Hiking the Tropical Landscapes of La Gomera

Rich local flavour, expert guides, welcoming hotels and all of La Gomera's best landscapes.

Our walking vacation in La Gomera showcases the island's diverse scenery and local culture, food and people. We provide a guided tour of San Sebastián on arrival to begin telling the tales from its vibrant past, followed by a full-day tour to explore the island with our knowledgeable guides. The day includes three key elements:

1. Discover the extraordinary cloud forest environments of Garajonay National Park, where our guide offers brings the experience to life with their expert knowledge,
2. Immerse yourself in La Gomera's traditional and modern ways of life, enjoying a vegetarian meal that reflects the island's historical culinary practices.
3. Experience the sunny southern part of the island, known for its stunning views and terracing.

This day sets the scene for the rest of the walk. We've made La Gomera accessible to all by combining two challenging hikes with shorter walks, allowing you to enjoy the beautiful surroundings without overly strenuous efforts. You then have plenty of time to relax and enjoy your hotels and the local surroundings, rather than walking all day, every day.

Finally, we care about the environment and support local reforestation projects, making our trip beneficial for both you and La Gomera.

La Gomera is just 50 minutes by ferry from Tenerife. There are regular flights to Tenerife Sur airport (TFS), where we will be waiting to take you the short distance to the ferry port for your crossing. On arrival, your first hotel is just a few minutes away. On your return it's another simple journey from La Gomera to the airport. Easy!

This trip can depart as shown on any day between Tuesdays and Saturdays. If you wish to start on a Sunday or Monday, this will likely require a second night at the spa hotel at the end - no bad thing of course!

The best time to walk in La Gomera is September through May, with peak season between November and April. The summer months can be hot with temperatures in the high twenties and low thirties. It's possible to walk during these months, but you should go prepared!

For the rest of the year, daytime temperatures remain stable and rarely drop below the high teens, though things can be a little chilly in the evenings. Rainfall is also consistently low.

La Gomera has a variety of microclimates to be aware of. In the north, where the majority of this vacation takes place, trade winds bring constant moisture and cool temperatures in Garajonay National Park, and usually cloudier and humid weather around Vallehermoso and Hermigua. In the south, the climate is generally sunny, fresher and drier.

Sunset ranges from 18:30 in the winter to 20:30 in the summer.

There are two quite demanding walks on this trip (days 3 and 4). Both of these climb fairly steeply over the first third before they even out in the middle and descend quite steeply at the end. The descent is done by zig-zagging paths which ease the going considerably, but for anyone who suffers with bad knees it might take its toll somewhat.

There is an option to reverse the circular walk and tackle the steeper section going up and also with prior arrangement we can skip the second steep descent with a taxi (additional payable locally).

The other walks are all quite short and flat. There is an option to extend the coastal walk in Hermigua to make it a longer day of walking if you wish, or take it as a complete rest day if you prefer. Both can be arranged locally.

Your first day is a full-day guided tour which mixes two short walks, totalling about two hours on flat ground. For the two longer walks, at an average speed and with a stop for lunch, we'd expect you to be walking for around five to six hours.

On the two other days, you could complete the walks in about two hours, but we encourage you to enjoy the views, stop for a lingering picnic and take your time.

No. To make sure you enjoy the trails in splendid peace and at your own pace, we offer just one departure a day for this walking vacation. That means each day is yours, all yours, with no other footsteps gathering speed behind you. It does mean however that dates get booked up. So if you're interested, please let us know so that we can secure your preferred dates.

We provide simple written instructions for you to follow, plus GPS tracks which you use on your smartphone. These will let you know when you need to take an upcoming action, or if you have strayed off the path. It's therefore all very easy, allowing you to relax into the walk and enjoy the views.

Your days spent walking and exploring are balanced with great comfort at night. Each hotel offers a warm welcome, a comfy bed, peace and quiet and often a lush garden to enjoy with great views. We spend a great deal of time regularly visiting the hotels in the area to ensure we always offer the very best available.

There's also great comfort in having dinner at your hotel or being within a very short stroll of the restaurants. Once showered and settled, you needn't move too far.

Please send an inquiry for full details.

You have private transfers to take you between your hotels and the start/end of trails where required. There is no driving on this trip.

We take care of your luggage, securely transferring it around the island as you walk with only a daypack.

We've taken care to balance the distances and elevations of the walks across the week - this is a vacation not an endurance test! You essentially have a relaxed guided day followed by two pretty big days, with two short walks to end. Hopefully you'll therefore be able to enjoy all walks, but please let your local host know if you would like to opt out of or shorten a walk.

Yes, the slow pace of a walking vacation means you will have ample opportunity to strike up conversations should you wish. You also spend a great deal of time in small villages and collectively your guides and hosts are a great wealth of local knowledge and engaging company.

Creating trips that benefit the destination, as well as the traveller, has always been a core part of our ethos. In La Gomera, as in all our Spain vacations, you spend most of your time and money supporting local businesses. When you spend money with a locally-owned business, it circulates within that community at a rate four times the rate versus spending with an ‘outsider’ business. Therefore every locally-owned hotel you stay at, guide you meet, taxi ride you take and place you eat helps to strengthen La Gomera's communities.

In addition, for each trip to La Gomera we make a donation to help reforest parts of the island that have been damaged through the years by logging, cattle farming and forest fires. This helps sequester carbon, boost biodiversity and return ancient landscapes to their original - and beautiful - state.

Simply send over an enquiry with any details or requests that you have and we'll come back to you with a full proposal for you to read through, which details of each walk and lots of stunning photography.

To book the trip you simply then give us your dates and we'll check availability and get you booked in!