Itinerary Include flights Expand all Day 1 Fly to Bilbao; transfer to Arena de Cabrales Meals included: Dinner Day 2 Day of canyoning in the Rubo Gorge with optional water slides, jumps and abseils. A short drive and a short walk bring us to the start of the Rubo Gorge, where our fun day of canyoning begins. Over the course of our 3 hour descent there are 6 abseils (12m max), 6 optional jumps into deep pools, and 2 water slides. We enjoy a picnic lunch in a beautiful natural setting before making our way back to the hotel in the afernoon. Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 3 Classic Cares Gorge walk, one of the most popular walks in Spain. The classic Cares Gorge has been described as the jewel in the crown of Spanish hiking. For 12 km the engineered path has been blasted into the rock face. Originally built in the 1940s as part of a hydroelectric scheme, it is now one of the most popular walks in Spain. In places the surrounding peaks rise over two thousands metres above the path and if we're lucky, we may catch a glimpse of the rare and beautiful wall creeper. The path eventually emerges in the village of Cain, where we have lunch before our return along the same route to Puente Poncebos. Transport will be waiting here to take us to back to our hotel in Arenas de Cabrales. Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 4 Canoeing along the famous River Sella, renowned for its annual canoe competitions. We drive 45 minutes to Arriondas for a 4 hours' downstream canoeing trip on the River Sella. The river is one of the most popular destinations for this type of activity and it has been hosting a major canoeing festival since 1930. Every year, on the first Saturday of August, canoeists from all over the world come to Asturias to take part in the Sella River race. It is full of music and colour, and has become one of the most important dates on the international canoeing calendar. Our day won't be as challenging but it will be packed with fun. Using open-decked two-person canoes we cover about 15 kms with some easy class 1 rapids en route. Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 5 Free day to relax at the hotel, take a trip to the coast or choose from optional activities. Choose amongst several other optional activities such as caving and second canyoning, or take a day to relax and sightsee in the beautiful coastal towns of Asturias. Meals included: Breakfast Day 6 Walk up to the twin summits of Mancondiu offering fantastic views of the Central and Eastern Massifs. At 2,000 m, the twin summits of Mancondiu are the highest point we reach during the week. Most of the walking, apart from the last 200 m, is on disused mining tracks. The top offers fantastic views of the Central and Eastern Massifs. Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 7 Caving in Cueva Llonín, part of the UNESCO-listed Altamira Palaeolithic Caves. Today we will discover the pre-historic site of the Altamira Palaeolithic Caves and enjoy a thrilling caving expedition through Cueva Llonín. The adventure includes walking, crawling and squeezing between different chambers of the impressive cave, perhaps spotting bats roosting high in the roof, and using a rope to access a large chamber with two-metre-long stalactites and rare helictites. The caves are home to Palaeolithic paintings of horses, bison and deer, amongst other animals, as well as symbols and handprints. These are closed to the public, but we will learn about the creation of the paintings and the people who may have made them. On returning to the hotel, your final afternoon is free for you to spend as you like. Please note: The cave visited on this excursion has been dry for thousands of years and there is no risk of flooding. For those not interested in caving, there is a horse-riding option instead. Please inform us upon booking if you would prefer to go horse-riding instead of caving. Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 8 Transfer to Bilbao; fly to London. Transfer to Bilbao; fly to London. Meals included: Breakfast
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Hotel Torrecerredo Our base for the week is the lovely Hotel Torrecerredo, a small family-run hotel in Arenas de Cabrales. It has a pleasant garden terrace attached to the café bar and the panoramic restaurant gives views right up to the mountains peaks. All rooms have en-suite facilities along with TV and Wi-Fi. The hotel is situated in a rural setting, five minutes’ walk from the centre of the village, which is well serviced with banks, cafes and shops. The hotel's restaurant serves delicious meals all cooked with locally sourced ingredients. Single supplements are available (on request).
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Reviewed January 2019 georgina isaac Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week we all had so much fun! Loved the mixture of activities. Hotel Torrecerredo was very friendly and great location (set above and behind the town centre), they went out of their way to be helpful and to offer guidance, especially on the days I didn't join the group. Hotel food was EXCELLENT! Dinners were substantial, creative and delicious; breakfast was plentiful and varied, even homemade cake! Fantastic choice of excting extras to put in packed lunches. View from our room - and from the dining room - was superb when the clouds went away. Loved the bar area, great for meeting others, and the beautiful garden sitting area too. The drying room was a special bonus, all kit dry and ready to go the next day, even after the river canyoning day! What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? We'd all answer this differently! We all loved it all but particular favourites: I loved the Fuente De mountain walk best, especially that we were above the snowline in mid Summer. My son would say the canyoning river days, especially the "advanced" session for the very keenies! My husband would say the stunning Cares gorge walk, or possibly the coastal bike ride. What did you think of your group leader? Great fun, very helpful, extremely knowledgeable Do you have any advice for potential travellers? The Picos multi activity holiday is fantastic, especially for a party with varied interests. Different footwear is helpful - grippy water shoes, plus walking boots or tough trainers - and layers for going up to the snowline, cold at the top even in Summer. Don't worry if you have to miss out on an activity, there's so much else to do. Is there anything else you would like to add? A minor point in mid Summer - if you have rooms facing across the valley (stunning views!) - if we were last to shower then our side of the corridor ran out of hot water. Oddly the rooms on the other side were fine so once we realised this we showered in our son's room if we were showering late.
