Away from the Crowds

Reviews

A once in a lifetime experience we are sure.

We had a wonderful holiday! The organisation made everything so easy, special thanks to Sylvia and Vanessa for the transfers, their friendly help and interesting information.

All three hotels were very good, each one so different but special in their own way. We thoroughly enjoyed all of the places we stayed, we definitely saw different versions of Spain, away from the tourist hot spots, exactly what we wanted.

Our highlight as far as wildlife was a gryphon vulture sitting on a rock not many metres away from us, looking out over the plain on our last walk towards Gallegos. He’s not very clear but he was huge! Lesley is an avid bird watcher but it was a heart stopping moment for all of us when he took off from the edge. A once in a lifetime experience we are sure.

We did lose our way that day, we missed a left turn up into the foothills we think, and we came down into Matabuena much to the surprise of the locals at the bar, they helped us to find our way back to the main road to Gallegos and we rejoined the original path, we survived!

We did have time to walk around Segovia, we were amazed by the aqueduct and the town itself is beautiful, lots of interesting history and buildings. We had dinner outside a bar in one of the squares, tapas, rioja and music playing in the evening sun, a briiliant end to our first day.

La Granja was a surprise, we didn't expect a royal palace and we were lucky enough to see the fountains in full flow. The hotel La Roma was just right, the bar was a welcome sight when we returned from our walk to the waterfall at El Chorro. We also had lunch at the hotel bar on that day, very good.

As to food, the meal at the Posada at Gallegas was so good and it’s so friendly, sitting in the living room relaxing after a long walk was just what we needed, we were made very welcome.

So as you can tell, we did have a great time. We had fun trying out the little spanish that we know, we have laughed, ached and puzzled over maps and directions but all in all it was sometimes easy and also a challenge. As I said, exactly what we wanted, thank you.

Sue, Leslei and Susan, UK.

fantastic experience

Hi there ,

we began our holiday in Segovia for 2 days sightseeing in this amazing (world heritage) town. Hubby and I were then transported to Navafria , to complete a circular walk connecting rustic villages . This was a great challenge , we averaged 15 Km a day for three days.

We were then transported to Sepulveda for a couple of days to see the vultures and walked in the amazing Duraton Canyon.

It was a fantastic experience, made easy thanks to Jaime's organisation with amazing accommodation, good maps and directions, great eating (and drinking) places.

We were so lucky with the weather, a very dry period, not too hot but plenty of wild blackberries, almonds and walnuts to keep us going! The wildlife did not disappoint with lots of close up views of vultures,also booted eagles, kites, choughs, shrikes etc.

We managed una poco Espaniole but this has inspired us to learn more, would love to do another trip with "Away from the Crowds"!

Mel and Gus Spirit, Scotland.

We enjoyed all the hotels

We had a fantastic holiday. All the arrangements worked well and the staff we met were all lovely - and very helpful.

We enjoyed all the hotels - the accommodation and food were very good. Segovia, San Ildefonso and Gallegos all offered something different which made for a very interesting holiday.

There was a festival of the rosary in Gallegos on the evening we were there - so we were lucky to see the dancing and listen to the small band.

We would love to do another walk with you.

Ann Shearer, Scotland.

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