I’d like to give everyone an update on what our plans are for hiking holidays this summer, the current situation in Spain, and hopefully, answer a few questions people have about their Pyrenees walking holidays.

With the COVID vaccines being rolled out, people are starting to think of hiking holidays once again. Within Europe, travel for the summer, particularly late summer, is starting to look realistic. Our hiking holidays, based in small villages, out in the open air in small groups are a perfect way to get away from the crowds.

Firstly, we’re happy to say, all of the Hike Pyrenees team are healthy and well, and we hope that all of our guests, friends and readers are also well.

We’re here in the Pyrenees, ready and waiting, and rest assured, as soon as people can travel, we’ll be restarting our holidays. We’re soo looking forward to when we can welcome you all back to these beautiful mountains. Currently, we are actually allowed to run holidays for groups of up to ten, the problem, however, is that nobody is allowed to travel to get to us!

Obviously, there’s still a great deal of uncertainty with regards to travel this summer, but Hike Pyrenees are being as flexible as possible to help all of our guests. If you’ve already made a booking, and need to change the dates (to later this year or to 2022), then you can do so with no problem. We’ll only be asking for full payment of your holiday two weeks before you travel so you can assess the latest situation.

For anybody wanting to make a new walking holiday reservation, you can do so with no deposit and again we offer full flexibility to cancel or change dates.

The outlook for travel is looking much brighter for late summer, so if you’d like to reserve dates for September let us know. If autumn travel looks like a good possibility, we’ll be extending the season, running holidays in October and November. We know some lovely locations for autumn hikes.

I’ve tried to answer some of your questions below, but if you’ve got any other questions about a current booking, or a booking new holiday, then just drop us an email and we’ll be glad to help.

We look forward to welcoming you back to the Pyrenees soon,
Phil and the Hike Pyrenees team

Current COVID situation in Spain
Like most of Europe, Spain had a post-Christmas increase in cases which thankfully is now well on the way down again. Each region has different rules, but in Aragon schools, shops, bars and restaurants have remained open (with social distancing and restrictions on opening hours and capacities), however, travel between provinces isn’t allowed, meaning people can’t leave or enter the Huesca area. This has kept the number of cases at a low level in our rural area, and, with care, we’ve been able to get out into the mountains, ski, and go out for the odd meal.

Masks are obligatory in all public places, but not when doing exercise such as hiking in the mountains or cycling. The vaccine rollout in the EU is slower than the UK and the USA, but Spain is doing better than most other EU countries in terms of percentage vaccinated.

Travel outlook for the summer

Within Spain
If you live in Spain, we’re confident that we’ll be able to travel within the country by the summer. We’re here and ready to run holidays, so just let us know when you’d like to come. We can run self-guided or guided walking holidays and are happy to run holidays for just two people. Drop us an email at info@hikepyrenees.co.uk and we can organise a trip for you.

From the UK
It’s not certain exactly when travel to Spain from the UK will restart. The government is due to make an announcement in early April as to summer travel plans for the UK. June and early summer may still be possible, but for sure, we’re hoping that later in the summer, travel will be allowed. If you have a booking for early summer, it’s fine to just wait until the government announces its plans and see how things develop over the coming weeks. If you decide you want to move your dates to September or to 2022 just let us know. Ryan Air flights from London Stansted to Zaragoza are now on sale.

From the US, Canada and outside Europe
Early summer for trans-Atlantic travel seems unlikely. We’re hoping that some travel may be possible by the fall, but we’ll have to see how things develop over the next few months. If you’ve got a booking and think you need to change dates and delay your holiday, just let us know. You can switch to fall dates or to 2022. Travel from Australia looks unlikely to return this year and anyone who is coming from Australia can reorganise for 2022.

Frequently asked questions

I’ve got a booking this summer – when will I have to pay my balance?
We’re not asking for payment of the final balance until two weeks before your holiday to give you a chance to see the latest situation before paying. If for any COVID-related reason you can’t travel after paying your balance, we’ll provide a full refund.

I’ve got a 2021 reservation and don’t think I’ll be able to travel – what are my options?
If you’ve got a booking for this summer and know that you won’t be coming this year, then let us know so we can cancel your hotel rooms. You can rebook for 2022 and we’ll move any deposit you’ve paid across to your new booking.

I’d like to make a new booking for 2021 – do I pay a deposit and can I cancel or change dates?
You can make a summer 2021 reservation with no deposit, with free cancelation or date changes if needed. Read our full COVID guarantees.

Will your holidays be COVID-safe?
With our holidays based in small villages and hotels with activities out in the open air in small groups, our holidays are perfect to get away from large crowds. Hike Pyrenees and all of the hotels and restaurants we work with, will undertake all COVID protocols that are appropriate when our holidays start. Right now, I can’t say exactly what these will be, but they will include keeping our group sizes small, disinfecting vans and all equipment after each hike, and making sure that all restaurants and hotels are following COVID rules and social distancing.