Alicante’s Rugged Mountains

This tour was a wonderful way to experience Spain and the mountains of Alicante. The terrain was dramatic and ever changing. Routes were a good workout and physically satisfying. The accommodations were all very welcoming with wonderful hosts and great care.

We had a wonderful holiday in the mountains of Alicante. I had no idea that this beautiful part of Spain existed such a short distance from the built up areas on the coast. All the hotels were good but the Hotel Tarbena and Casa Pilar make you feel really welcome and the hosts are very helpful and friendly. We appreciated being able to choose our meal times - previously in Spain we've stayed in hotels where dinner isn't available until 8:30pm at the earliest. Our favourite walk was the one through the Barranc de l'Infern although all of them were good. Els Arcs is a spectacular spot to visit as is El Castellet. It's worth walking up to the ruins there if you can as the views from the top are breathtaking. The short path up was easier than anticipated after reading the notes. The routes were mostly very quiet - it was only on the Barranc de l'Infern route that we saw several other walkers. We found the timings in the notes to be very generous. In Tarbena we managed to do both option A and B on the same day. The weather was beautiful throughout the holiday - sunny but not too hot for walking. We'd love to visit this region again at some point.

This is an excellent walking holiday in a stunning landscape and the highlight for us was the option to walk the Barranc de L'Infern (The Cathedral of Hiking). The temperature in early November for this level of walking.

This is an excellent walking holiday. We stayed an extra night in Tarbena and at Benimaurell enabling us to walk for 8 days in all. The three hotels are all excellent in their different ways and fit for interesting and varied accommodation and eating experiences. We were amazed by how beautiful and untouristy the whole mountain area is. Yet again another great holiday from Inntravel. Thanks! 

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Alicante’s Rugged Mountains. The scenery is spectacular and the suggested walks are varied and extremely enjoyable. We were lucky to see vultures and eagles on 4 of our walks. We particularly enjoyed the walk to the north of Tarbena and walking through the gorge from Tollos on the Neolithic Art route. The walks between the villages were excellent too. The “Baranc De l’Infern” was a challenge but was hugely satisfying when we made it back to the hotel for an ice-cream and a drink ! All of the hotels were very welcoming, the rooms were lovely and the food was excellent. The weather was warm and sunny with only a few spots of rain now and then. We would recommend this trip to anyone with a moderate degree of fitness who would like to experience the remoteness of a mountainous area.

This was a truly fabulous week of walking. The scenery was spectacular and we loved the fact that there was just about nobody around. I would do it all again like a shot! 

We felt warmly welcomed and looked after at the first two hotels, and very much appreciated their delicious home-cooking. It all felt direct, straightforward and personal.

Hotel Alahuar is a more impersonal affair, but it has a great view, a pool and interesting cuisine. 

All the walks were great. The two linear walks (from Tarbena to Castells and then Castells to Benimaurell) were probably our favourites. The instructions were excellent, and we only had two or three moments of confusion in the whole week. We used walking poles for the first time and were glad to have done so: they spared our knees somewhat and gave our arms a good workout, as well as helping us feel more steady where it was loose underfoot. 

We walked in the second week of October, mostly in temperatures of about 25-28C and full sunshine. It was definitely hot for walking but manageable. 

We had not anticipated that there would be so much colour and life in the flora at this time of year. The scents (in the pure, clean air) were wonderful: thyme, rosemary, fig, pine, broom, unidentified delicious-smelling flowers.... It was utterly wonderful.

It's a stunning landscape and a great opportunity to enjoy Spanish village life. It was very hot when we were there (end of September) and we would avoid walking in such high temperatures again. It would be a good idea to have more options for shorter walks in case it's very hot. The hotels were very good. The food in Hotel de Tarbena and Casa Pilar was excellent and the owners had put a lot of thought into preparing vegetarian meals for us. The third hotel, Alahuar, had a very limited vegetarian menu but the food was still good. Overall, a great holiday and we really enjoyed it.

