Gran Canaria- a Walking Continent in Miniature

Sole Occupancy Supplement

The sole occupancy supplement of £40 per night is already included in the cost of this holiday. – as shown at the top of the page.

Rooms will be twins with plenty of room to spread out. 

You purchase your own flights for this holiday.

The price you pay to Secret Hills Walking Holidays is a land only price.

When you reserve your flight, our policy is to enable you to fly from your local airport, wherever possible.

This means that clients will arrive at the destination airport at different times and we will arrange the onward transfers to the hotel, and return you to the airport at the end of the holidays.

We believe that you should have the choice of UK airports to fly from – the nearest and most convenient to you is likely also to be the most cost effective. We can advise you prior to your booking flights. Flights are available from most UK airports.

Transfers to hotel from airport

We will transfer you to the hotel from the airport. We will accumulate everyone on the trip together – so you may a have a short wait for all flights to arrive before our transfer can begin. Transfer from the airport to the hotel is 45 mins in a luxury mini bus or taxi.

If you have arranged a flight that does not coincide with the main arrival times, then an additional transfer cost will apply. We will inform you of that cost when you reserve a place.

The journey between the airport and hotel is a steep and windy one- as we climb up to the centre of the island – a magnificent journey- but hundreds of bends.

The walks we offer you enable you to really see the best of the heart of Gran Canaria. Each walk is different and very varied.

On this holiday we walk for 5 days with 1 free day.

The walks shown below are for guidance and we have many walks on Gran Canaria.

Many issues may mean we need to change these prior or during the trip. These include…

• weather situations
• road closures or fire damage
• the overall capability of the group

Each evening the next days walk will be discussed in detail with you.

Walk 1

Alta Vista Ridge walk ( 9.5km, 600m ascent and descent)

Walk 2

Almond Blosson Circular walk taking in two local villages 15km, 800m ascent / descent

Walk 3

Hotel to Cruz Grande taking in Pico de Nieves linear hike 16km, 700m ascent, 900m descent

Walk 4

Roque Nublo

15km

Walk 5

Artenera Ridge walk taking in the cave houses 15km, 800m ascent and descent

Prevailing weather conditions

In Gran Canaria will have a mix of sunny, warm weather- but there could be cloudy conditions and some high level mist- and be prepared for a shower or two..

Exclusions

Although our leaders are well trained  and experienced in dealing  with different capabilities of our walking clients, if they have any concerns about  any clients ability or suitability to undertake safely any walking activity we plan or they feel that participation of an individual may affect the groups safety and cohesion, then they have full permission to exclude that client from an activity.

They will try at all times to provide an alternative suggested activity, though this may involve the client in additional local cost.

We rarely have to enforce this above recommendation, but it is a sensible and necessary protection for the individual client, the group and the leaders.

• the sun in our winter
• Four  star mountain top hotel- superb location, super food and services
• fantastic sunrises and sun sets – rooms designed to take these in.
• walking in superb scenery in the centre of Gran Canaria
• a continent in miniature – a different view at every turn
• local Canarian cuisine
• our relaxed, social approach
• experienced and knowledgeable guides

Great care has been taken selecting our routes to ensure our guests enjoyment and safety. However, due to the challenging nature of the mountainous terrain there will be some steep climbs and descents so a good level of walking fitness is strongly recommended, this will greatly enhance the enjoyment of this walking holiday (a suggested kit list will be issued).

Overall we rate the walking as moderate with some challenging steep ascents and descents.

On good paths, the ground is hard, dusty and very dry, we stop often – taking on water is obligatory, and not every day will be the same – we may take transport higher up, and walk quite a bit of the walk on a reasonably level terrain, then descend.

Gran Canaria is also a very open landscape with little shade – and the sun can be pretty hot during the middle part of the day. Make sure your head and shoulders covering protects well, and of course making sure you hydrate throughout the walk is paramount. Sun protection cream is a must. We do not want any one with heatstroke so prepare well beforehand.

You need good walking footwear, preferably waterproof walking boots with good soles for protection. You may find that walking poles will aid your enjoyment of this land.

