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NO SINGLE SUPPLEMENT IN MARCH & OCTOBER 8 days from £729 March, May & October Catalonia - Trails & Rails We have featured ‘Walking in Catalonia’ for a few years now. As our hotel is situated just 15 minutes walk from the local railway station it gives us the opportunity to explore further this part of Catalonia. The local station is on the main line between Barcelona and Tarragona and the journey to either (which you can do in your spare time) is very pleasant as the train hugs the coastline. But there are also a few local lines which pass through unspoilt Catalan countryside, where pretty villages huddle around their church and wine cellar, unchanged by time. Between them roll hills of olives and vines, interrupted by occasional rocky crags or coves, and seemingly randomly-positioned railway halts. Recalling the days when the trains on these lesser-used lines were of great import to the country and its government, each off-the-beaten-track station seems to be home to an enormous traffic office (now often derelict) where, presumably, teams of civil servants supervised the running of the railway! One line goes west and inland into the Priorat, an area famed for its wine as much as its beautiful countryside. The other line goes north to Montblanc at the foot of the Prades mountain range. • 7 nights hb in Catalonia • 3 included walking excursions: coast, hills, countryside • Travel to and from walks mainly by train PROGRAMME Day One: Flight to Barcelona or Reus. Transfer to your hotel just under an hour away for seven nights half board hotel accommodation. Days Two to Seven: In resort with three included Trails & Rails walks. Please note: we will pre-purchase train tickets, but occasionally trains can be quite busy for the first 2 or 3 stops. The train station is just under a mile’s walk from the hotel. Please note: All three walks have sections which are more difficult than other walks in this brochure, paths being steep, narrow and rocky in places, particularly following erosion. On all three walks there is an easier option, but even this on Walk 3 is tricky in places. Walk 1: The Cistercian Route from l’Espluga de Francoli to medieval Montblanc. Coach transfer to l’Espluga de Francoli (45 minutes). After walking through this old wine village you walk gradually uphill towards the sanctuary of the Trinity. You continue through a forested area, on a broad path before reaching St John’s Hermitage and then descending towards the town of Montblanc. 6 miles, 250m of ascent/ descent. The easier option (4.5 miles, 70m ascent/descent) misses out the Hermitage and avoids a climb and a steep descent, allowing extra time in Montblanc instead. Montblanc is a little jewel: a completely unspoilt medieval town with fine ramparts, shady streets and impressive churches and squares – especially the Placa Major, the Main Square. This is the town where St George supposedly fought against the dragon, to save the princess! From Montblanc you catch the train back to the coast. Walk 2: Priorat. You catch the 0948 train to the little village station at Marça, amid the DOC Montsant wine district, and in the county of Priorat, arriving at 1101. The line is spectacular, especially after it emerges from the Argentera tunnel (completed in 1890). Marça is where the International Brigades (including the British Battalion) massed in preparation for the disastrous Battle of Ebro in 1938. The walk is circular, but the landscapes on the outward section – vineyards and olive groves with a spectacular craggy backdrop – are very different to the second part where, after passing Capçanes, you go through a wood and climb through a rocky gully part of the way. 8 miles, 160m of ascent/ descent. The easier option (5 miles) ends in Capçanes with a coach transfer back to Marça. You return to the coast by coach (one hour). Walk 3: The Coastal Path: l’Ametlla de Mar to l’Ampolla. You take the 0848 train south down the coast to l’Ametlla de Mar – journey time one hour. On this walk you will discover the natural beauty of this protected part of the coast. You will follow in the footsteps of patrolmen who, in centuries gone by, used the pathways to look out for invaders, pirates or smugglers. The route crosses coves and beaches: much is totally unspoilt, though in some places you will marvel at the depredations not of pirates, but of Spanish planning – or, rather, the apparent lack of it! The whole walk to l’Ampolla is just under 11 miles with ascent/ descent of 170m. The easier option ends after 7 miles at Playa de l’Aliga, with an onward coach transfer to l’Ampolla. Return to Coma- Ruga is by train from l’Ampolla. Day Eight: Transfer to the airport for your flight home. YOUR HOTEL NUBAHOTEL HHHH, Coma-Ruga (seven nights) The description of the hotel is on page 11. Extend your holiday – extra week available in Catalonia. 12 | www.preferredts.com Please refer to the enclosed ‘Dates and Flight Information’ for details of departure dates, prices and flights.