We thoroughly enjoyed the walking especially the views. The proprietors of the first 2 hotels were fantastic. The final hotel was beautiful but you could feel it was part of a group. However they were helpful and allowed us to keep the room until we checked out at 5 00 pm. The only criticism of this hotel was the lack of an English translation for the dinner menu. On the first night we had to use google to translate it as the waitress didn't speak English.

Our rail journey from London via Barcelona was well organised and trouble free. In retrospect, we would have requested upper deck seats where relevant. We very much enjoyed all the walks especially from Castell de Castells to El Castellet (a ruined Moorish watchtower) and the Barranc de l'Infern circuit which is challenging but well worth the effort and provides a sense of achievement on completion! The welcome, service, and pescatarian cuisine were excellent at Hotel de Tarbena and Casa Pilar, as were the taxi transfers to and from Alicante station. In contrast Hotel Alahuar felt somewhat impersonal but had spectacular views and an inviting swimming pool. The Hotel Alahuar's extensive menu did not indicate which meals were pescatarian/vegetarian which complicated selection somewhat!. 

This was a fantastic walk in a beautiful part of Spain. We were lucky with the weather as it wasn't too hot, so everything was perfect. Well done Inntravel and thanks to the three hotels which were all excellent.

Alicante's mountains are indeed very rugged - a walk into a timeless landscape and what at times seemed like uncharted territory. We completed the week's walk in mid-September and during that time only passed one other hiker on the trail, though there were quite a few cyclists on the minor roads. We found the terrain and underfoot conditions challenging, but the immense satisfaction of completing the walk left us with a warm glow!  

Lovely area for walking and the Inntravel arrangements were excellent, with easy to follow routes, although we did appreciate having the GPS files as a back up. The hotels were great, well located and welcoming, and we apprecated the opportunity of trying traditional Spanish food, with flexible meal times. In summary, a very enjoyable and well organised holiday.

We were anxious because Spain had a heatwave a few weeks before but thankfully temperatures were acceptable and there was a mixture of cloud cover, which was just as well as in long parts there is little or no shade. We even had a rain storm!

The scenery was beautiful, the wildflowers were in bloom and the walks were dramatic and varied. This area of Spain is particularly interesting because it has been populated by humans for so long. The personal attention and excellent cooking from Juan at the Hotel Tarbena and Juanjo and Pilar at the Casa Pilar really helped to make this a memorable holiday. The food was excellent at the Hotel Alahuar, although the service was not as personal as at the two family run hotels. The transfers went off without a hitch. The towns offer little in the way of restaurants and shops so one is mostly dependent on the hotels for food. The weather was sunny, dry and hot except for our last day, when it rained, so we did not attempt the walk into the Barrancs at Benimaurell and opted for the delightful Vall de Languar walk instead. We were a little challenged by the steepness of some of the walks, as we are older people. We were glad that we had brought our hiking poles. It is nice that Inntravel provided a variety of walking options for most days.

The quality and hospitality of all of accommodations was excellent. Juan, Pilar and the rest of the staff could not have been more welcoming. The scenery is stunning and a great treat. However this is not a trip for someone who suffers vertigo.

To put this context we are veterans of many Inntravel walking holidays and are not the wrong side of 65. We are experienced walkers but our strenuous days are behind us. Inntravel have excelled themselves here - this is a great holiday. We were blessed with dry, warm and sunny April weather which really helped. Some of the walks would have been very difficult for us if it had rained and a number of dry riverbeds are crossed and many of the paths are on limestone which would be slippy when wet. The standard and welcome at the first two hotels was the best we have experienced. The staff could not do enough for us and gave us a truly personal service. The food was excellent throughout the holiday. The third hotel was less personal but is a lovely hotel in a great location and a great way to finish the holiday. The walks are excellent and exactly as described. The area is outstandingly beautiful and really quiet. Sadly we saw very little wildlife although the spring flowers were very pretty. Some routes pushed us to our limit but the shorter options available were a great alternative. We walked in shorts all week and did not need walking trousers but we really needed our walking poles for many of the descents.  The one final note is our disappointment of the lack of available bars in the villages for refreshment. There was one OK one in the square in Tárbena, there was only one in a side street in Castells and did not serve any food at the times we arrived (at least three other bars were closed all week). Likewise in the villages on the final two days. However, that did not come as a surprise and Inntravel had already suggested this may be the case. We will definitely continue to use Inntravel for our walking holidays in the future and thoroughly recommend them.