It’s all about meeting new friends. Each holiday is designed to be a friendly, relaxed and stress-free occasion. Talking is as important as walking on Secret Hills Walking Holidays. We don’t go in for discos, we may use an event that is taking place in the area we are in to boost the weekend’s activities – but it’s good, old fashioned chat that makes our short breaks successful.

“Make new friends that turn into old friends” – that’s our motto.

You might be surprised by what fun you’ll have with people who are older or younger than you during a holiday with us, and that’s exactly the sort of atmosphere we encourage; people find it very rewarding. It doesn’t matter what your reasons for travelling with us are, we’ve had people who are single, divorced or widowed, people who have partners that are unable to travel, and people who can’t holiday with their friends anymore as they’ve all got married themselves. There are people who want to make friends, see sights, and experience something completely new. Whatever your reason, we’ll welcome you with open arms and our friendly hosts will help you to get the most out of your holiday.

Don’t worry if this is the first time you have ventured to join a group holiday – its always a bit daunting – but we will look after you and ensure that you get used to being amongst friends again. Trust us to to get you back into the swing of things.

Oh – by the way – it’s not a dating agency – over the years we have had people meet and fall in love – but that’s just chance. Our aim is that you make like-minded friends – just relax and enjoy.

Just arrive and enjoy.

There are other walking holiday companies that cover Europe but we believe we offer the best value for many reasons….

• We specialise in organising guided walking holidays for singles and solo travellers
• We are a small friendly company
• We have a loyal customer base who return again and again (so we must be doing something right) – read our testimonials page on the website
• We offer a lot of flexibility – you can stay extra nights which we are happy to organise for you. We are also very flexible on the walks we provide, adapting to suit walkers and weather conditions
• Our walk leading is second to none. Unlike some other large Walking Companies, we use LOCAL leaders who live in the area and who love their surroundings. They have expert knowledge of everything you need to know to make an area come alive.
• You are safe in our hands – our guides are experts, fully qualified in first aid. Also, because of their local knowledge of the hills, they can respond to any situation that might for example demand cutting short a route. They don’t need to consult maps – they know the hills intimately.
• Our leaders are all easy-going, genuinely sociable people who want to ensure that you have the best time you can with the rest of the group. They make the weekend fun by engaging with all members of a group, and ensuring that everyone feels part of the group experience.
• We give great value for money. Because we recognise that lots of walkers holiday on their own, we have negotiated no single supplement deals with all our hotels to ensure the best possible deal.
• We always use good hotels, selected and constantly reviewed.
• We have smaller groups than some of the larger walking companies because we believe the social experience is much better in a smaller group. People can talk to everyone, especially at dinner where you can all sit at one table in a small group. Our numbers vary from holiday to holiday but an average group size would be 8-12.

You may book online.

Payment is in two parts – you pay a deposit of 25%, payable when reserving your holiday place. You will receive an invoice for the holiday showing the deposit paid, and full amount to pay for the holiday. This acts as your confirmation.

The balance is due 8 weeks prior to the holiday start date. You will be sent a reminder.

About three weeks prior to departure, we will send you holiday joining details, and details of the transfer from the airport to the appointed hotel we have arranged for you.

Once you arrive at your holiday destination

Secret Hills Walking Holidays organise all aspects of your holiday– including guiding, transport to walks start and provide you with an experienced tour guide. You make your own arrangements to get to the airport in the UK, we meet you at the airport you are flying to, and help you with your transfer to the appointed hotel.

It is important to read Secret Hills Walking Holidays Terms and Conditions – click on the tab on our web site – before you complete the booking form.

Insurance – you need to be fully covered

It is a condition of joining any of our holidays that you must be fully insured against travel, medical and personal accident risks (to include repatriation costs and air ambulance or helicopter rescue services where appropriate).

We will ask you to provide us with the details of your insurance prior to the holidays start date and it is a condition of reserving a place.

If you are a UK citizen and travelling in Europe you should obtain the UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) which is available only online from the UK Government website. This gives you medical care at a reduced cost, and some cases for free, in many European countries, but should not be considered a substitute for adequate travel insurance.