Medieval Villages & La Garrotxa Volcanic Zone Hiking. Small Group Tour

Ramon is an excellent guide - personable, knowledgeable, and flexible - and made this an excellent day trip. We had a nice hike around the volcano park (easy hiking, moderate pace), stopping along the way to enjoy cheese & sausage snacks he provided, then drove to see some lovely examples of medieval villages after enjoying an excellent (optional) fixed-price lunch at a small restaurant just outside the volcano park. Highly recommend Catalan Trails guide service, and Ramon, who do this and many other day trips. This trip is suitable for all ages, and Ramon catered everything to our interests to make our trip most enjoyable. Thanks Catalan Trails!

We loved our tour with Ramon. He’s so friendly and knowledgeable, and kept the tour and conversation engaging the whole time. La Garrotxa is so beautiful this time of year with the autumn colours, and the hike was easy enough even for amateur hikers. Besalu is so quaint and unique too. All in all, a really memorable day.

Our special trip with Ramon truly represents our return to freedom after the very intense lockdown in Barcelona. The fresh air and beautiful views were our reward. Ramon is an outstanding guide. He is so knowledgeable about the area and added a lot of details and context about the geology and history that we wouldn't have gotten on our own. At the same time, he didn't force conversation on the drive, which I think shows a level of comfort with silence that is uncommon in the industry, but also probably appreciated by many clients. All three stops were gorgeous and special. Besalu is definitely a must-see. We opted for the restaurant lunch, and it was really nice. Overall, wonderful tour.

In addition to knowing Barcelona, we wanted to know more about Catalonia and chose this tour, for different and because it caught our attention. How wise it was to do it! We really didn't want to make expectations and in the end it turned out to be a marvel of a tour. Ramon, the owner and our guide is an excellent person. I was amazed at how much he knows about volcanoes and loved how passionate he is about what he does. The hike through the Garrotxa National Park was good. Although it looked like it was going to rain heavily, it didn’t rain so much and Ramón was very prepared for any eventuality. He was also telling us more about every corner of the park and his talk was very enjoyable. The food was delicious, in a place like the middle of the forest or the field, with very good seasoning. We went to Besalú, which is the best preserved medieval village in Catalonia. What a beautiful place! It seems to transport you back to other times. At all times we feel super safe with Ramon. He was always very friendly with us and even gave us tips of locals to be able to take advantage of the days that remained in Barcelona. The fascinating panellet tip, my husband loved them!

I had an absolutely SPLENDID time on this tour! Ramon is highly knowledgeable and a truly excellent travel guide. I very much appreciated his input and explanations to the historical contexts and undertones that explain the existence of specific architectural structures in the medieval towns, not to mention all of the fantastic photo shots. The nature hikes were particularly my favorite part of the whole experience because of the limited exposure to nature in downtown Barcelona. Ramon is also an excellent conversationalist; we chatted for hours on all sorts of topics ranging from travel, to history, to politics. I most appreciate Ramon's help and advice on finalizing my last tourist attraction visits prior to the end of my vacation, as well as for the great restaurant tips. FYI Ramon: I went to La Fonda del Port Olimpic, as you suggested for seafood, and the food was amazing! Thanks again for such a great time!

We were lucky to have Ramón as our guide. He was very friendly, knowledgeable and accommodating. We had a lovely hike followed by a delicious lunch and then tour of the picturesque village of Besalú. Ramón’s knowledge of history and culture made the day much more interesting than if we had done this on our own.

We arrived at the meeting point and our guide was punctual, very friendly , puts all the members of the team at ease and is very knowledgeable about the Spanish culture, way of life and the trip. The drive from Barcelona to La Garrotxa takes about one and a half hours in a very comfortable air conditioned minibus. The hike through the Natural Park takes roughly three hours with just a few steep up hills otherwise it is more or less flat. Walking through the beech tree forest was wonderful as it was a hot day giving us shade and coolness. Our guide even carried and gave us bottles of water to quench our thirst. The meal was satisfactory and the service was very quick. I would have loved to have more time in Besalu because I really loved the place but time was given to go shopping in the tourist shops. All in all it was a very satisfying day.

Ramon is an excellent guide—knowledgeable, energetic, and kind. He has a positive and generous spirit. I highly recommend any guided tour or hiking experience with Ramon. I went on two of his excursions including La Garrotxa & Besalu as well as Montserrat and I had a wonderful time!

Why pay the same price for big tour companies when you can have Ramon's personalised service? He knows his routes well and was very flexible to cater for my active young family. Book his COSTA BRAVA + TOSSA DE MAR tour as well if you enjoy day hikes. My family had a magical time with Ramon. La Garrotxa is special if you get the morning fog. - Felix from down under

Ramon is a great guide. He was born and raised in Catalan, and has traveled the world. He has so much insight and history to share about the areas we visited and Barcelona as well. We had so many fascinating conversations with him. We decided to do this trip on our honeymoon and my husband's birthday and he couldn't be more impressed! The day was amazing!