We had a fantastic holiday exploring an area we knew almost nothing about before our arrival there.  The Hotel de Tarbena and Casa Pilar were perfect - welcoming, comfortable and very Spanish!  The welcome given by our hosts at both hotels added so much to the holiday with local history and information, recommendations for the walks and delicious home cooked traditional Spanish food.  Definitely ask Juan for his recommendation for the circular walk from Tarbena - and eat his chickpea paella at dinner!  Highlights were walking through pine woodland with (generally invisible) small birds singing around us in early morning sunshine on Juan's route; pausing on the walk up from Castell de Castells to the ruined Moorish fort and looking up to see eight - yes eight! - golden eagles soaring above the ruins; the walk through three ravines from Benimaurell, especially the descent to the first ravine passing through an arch in the rock into a spectacular gorge.  The swift changes from terraced olive and cherry trees to vertiginous rock faces, pine wood or hillside covered in wild camassia, rosemary and rock roses on every walk. And this may sound a small thing but I think it saved my legs that our room at the Hotel de Tarbena had a bath with lots of hot water to soak away the aches of the first two walks...

This was a wonderful holiday. The first two hotels are both family-run businesses and the welcome at each was exceptional. At the first hotel, in Tarbena, the host, Juan, was helpful and obliging and we were very comfortable there. He speaks excellent English and was able to give us useful tips about different parts of the walk that we did from there. The food here was delicious. It was a very special moment to hear beautiful choral singing in the streets at midnight on the eve of Good Friday. We did the walk to the north of Tarbena, which on our first day was quite challenging, especially as we did the optional detour. Walking to Castel de Castells, at the second hotel, Pilar and Juan made us feel very at home. There is a lovely little terrace at the top where you can sit and have drinks or, at night, make yourself a tea or coffee on the sofa. Breakfast at Casa Pilar was a delightful event, in a sunny breakfast room, and we loved the "traditional cake" and other delicacies. At dinner, we had excellent wine and particularly enjoyed the soups. We did the gorge walk on one of days at Casa Pilar, which was a marvellous sight although, as the Inntravel notes pointed out, the effect of the previous year's wildfires was sadly very evident. On the other day we took the route that went via the prehistoric rock paintings--it was a bit of a climb up to see the paintings but for me the best part was being able to sit in the cave at this site, rest in the shade and contemplate the people that would have used the cave thousands of years before. We were really sorry to leave Pilar and Juan but the walk to the third hotel was one of the best, although the descent into Benimaurell was very tiring. The third hotel was much more corporate in style but the food in the restaurant was excellent even if it was sometimes a bit difficult to find out what was on offer! On our day in Benimaurell, we chose to do the Barranc de Racons walk as we were all feeling a bit tired--this was another favourite, so don't feel you will miss out completely if you don't do the "cathedral of hiking" option. Throughout this holiday, the vegetation was fabulous--so many plants living happily in the wild, which you would recognise from your garden, and so many interesting habitats. Fossils all over the place in the limestone rocks. The scents were tremedous--wild thyme, wild rosemary and--we think--the smell of the fan palm flowers were everywhere. We caught a glimpse of mouflon on the opposite side of a valley, and we heard nightingales numerous times, mainly around Benimaurell. Thank you Inntravel for another excellent holiday!

Wonderful holiday, the walking was quite challenging because so much up and down, but despite me not having a head for heights, no problems. The ancient Moorish stepped paths are fabulous, and beautifully maintained. Great flora.

Another excellent break from Inntravel. Good walking, which is challenging at times, in beautiful and peaceful surroundings providing a genuine sense that you're exploring a region that's an unsung gem, despite being so easily accessible. Hotel Tarbena and Casa Pilar are homely hotels run with warmth and commitment by lovely people who really couldn't do more to make your stay as enjoyable as possible. No specific highlights - rather a delight that everything was just right. 