Reviewed December 2018 Jackie N Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week Fantastic - amazing experience A bit late with posting this review, but wanted to share how much we enjoyed it. I travelled in early July 2018 with my niece. The group was very sociable, our guide (Nachos) excellent and very experienced and the hotel was really great: small and simple but clean and very comfortable, with excellent food, lovely staff and stunning views when the clouds cleared. The hotel went out of their way to accommodate my niece, who is vegan, and she also loved the food. The weather on our trip was mixed, only 2 days without rain, but this seems to be typical of the Picos area and contributes to the lovely lush countryside. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? All the activities were enjoyable, highlights for me were the gorge walk and the 35km bike ride (in the pouring rain, but it was warm rain and we all had a lot of fun regardless). What did you think of your group leader? Excellent, very experienced and we felt very confident with him in charge. Is there anything else you would like to add? Just booked my 4th Exodus trip, hoping it will be as good as the others I've taken.
Reviewed June 2018 Trudy Restieaux Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week Picos mixed activity Brilliant holiday, all the activities were challenging, hotel staff very accommodating and food deĺicious. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? Walking through the rubo gorge in mist and rain. What did you think of your group leader? Nacho was amazing, patient, encouraging and looked after us all. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? A good holiday for lone travellers or friends but need to be active if not that fit.
Reviewed August 2015 Michael Bailey Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week Picos in August Superb holiday with some wonderful new friends. Hotel was excellent with spectacular views of the Picos, and 4 course food worthy of a Michelin star. Canyoning, gorge walking and hiking were excellent. Canoeing was at an easy level in what is a very busy river in August. Cycling along the coastal path was just right, with the chance to see different scenery. Javi our guide was brilliant as were the other supporting staff. Highly recommended. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? The walk along the Cares Gorge was probably the highlight, as I am not good with heights. So it was a challenge. And 24k in warm weather is a good workout. Canyoning is always a favourite of mine and did not disappoint. What did you think of your group leader? Javi was excellent. He has an excellent sense of humour and fun, and went out of his way to make the trip memorable. He also switched the schedule around to make the most of the weather.
Reviewed August 2015 Emma Barthel Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week Picos Mixed Activity week A fantastic trip, with a good variety of activities. The hotel was lovely, homely and had amazing views. All activities were carried out with a view to safety but were always enjoyable and challenging. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? I'm not sure there was one inspirational moment but what really made it was a fantastic group of people. The hotel was great and the food well... 4 course meals everyday! My personal favourite 3 dishes were the local trout, seabass and the surprise winner was Jim's carrot and coriander soup! It was like being on Masterchef guessing the ingredients! I enjoyed all the activities too, although I think I needed a rest after the week. The canyoning was great. I was a bit scared of jumping but you felt really looked after, it was made fun and jumps were not obligatory. Canoeing in the sun was lovely and I spend the free day with a group walking by the coast and swimming in the sea which was great. I think we all particularly enjoyed the cable car and walking day - despite the rain! Felt like being in the Lakes! The pace of the trip was just right with fairly leisurely starts but then really full days. A great balance of activities. What did you think of your group leader? Javier was great! He soon entered into the group sense of humour! (He had no choice with our group!) Always professional but fun, he added an extra dimension to the trip and was always willing to go that step further to ensure things were ok for everyone. He adapted the programme of activities to the weather which maximised the enjoyment gained from each one. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Make sure you bring a wide range of clothes. Don't expect wall to wall sunshine. The weather was just right for most of the activities but being in the mountains means we did have some rain. You will need trainers/walking boots for canyoning and canoeing and they WILL get wet! The drying room at the hotel was good but I was glad I had taken a range of footwear and trousers/shorts. Is there anything else you would like to add? You need to be relatively fit for the activities as some of the walks are fairly long (although not too difficult). However, no activity is obligitory and people were able to go at their own pace. If you are in any doubt - book it - I'm sure you won't regret it!
Reviewed July 2015 Rosalind Fuller Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week Miss Excellent accommodation, beautiful weather and amazing views. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? One of the optional activities was caving. I cannot recommend it more. Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Bring a backpack, hat, sunglasses. A camelback is also useful.
Reviewed July 2015 Hayley Mallery Trip: Picos Mixed Activity Week A fantastic week! A brilliant week of mixed activities giving something that everyone will enjoy. Northern Spain is stunningly beautiful and totally different from the Spain most people expect. We would thoroughly recommend this trip. What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? The canyoning day was amazing, especially abseiling down waterfalls and jumping into deep pools. What did you think of your group leader? Mike was a fantastic group leader. He was friendly and professional but still retained a wonderful sense of fun and good humour. We had so many laughs with him. He was extremely knowledgeable and confident about all of the activities we did and he was very supportive on the gorge walking day, as due to the weather the gorge heated up like an oven! Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Everyone in the group coped with all the activities but they were fairly challenging, especially in the hot weather we experienced. Make sure you are prepared for all types of weather, from rain to very high temperatures. We experienced both rain and 36 degrees in the shade within days of each other. Is there anything else you would like to add? Hotel Torrecerredo is a family run business. The rooms were rustic and quaint and very clean and comfortable. The food was exceptional. We have done lots of exodus trips and it was by far the best food we have ever had. We don't think you could have eaten better in a 5* restaurant. Jim and Pilar were very friendly and really made us feel comfortable and welcome throughout our stay. The bar was cheap!!!
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