The 5 Best Hiking Routes in Barcelona
Autumn is the ideal time of year for hiking enthusiasts who can make the most of the best temperatures for enjoying the great outdoors at this time of year. Even the colours of autumn are an added incentive to enjoy some nature tourism in Barcelona. As the greenery gives way to the brown and yellow tones of autumn, nature’s landscape creates a beautiful colour pattern for you to enjoy and embrace. What’s more, autumn is also the perfect time for hiking if you want to combine your outdoor adventures with a little searching for mushrooms. Taking a stroll through nature seeking out the best local mushrooms and lepiotas is a real pleasure for the mycology enthusiasts among us.
And Spain’s Cataluña region offers some great options for hiking, whether you want to explore the very best areas of Berguedá or simply make the most of a tour of Amposta.
In Barcelona, you’ll find many different hiking routes to enjoy. Before setting off on a given route, it’s vital you consider the level of physical effort required and of course those all-important weather conditions. The province has many different routes to try, but today, we’d like to present the 5 best hiking routes in Barcelona:
Parque Natural de Collserola
This is the most recommended option for those who want to enjoy a natural environment just 9 kilometres from the centre of Barcelona. It’s the green lung of the city that separates Barcelona from the Vallès depression. The most famous geological feature you’ll encounter is Tibidabo, which, in addition to its outstanding natural surroundings, offers plenty of fantastic tourist attractions.
Montserrat
Located just 50km from Barcelona, Montserrat has been known as a mountain full of spirituality ever since it housed the shrine and monastery dedicated to the Virgin of Montserrat. Besides the religious component, Montserrat is a place that’s more than recommended for a morning or afternoon’s hiking for the views alone. At 1,236 metres above sea level, hikers will find numerous low and medium-difficulty routes from which you can take in the rocky massif and a huge variety of vegetation, alongside some beautiful secluded chapels you’ll encounter along the way.
Cadí-Moixeró Nature Park
Just a little over an hour by car from Barcelona is the second largest park in Catalonia. A 30km-long mountainous barrier located in the regions of Alto Urgel, Cerdaña and Berguedá, in the Catalan Pre-Pyrenees. Water and limestone rocks have formed a truly stunning landscape that includes the highest mountain ridges – Pedraforca (2,497 metres), Tossa (2,531 metres) and Puigllançada (2,406 metres) – as well as no fewer than 8 signposted routes of low, medium and higher difficulty that will delight lovers of hiking, climbing and adventure tourism.
Montseny Nature Park
An hour and a half by car from the centre of Barcelona is the oldest park in all of Catalonia and declared a biosphere reserve since 1978. With around 30 signposted trails, the park even allows you to discover three European bioclimatic landscapes in one: the Mediterranean, the Eurosiberian and the Boreoalpine.
El Garraf Nature Park
Located less than an hour by car from Barcelona between the regions of Bajo Llobregat, Alto Penedés and el Garraf, here you’ll find a typically Mediterranean nature park and all its charms. Along various routes and trails, mostly circular, you’ll be able to discover the natural and cultural wealth of the area. More specialist hikers will find long-distance trails, notably GR92 (the Mediterranean trail) and the GR5 (the lookout trail).
To hike this or any other of the great routes in the region, always set off with ropes and the necessary equipment to practice hiking and nature activities, and always let someone know of your plans.
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