A very well organised holiday it was nice to hear how well you treat the local hotel partners

On our flight home, we tried to decide what had been the best bit of our holiday but failed - it was all just great, thank you for the research and management this must have involved.

Sunshine.

Almond blossom

Freindly owners in first two hotels.

Pleasant staff in last.

We had a truly magnificent week.  Wonderful weather, outstanding scenery and delicious food.  We were lucky enough to see golden eagles at close quarters, flocks of choughs and a myriad of smaller birds.  We really enjoyed the Rock paintings at Pla de Petracos.  In all the perfect antidote to the cold, wet Scottish winter we had had.

A fabulous holiday in spectacular, varied scenery. Organisation and walking notes were great throughout. Additionally downloading GPS provides useful confidence - I paid for a subscription to Gaia GPS so that I could be sure of accessing the routes offline. As a solo traveller I particularly appreciated the warm welcome from the first two hotels - Juan at Hotel Tarbena can't do enough to ensure you enjoy your stay. Hotel Alahuar was more welcoming than expected (with a bit of effort to practice some Spanish). The small size of the first two hotels also makes social interaction with your fellow travellers easy (mostly UK Inntravellers). Food at the first two hotels was terrific - simple, homecooked and made very tasty. Hotel Alahuar a little light on vegetables but with a good range of beers.
Each day's walking was different and enough for me when taking the longer options. Weather (mid-February) was perfect and above-par at 16-20C. The highlight (for the impressiveness of the step construction, the challenge and the achievement) has to be the final day's 'Barranc de l'Infern' longer walk. I wouldn't want to have done it on Day 1, in the wet (limestone rocks become slippery), or (although previously sceptical) without walking poles, but to look down and say 'Did I really just walk from there?' and then descend and ascend twice more is very satisfying. The 6,800 (vertical) steps in the notes is no misprint!
A very impressive introduction to Inntravel. Fellow travellers (some many time users) had only good things to say about their experiences and that the hotels they use are chosen for their friendliness and good food. No argument here.

Excellent varied walking,quite challenging at times. First two hotels were our favourites. Food at Tarbena outstanding.

The title is very appropriate to the walking and the scenery. The walks are all individual with different views and perspectives on the landscape. It's amazing to be so close to the large coast resorts yet feel so remote and alone.  The hundreds and hundreds of terraces now many abandoned, make the contrast with modern life all the more vivid. Apart from leaving and entering the villages I think we came across one other couple walking and one walking group over 6 days. Local accommodation and food was excellent throughout.  Weather was a bit changeable in Mid-February, so definitely a case of lots of layers to adjust clothing to suit sun/wind/rain.  An excellent 6 days walking.

We had a great holiday in an area of which we knew little. And it was so near yet so far from the horrors of Benidorm. Two days of continuous rain wasn't a great start, but the walks were good and the last day's walk was a lifetime highlight. 

Well organised holiday with interesting scenery and some good walks. We had a week of unusually cold v rainy weather in mid Feb so recommend bringing good waterproofs, gloves, and woolly hat  if visiting in winter, just in case. 

Another great walking week, despite the rain. Amazing scenery, varied walks and good food

This was another excellent walking holiday from Inntravel. The hotels were well chosen and the welcome from Juan and Paco at the hotel in Tarbena was perfect. The packed lunches from both the first two hotels were excellent as well. The walks were challenging but not too difficult. The weather went from T-shirt weather at the weekend to cool and rainy in the week. Even on the sunny days, though, there were patches of snow and ice left over from the previous week.  These made the detour up to Els Arcs treacherous.  The scenery was superb, although low cloud on some days prevented us from seeing it at its best. After the rain, there was water at the upstream end of the gorge when we walked from Tollos back to Castell de Castells, making the walk along the gorge very difficult. We decided it was too wet for the Barranc de l'Infern walk, but we enjoyed the alternative route. We would recommend taking lots of layers and full waterproofs, at least in February, just in case. Sadly, the almond trees are affected by disease so while there is some almond blossom in February and it is beautiful, many orchards are dying or cleared. The food was very good, especially at Hotel Alahuar in Benimaurell and we really appreciated the full breakfast they put on for us at 6.30am on the day we were leaving.

