish our day visiting the unique, Maroparque, a wildlife park and rescue centre housing over 300 exotic and endangered animal including kangaroos, crocodiles, snakes, monkeys, porcupines, lemurs, and much more. Known as the ‘vertical zoo’ the centre is built into the slope of the El Galeon ravine and offers an exceptional vantage point to view the blue sea, the mountains, and Santa Cruz de La Palma. There’ll be a chance to get up close to some of the animals with a possibility of feeding them too. This evening is at your leisure to choose from the local cuisine offered by restaurants close to our hotel.

Breakfast and lunch included. Overnight in Hacienda San Jorge.

Saturday 17^th January

Distance: 8km (5 miles), Total Ascent: +50m (150ft), Total Descent: -750m (2,450ft)

Sunday 18^th January

Distance: 5km (3 miles), Total Ascent: +400m (1,300ft), Total Descent: -325m (1,050ft)

This morning, we head towards the northeast of La Palma, for a walk of two halves. First, we’ll enter the laurel forest of La Galga where water has carved deep barrancos and lush green vegetation surrounds us. A short transfer brings us to the archaeological site of El Tendal, a cave once used by the pre-Hispanic Benahorita population. At the visitor centre, we’ll learn about these indigenous people and their way of life before the Spanish arrived. We’ll then drive to the charming little village of San Andrés for the second part of the walk. From the main square and the village church, we stroll along the coastal path, with banana plantations on one side and the rhythmic sound of waves and scent of salty sea air on the other. Our walk ends at the beautiful Charco Azul pools. We’ll round off the day with a visit to the Ron Aldea rum factory, where we can taste the island’s local honey rum and other sugar cane-based specialities.

Breakfast and dinner included. Overnight in Hacienda San Jorge.

Monday 19^th January

Today offers a perfect opportunity to relax around the hotel, enjoy a walk through the gardens, or unwind by the pool. You might also want to explore the seaside town of Los Cancajos and soak up the sunshine on the beach. Alternatively, you could return to Santa Cruz de La Palma for further exploration of the old quarter or browse the local boutiques for some shopping.

Breakfast included. Overnight in Hacienda San Jorge.

Tuesday 20^th January

Distance: 5km (3 miles), Total Ascent: +400m (1,300ft), Total Descent: -250m (800ft)

Today takes us to the top of the island, where we’ll walk on the ridge of La Caldera de Taburiente National Park to reach Roque de Los Muchachos, 2,426m above sea level. On a clear day, this area above the pine tree forest offers stunning views over the clouds as far as Mount Teide in Tenerife. The summit is also home to one the world’s most important astrophysical observatories. Telescopes such as Grantecan – the largest telescope on Earth – as well as the Liverpool and Isaac Newton telescopes, are located here to take advantage of the famously dark skies of La Palma. The Caldera itself measures at almost 2,000m deep and around 8 kilometres across, with the Taburiente stream flowing through its heart. Erosion of the caldera has exposed spectacular tiered lava dikes and the vegetation has adapted to surviving in this harsh landscape year-round. As we continue our walk, we’ll pass by some of the telescopes before reaching Roque de Los Muchachos, the highest point on the island and end of our path, where we can look down into the dramatic volcanic basin of the caldera below.

Breakfast and dinner included. Overnight in Hacienda San Jorge.

Wednesday 21^st January

Distance: 6km (3.5 miles), Total Ascent: +25m (100ft), Total Descent: -650m (2,100ft)

On our last day of hiking, we’ll come close to the site of the most recent volcanic eruption of the island.  In 2021, for the first time in 50 years, La Palma witnessed the formation of a new volcano – Tajogaite. The eruption lasted 85 days, with lava flows covering the central-west slopes of the island. We begin at the visitor centre of the Caldera de Taburiente National Park to learn about the event that shaped this region today, before heading out to start our hike. We’ll cross the ash-covered landscape where unique fire-resistant pine trees have survived, resilient amongst the scorched earth, while other vegetation has dried out or burned away, leaving a stark reminder of the destruction in the wake of the volcano. We’ll walk close to the steaming cone of Tajogaite volcano where yellow mineral patches can be seen near the crater and, when the wind blows, catch the distinct smell of sulphur in the air. Our descent will take us through Las Manchas, a residential area where houses and roads were engulfed by the lava flow and ash – a visceral reminder of the eruption. We’ll end our walk at the Caños de Fuego visitor centre to explore the lava flows of the 1949 San Juan eruption which created lava tubes known as Cueva de Las Palomas and Cueva del Vidrio. Returning to our hotel after our final hike, we’ll gather for a celebratory dinner to reminisce about a fantastic week exploring ‘La Isla Bonita’.

Breakfast and dinner included. Overnight in Hacienda San Jorge.

Thursday 22^nd January

This morning we’ll check out of the hotel and enjoy some leisure time – perhaps relaxing by the pool or taking a last wander into the town – before heading to the airport to begin our journey home.

Breakfast included.

Please note a reasonable level of fitness is required for this trip as, although distances are relatively short (the longest walk is 5 miles), there are some lengthy ascents and descents.  Hill walking experience would be advantageous, or, if you don’t have any, please commit to acquire some before you travel. Paths will generally be good, but will, on some days, be rough and rocky underfoot and proper, sturdy walking shoes or boots will be required (not trainers or sandals).

In the interests of your safety and the rest of the group’s enjoyment if, at any time, the tour manager or walking guide feels that you are not suited to a walk or are not able to complete a walk for any reason, they may, at their discretion, request you to stay behind or return to the hotel (this includes unsuitable footwear!).