NO SINGLE SUPPLEMENT in APRIL & October 8 days from £719 April, June, September & October The Valleys of Roussillon This holiday offers excellent walking in the hills of the Roussillon area of southwest France, sometimes called French Catalonia – it only became French in the 17th century. There is a great affinity between the ‘French’ and ‘Spanish’ Catalans, and your holiday includes a stay in both French and Spanish Catalonia. Also included in the holiday is a visit to Dali’s eccentric theatre-museum in Figueras - a mind-expanding sort of place! – and some time in the wonderful city of Barcelona. In short, this is a unique opportunity to walk in, and discover, one of the most fascinating parts of Europe and to enjoy the sunshine of the Mediterranean at the same time! • 3 nights hb on the Catalan Coast, 4 hb in the French hills • Entrances to Dali Theatre-Museum, Figueres, and to the fort in Prats de Mollo • 3 guided walks: coast, mountain, valley • Visit to Barcelona PROGRAMME Day One: Flight to Reus or Barcelona. On arrival transfer to your coastal hotel for two nights half board accommodation. Transfer time 50 minutes. Day Two: Optional half-day excursion to the Roman city of Tarragona where you can see the amphitheatre, port and beach and stroll through the medieval centre. Under the Romans, Tarragona was the capital of the Province of Northern Spain and home to the Emperor Augustus – a Temple in his honour stood on the site of the current Cathedral. Day Three: Today you depart for France. En route you make a stop in Dali’s home town of Figueras, close to the French border, and home to his surreal (in the truest sense!) theatre-museum (entrance included). The Dali Museum is one of the most-visited museums in Spain…and with its luminous-egg façade, it is not just the interior that seems to want to stretch your mind! From there it is just an hour to your hotel in Amélie-les-Bains, in the spectacular Vallespir valley, where you have four nights half board accommodation. Days Four to Six: In Amélie with three included walks. Walk 1: From your hotel you walk along the right bank of the river Tech before turning uphill taking an old footpath towards the old Vauban-style fort overlooking the town. You’ll pass one of the thermal springs for which Amelie is famous – it has been a spa resort since Roman times. After a coffee break you continue towards the medieval village of Palalda before returning to the hotel along the left bank of the river. 5 miles with ascent/ descent of 200m. Walk 2: The High Vallespir. You travel 40 minutes further up the Vallespir Valley to the fortified village of Prats de Mollo. A little further on lies the Spanish border at Col d’Ares, where you start your 3-hour walk on the ‘Cami de la Retirada’ – the Refugees’ Way that many followed out of Spain during the Civil War. You will also walk up to Vauban’s impressive Fort Lagarde, and take in the village church with its impressive altarpiece. Prats de Mollo stands on the side of the impressive Mount Canigou, snowcapped for much of the year, and with forests and mountain meadows abounding. 4.5 miles, 800m descent with 100m ascent/descent to the fort. Walk 3: The Vermilion Coast. You travel 45 minutes to the coast at Banyuls sur Mer, for a four - hour coastal walk following the ‘Customs Agent’s Path’. You make a stop in Port Vendres - home to Rennie Mackintosh for many years, before continuing to the artists’ resort of Collioure, a port since Roman times. The spectacular Chateau-Royal is worth a visit, and reproductions of works by artists who painted in Collioure (Matisse and Derain in particular) will be found on the quaysides. 6 miles, 300m of ascent/descent. Day Seven: Today you journey back south to the Costa Dorada for the last night of your holiday, which is again on a half board basis. En route a stop will be made in the exciting city of Barcelona, capital of Catalonia. Ramble(!) down the Rambla and you will find pavement artists and buskers, stalls selling all kinds of bric-a-brac - an avenue bursting with life and colour. Or you can visit the weird and wonderful cathedral of the Sagrada Familia - Gaudi’s masterpiece. Day Eight: Free time until your transfer to the airport for your return flight. YOUR HOTELS NUBAHOTEL HHHH, Coma-Ruga. (first two and last nights) See Page 11 for hotel description. HOTEL DE LA REINE AMELIE HHH, Amélie-les-Bains (four nights) In the rugged Vallespir Valley, alongside the River Tech, Amelie is a spa town 20 miles from the coast and surrounded by pleasant mountain scenery. The hotel has a bar, lounge area, restaurant and comfortable bedrooms with private bath/shower, wc, tv, free wifi, and phone. Some have a balcony too. (www.reineamelie.com) If you have friends who are not walkers interested in this itinerary, it is featured in our Escorted Holidays brochure with a touring programme. Please refer to the enclosed ‘Dates and Flight Information’ for details of departure dates, prices and flights. www.preferredts.com | 13
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WALKING - COMPLETE

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