We went in late January and saw the almond blossom starting to emerge. The scenery is amazing, the walks interesting and the food was great. The temperature can be very different in the mountains and it is worth checking the weather conditions before setting off on this holiday. Don't rely on temperature predictions for the coast! We added an extra day at each of the locations which was well worth it. We spent our extra day in Tarbena trying out a walk suggested by our host Juan which we greatly enjoyed - he provided a GPX map for us and was very informative about the local area. Adding an extra day to Castell de Castells meant we could do all the walks suggested by Inntravel, the gorge walk from Tollos was a real highlight and included lunch watching the golden eagles fly. We walked to the Moorish watchtower in snow which was magical, the trees were beautiful and the mountains spectacular. The Barranc de I'Infern was also a highlight, it's a slightly more challenging walk but very worth the effort. We found walking poles were useful particularly on some steeper descents - damp loose limestone needs care. It was lovely to be in this part of Spain and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

We had a lovely week away, great walks in dramatic scenery and glorious sunshine, a great antidote to the British winter! The Barranc de l'Infern route was a real highlight. Highly recommended and and would happily do more routes using the friendly local hotels. Notes for other walkers: It was colder than average for January so glad we took hats, gloves and thermals - it was also windy when high up on some of the days. Also what3words works in Spain. 

This was a lovely holiday with excellent walking in a very beautiful landscape. The hosts in the first two hotels made us feel very welcome and cooked us great meals, which was much appreciated after all the walking. We upgraded our room in the last hotel and had a balcony overlooking some fantastic scenery. The walk notes were easy to follow and, along with the GPS, meant that we didn't get lost once. We had half expected the scenery to be rather dry and barren, but that wasn't the case at all. It was full of trees, birds, herbs and interesting flowers, even in January. We even glimpsed an eagle. All the walks were good, but a highlight was the first walk around Tarbena, including the detour which is stunning, the walk from Tarbena to Castell and the walk around the watchtower in Castell. We would do the shorter version of the walk from Tollos if we came again, as the walk down the river bed was hard going. If you are looking for some beautiful walking in winter sunshine, with easy travelling from the UK, we couldn't recommend this holiday highly enough. 

Friendly small country inns with great food and amazing service.  Great walking area in the hills with amazing views.  Good paths. We particularly liked the views around Castells including from the watchtower and the moorish steps at Benimaurell.

The walking instructions were unbelievably detailed and easy to follow. Someone did a fantastic job writing this all out. Each of the accommodations was special in its own way. The countryside was incredibly picturesque. People were very kind and helpful wherever we went. Thank you for providing us with an excellent trip. I'm already recommending Inntravel to my friends. 

Take earplugs to help with sleeping near the churchbells. Walking poles were really useful too as there are a lot of ascents and descents and the paths are very narrow in places. The villages were extremely quiet in late October so take some games for the evening. We were glad we had come with fellow bridge players and had brought some cards! 

This was an exceptional week with wonderful walks, warm hosts, delicious food and beautiful weather. Paco and Juan (Hotel Tarbena) made us feel so welcome, giving us a wonderful insight into the walks in their area. Casa Pilar is a treasure and the walk from Tollos to Castell de Castells was very special indeed (with the cave paintings). The meals in the final hotel were delicious. The most spectacular walk was the Barranc de L'Infern. We have walked in many different places around the world - this walk is right up there in the top rankings. Although it was tough as it was a very hot day, the views were incredible and the ravines were breath-taking. 

If you are looking for the real Spain then this is the holiday for you. It is only a few miles down to the coast but it seems a million miles away from the brashness of Benidorm. Here you can see how life really is in rural inland Spain, enjoy great walks and scenery and hear hardly a voice of English. The walks were all very good, especially Tarbena to Castell de Castells (the longer version is recommended) and the Barranc de L'Infern. There are also fabulous views when climbing to the Moorish watchtower and I would recommend climbing right up to the castle - I found the track a lot easier than the notes suggest and I do not even have a head for heights. Do climb up to the caves of Pla de Petracos which are very evocative. A prior visit to the excellent museum in Castell de Castells provides a good explanation, although you need to be staying in Castells at a weekend as the museum has limited opening times.

