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Revise Itinerary: Hiking in Andalucia w/o backtracking

Posted by (Maine) on

Thought I had a good itinerary for 9-day trip in mid-February. Then I realized I was backtracking more than I originally realized. Any other suggestions for 1-2 days of hiking in the middle of the trip based from a small town/village area?

Arrive in Malaga Tues PM (from US), explore Malaga on Wed AM
1. Wed - train to Granada (explore)
2. Thurs - Granada (Alhambra)
3. Fri - Granada (explore)
4. Sat - Granada AM, pickup rental car, drive to Competa
5. Sun - Competa (hike)
6. Mon - Competa (hike)
7. Tues - drive to Antequerra and onto Cordoba (OR drive to Malaga, return rental car, train to Cordoba)
8. Wed - Cordoba (explore)
9. Thurs - Cordoba, train to Madrid
Leave from Madrid Fri PM.

I like the idea of hiking in the middle of our trip, rather than doing it first thing followed by several days of sightseeing (and also, thought that Alhambra may be less crowded on weekday + fewer days with rental car). And there is a B&B in Competa that seems like a really good fit. But it definitely seems like we would be backtracking from Granada, perhaps unnecessarily, to do it in the middle of the trip. There are definitely so many hiking options, but Sierra Nevada seems like it could be cold in Feb and the Subbatica area seems like perhaps it may not have much natural diversity. I am also interested in Jean, Ubeda, Baeza, especially if there is any chance that olive harvest may still be happening or if there is a good place for hiking.

Casa Olea would have been a great option but it appears it is not open in February (or it is fully booked).

Should also note that we are looking for 3-4 hour walks/hikes, probably not 5-8 hour treks! We are also coming from Northeast US, where it is very possible that it will be -16c / 2f (today's temp) so cool temps in Andalucia will still be warm to us.

Any other suggestions for revising itinerary that I'm not considering?

Posted by
8193 posts

I haven’t walked any of it yet, but for my spring trip I bookmarked Vía Verde Del Aceite on the edge of Jaén for a walk. It’s a walk through olive groves and you could walk as far as you want, then turn around and go back to kilometer 0 where the trail begins. I believe it’s a fairly easy walk along a well maintained trail. If you’re lucky harvesting will still be going on.

On our trip we’re spending a couple nights in Jaén, therefore, a trail by it.

Posted by
27 posts

Take a look at Wikiloc for lots of trails wherever you decide to stay. Zoom in on an area and more links will appear on the map.

Posted by
1046 posts

I don't know anything about hiking--sorry!--but one thing that stands out is the car rental return ion Malaga.
Why would you consider driving to Malaga just to return the car and then return to Cordoba? Why not rent from a company that has a location in that city? It's just a few more minutes drive from Antequera to Cordoba as it is to Malaga.

You might even keep the car while in Cordoba and after that, drive to Malaga to return the car, and fly home from there. You'd have to pay for parking, I imagine, but it's only for 2 nights. I hope that makes sense-maybe I am missing something here..not unusual for me!

I so enjoyed my time in Cordoba last year..I had five nights and could have stayed longer.

One place you ought to try to fit in is a meal at CASA EL PISTO...it's just oozing with character and the food is fantastic, and not at all expensive. The actual name is TABERNA SAN MIGUEL. Try the dishes local to the city...I went a few times during my stay and had such a great time there.. It's usually packed with locals and very lively. But if you want to be sure of having a table, you should make a reservation, otherwise you might end op eating while standing, or perched on a bar stool.

Posted by
625 posts

The subbetica region is agricultural in the sense mostly olive groves, not a great deal of diversity. This trip report may be useful for some comments about that area and the weather, although we were there a little later in February:
https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2024/04/off-beaten-track-in-andalucia-early.html
An area great for hiking is the Torcal near Antequera, great if you have a car.
The weather could still be iffy that time of year. When I want to include hiking out of season I allow for a days hiking as part of a longer stay wherever so I can juggle at least a little to get the best day for the hike - you might have good weather beofre and after but if it rains the day you planned on competa, what do you do there?
There are nice hikes to do starting off directly from Granada which don't require a car. These were some easy ones, but Wikiloc has more: https://slowtravelitalyspain.blogspot.com/2019/04/walking-in-granada.html. (We visited Granada early March).
I would spend one of your Competa nights in Antequera where you can hike around Torcal if the weather is nice, or explore the very pleasant town if it isn't, and add the other to Granada.
I see what you say about the temperatures you are used to, but both El Torcal and The Alhambra will need you to dress warmly, Ok not as low as your temps, but the wind chill factor at Torcal is notable (I live in the Alps). I also needed my warmest jacket at the Alhambra to enjoy walking around slowly first thing in the morning

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