The three hotels are all excellent, especially the first two which are family run hotels offering a brilliant personal service. I also enjoyed the final hotel at Benimaurell which although more of a chain type hotel had excellent facilities including a lovely pool which is very welcome after a long day of walking. Dinners are provided on all nights and are excellent at all hotels as are the breakfasts and picnics. There are some good bars in Tarbena and Castell de Castells where you can mix with the locals and soak up the atmosphere. However these often close in the afternoon so you could be disappointed if you are looking for a refreshing drink at the end of a long walk.

This is a great holiday leading you through dramatic scenery to comfortable and varied hotels in quiet and remote villages.  The walking is glorious, and views spectacular.  We found our walking poles essential.  

This was a wonderful holiday in a beautiful area. The information and service from Inntravel was top notch.
The personal welcome and family atmosphere of the hotels in Tarbena and Castells was a highlight. 

We enjoyed the peaceful trails, seeing hardly a soul and often spotting local wildlife such as wild goats or boar.

I would recommend eating in a village restaurant once or twice. Otherwise you tend to talk only to fellow Inntravel guests. The restaurant in the square in Castells was very good.

The Tárbena hotel, and Paco and Jean François, were a highlight of the trip; warm, solicitous, and caring beings. Same for Pilar, although language limited conversation. Weather was perfect, although warmer than expected...not that Inntravel was responsible for that (were you??). The rooms at Arahuar, in the bungalow, were a bit strange in that it wasn't clear what one was supposed to do with the upper level. The landscape was generally fantastic; rugged and beautiful, as advertised. But I wouldn't want to have done some of those climbs in the rain. Your advice about long pants to avoid scratched legs was spot on.

On this trip we  felt that we had an experience of the real Spain, away from the tourist hotspots.

The friendly welcome and helpfulness we received at Hotel Tarbena  and Casa Pilar stand out.

Our group of 3 comprised a vegetarian, a pescatarian and an omnivore and we were all catered for superbly well. The breakfasts at all the hotels left nothing to be desired, as well as the evening meals. Pilar's cooking at Casa Pilar, and enthusiasm for introducing us to some local specialities stand out.

It was hotter than we expected (30°) so we shortened some of the walks and joined our luggage in the taxi on transfer days! The scenery was spectacular on all the walks. We particularly enjoyed walks up to Castellet and Els Arcs from Castells and most especially the walk we did on the final day from Benimaurell down into the gorge and back up again.

This is the first walking holiday we have done with Inntravel and we will shortly be perusing the brochure to find our next one.

Hotel de Tarbena was an absolute gem. The father and son team were so welcoming, caring and a source of great local knowledge. Excellent food and picnic....absolutely the highlight of the week!! 

Hotel Taberna excellent, very welcoming and personal attention, fine food (freshly foraged asparagus and home grown avocados). The nicest small hotel I have ever stayed at.

Another wonderful holiday from Inntravel. Eagerly anticipated after the last couple of years, the walking was absolutely superb - if anything even better than we had hoped! This is a very quiet area despite being so close to the coast and the walks and views are simply stunning. Thank you Inntravel for such a well-designed walking holiday.

This was a very enjoyable walking holiday through limestone hills and gorges. Much of the walking was on good paths and tracks, although some sections of narrow, stony paths were more challenging. The walk from Tarbena to Castell was very enjoyable, particularly the section through the gorge. The Day 6 walk (Barranc de Racons) was outstanding. Although the walk down into and back out of the gorge looked a bit daunting, it turned out to be very enjoyable as the ancient Moorish zig zag paths were broad and set an an easy angle, giving outstanding views back down into the gorge.

We thoroughly enjoyed our holiday, walking amongst such stunning landscape. We were walking in April and were lucky with the weather - one wet day at the start and one misty day at the end and in between lovely sunshine and not too hot. We were looked after beautifully in the first two smaller hotels and the facilities of the larger last hotel allowed us chance to relax at the end of our stay. We added one night at the end in this hotel to allow us a day's relaxation reading and admiring the view! We upgraded to a Junior Suite in the last hotel and were delighted to have done so as the view from our balcony was stunning. Walking notes were excellent and we were particularly glad we had walking poles and flip flops in our bag on the day we had to cross a river as recommended in the notes!

TIPS: Opt for Junior Suite at Hotel Tarbena but not Hotel Alahuar. Consider getting a lift half way on Casa Pilar to Benimaurell walk - it's a very long day otherwise.

This was a wonderful holiday, spectacular scenery, lovely walks and a warm welcome at the hotels, all of which were excellent. At Tarbena Paco and his son could not do enough for us. The meals were quite simple but beautifully cooked with lovely salads. Pilar and her husband looked after us well at Casa Pilar, however we did not enjoy the meals here as much. There was a lovely bar behind Casa Pilar run by an English couple. Hotel Alahuar is bigger but the rooms were lovely and the food excellent. We upgraded to a junior suite which was well worth the extra. The walk instructions were good and most of the routes are way marked and quite easy to follow. I downloaded the routes on to my phone which was really helpful when we were unsure of the route.

It is difficult to pick a favourite walk as they were all enjoyable. I think our favourites were the walk from Tarbena to Castell de Castells, the walk to the Moorish watchtower and the walk from Castell de Castells to Benimaurell. Unfortunately the weather was very wet on the last day so we only managed to do the first bit of the Barranc de l'Infern walk but the gorge is spectacular. The cave paintings at Castell de Castells are well worth seeing and the museum in Castel de Castells is very informative.

This was a wonderful holiday in an area which many walkers do not immediately think of visiting. Although it is easy to get to when we visited (March) it was very peaceful. The hotels and food were terrific and everybody we met was friendly and helpful. The scenery is spectacular and the walks were the perfect level of stretch.

We really enjoyed this Inntravel walking holiday. The countryside was far more spectacular than expected and the walks were varied and with options that allowed for plenty of flexibility to see scenery, historical sites and beautiful areas.  The hotels were really welcoming and hugely helpful. Pilar at Casa Pilar was exceptionally helpful (and a very good cook!). 

Our arrival coincided with the worst rain the area had seen in decades which could have caused us some problems. However, it cleared up very soon and we managed to do all the walks. However the "dry river bed" crossings were definitely not dry in a number of places. 

The walk notes are a real strong point of Inntravel holidays and it is wise to read them carefully to allow you to really plan out the day. 

Unfortunately we had unprecedented bad weather. Only our last day was dry with visibility of more than 100 yards. On several days the rain was heavy and persistent all day while on others it varied from drizzle to heavy showers. There was a lot of standing water and some footpaths had turned into streams. It is therefore not really possible for us to comment on the quality of the walking. We did manage some short walks mostly making our own routes along tracks and quiet roads, helped by being provided with large umbrellas by Casa Pilar.

Nevertheless, we enjoyed staying in the three villages. We had our morning coffees in the local bars where everyone was friendly and even apologising for the weather. Every room we had was comfortable and warm, so our wet clothes dried quickly. All the meals were good though we particularly enjoyed those prepared at Tarbena. We travelled to Benimauli with our luggage taking a minor road because the rain had caused damage to the main road. We had been there only 24 hours when we had to return to Castells because there was a danger of the minor road becoming impassable. Inntravel kept us well informed and Casa Pilar looked after us well, collecting us and our luggage and providing the last two nights accommodation.  

The landscape and scenery were outstanding and the lack of people around made it a really unique experience. The notes were generally excellent. I think it was an ideal trip for a solo traveler looking for some alone time as I was.

A very warm welcome awaits on this wonderfully varied circuit through the almond and olive groves with superb views over the mountains and the sea. With ridge walks, gorges and beautiful valleys to explore the scenery is breathtaking and the delicious home cooked food using local ingredients is highly appreciated. Every day is different but we especially enjoyed the walk from Tarbena to Castell (long version) and the walk from Castell to Benimaurell.

Magnificent scenery and a wonderful release from February UK weather into bright and sunny days in clear fresh air. Two lovely quiet hotels with great personal service in friendly villages and one more upmarket with great food.

This was a wonderful introduction to a dramatic rural landscape just a few miles inland from the Costa Blanca - from some viewpoints it was possible to look down on the coastal resorts and even out to Ibiza. We went in early February and were delighted to see on the hillsides the almond trees covered in beautiful pink blossom (and on our way up there, on the coastal plain, all the oranges trees covered in fruit.) The temperatures were ideal for walking during the day, but it was chilly at night and early morning. The quality of the walks and and the views from them were amazing and it's hard to choose a favourite walk, but we both particularly enjoyed the walk up to El Castellet from Castell de Castells. We were made very welcome at all three hotels but especially by the first two, as others have said. The included dinners at all three hotels were delicious, and we requested picnics from the 1st and 2nd hotels which were great. We hired a car at the airport and drove to the last hotel, where we were able to leave the car, and got the taxi round to the first hotel to start the walk. This meant we had the use of our hire car at the last hotel, so after our Day 6 walk, we drove down to the coast for an aperitif, before returning to Benimaurell hotel for dinner. We also (and independently from Inntravel) added on a couple of nights in the city of Valencia afterwards which we enjoyed. A really lovely holiday.  

This was an excellent holiday. The walks were as said earlier, challenging, but that in itself was a pleasure. The scenery was spectacular and what a relief not to have to cater for ourselves! Each day brought a new high point!

An excellent walking itinerary that is a great introduction to the mountains and countryside in Alicante The rural hotel accommodations were both friendly and welcoming and offered a very relaxing stay. The highlights were the the home cooking at Casa Pilar and the final walk arround Benimaurell, the Barranc de I'Infern, which was spectacular.

Our last minute walking in November turned out to be very enjoyable. The hills are alive with bees feeding on the heather, gorse, rosemary and thyme. You need to have multiple layers of clothing as the temperature varied from freezing to 18 deg C. Solid boots rather than lightweight walking shoes are we think essential, and poles helpful. Lack of heat haze allows spectacular views.

All the places one stays are very welcoming, and diligent about Covid precautions, but Casa Pilar is the highlight. We paid extra for the room with a terrace at Hotel Aluhuar but this is of little benefit in November and the building carries the noise of your neighbours with complete clarity in the small hours. Like the bells of Tarbena which make sleeping difficult, as others have written. 

Walking instructions as usual are excellent - but the Barranc de l'Infern route was problematic after the heavy overnight rain we experienced. We turned back early as a section of the path was very slippery towards the first gorge – and we surmised it would only get worse further in.

It is worth saying that on 5 of the 6 days the weather was perfect for walking - albeit an earlyish start is recommended because the sun drops behind the mountains around 3.30. Our hosts were happy to provide breakfast earlier than advertised.

Wonderful holiday which far exceeded expectations. We booked this holiday last minute and only chose it given there were limited walking holidays available in November. We were so amazed at the beauty of the mountains, and the feeling of solitude and remotness, when so close to Benidorm. The walking note were, on the whole, very good (some tracks had changed but they were easy to locate) but I was grateful that I had downloaded the gps maps onto my phone. All accommodation was good - the rooms were clean and the meals were delicious. The owners of the first two hotels were delightful.  This was the first time we used Inn Travel. We will definitely use them again.

The walking was very good exercise and the views spectacular. Swimming in some of the water bowls was great. We loved the hotels in Tarbena and Castells: both small unspoilt villages.

The title of the walk, Rugged Mountains, is very accurate!  A few stretches were challenging but the views were always worth the effort.   Both Paco and his son and Pilar and Juanjo were extremely welcoming, helpful and friendly and the two accommodations were very comfortable.  Hotel Alahuar was also very comfortable although obviously less personal.  We thoroughly enjoyed the week.

Excellent walking holiday - I believe I was the first customer to walk this route since Feb 2020 and was the only guest in the first 2 hotels so hopefully that improves quickly for everyone. All were friendly, welcoming and the food and wine were delicious. The routes themselves were excellent and i fully enjoyed every one. Will not hesitate to book with Inntravel again