Hut-to-Hut Trekking in the Picos de Europa

Trekking in the Picos was a great experience. Tough climbs that were rewarded with amazing view! Our guides, Alberto and Irene, were wonderful and knowledgeable people. Foraging with Alberto as we walked was a bonus!

Definitely pack as light as possible. The guides recommend a 35-45l pack, rather than the 40-60l on the kit list so plan for that.

This trip was better than I expected. The route is challenging with lots of elevation, which I like. Views are amazing all the time. The guides were fantastic, Irene and Alberto were very good, friendly, informative and very very nice. The food at the huts surprised me, locations are amazing, food is good and you can repeat as much as you can. On top of it, you can take a shower every night. Highly recommended!

Attended the last Picos de Europa trek of the year. The guides, huts/hotels, food and even weather exceeded all my expectations, and the Picos de Europa park itself is stunning. Gracias Irene y Alberto por hacer de esta una experiencia increíble. All logistics, transfers and communications were impeccably arranged and there were no surprises. I met and shared the experience with great fellow travelers as well, and I look forward to my next adventure!

We had a great time during this hike. Exceeded our expectations!! Mostly thanks to our amazing guides (Irene and Alberto) who made the trip a memorable experience!! Great group of people and very beautiful landscape and mountain refuges. Thank you!!

A wonderful time trekking through a gorgeous underrated part of the world! The guides, Sergio & Txexu, were so helpful and supportive along the way. There was clear information for each day and good options for various levels of experience! Also shout-out to the huts for having an excellent variety of vegetarian food!

Really good guides (Irene & Alberto), nice bunch of people on the trip, the route was fun and interesting and gave some good challenge. Accommodation was mixed as you would expect, really simple in the most remote locations and nice at each end. We had perfect weather, lucky given it was mid October! Would recommend it.

My 11th MBA trip and my new favourite. This trip exceeded my expectations . Beautiful mountains , cloud inversions, stunning sunsets , fun scrambles and lots of wildlife . Our group was lovely and our guides Irene and albertico were exceptional and so passionate about the area and the wildlife , they really made this trip one to remember. The huts were great with surprisingly good food , we were never hungry . If you're thinking of booking I 100% recommend this trip but pack light . This trip definitely lives up to its challenging rating . loved every minute.

Really enjoyable trip although disappointing the early snow put paid to 2 sections of the walk. The huts were of a higher quality than expected with hot showers and good food. The guides were great as was the company.

The kit list is out of date ( no need to bring hut shoes they all provide crocs, no need for a swimsuit) pack superlight into a 40l bag if you can. The lunches were generous so no need for lots of extra snacks.

The terrain is rough like Scotland, if you are used to that it'll be fine.

Could have done with more info about being able to leave a bag at the start earlier and also about being able to get a transfer back to Santander as well as Bilbao, this would have been helpful at time of booking.

This was my first multi day hiking trip, having only done day hikes previously. Food provided at the huts was lovely and very substantial for getting you through days of hiking (the sandwiches provided in the picnics were regularly the biggest thing in my back). Both Sergio and Txetxu were fantastic guides and the group dynamic was really good fun!

Carlos & Jaime have deep knowledge and a proud love of the Picos, which combined with their gentle humour and excellent mountain skills made for a trip that will live long in the memory.

Picos de Europa also met my high expectations. It marked another wonderful milestone in my life. This was possible because I was with wonderful people. They were never behind the scenery given by Picos de Euroma. Here are two guides, Carlos and Haime. I didn't expect to hang out with British, Irish, Australian, and Belgian who are unfamiliar to me as a Korean, but they were all very nice. People who like mountains, were there bad people? This was common all over the world. There was a lot of snow on the top of the mountain, so even if we changed the scheduled schedule, the satisfaction did not change. It was only when I finished the hike that I knew this place was a famous place for Europeans. I laughed naturally :). My greetings to everyone I met in the hike. I wish you happiness all the time. I want to invite you to Seoul sometime. There are mountains in Seoul even downtown. It gives the taste of hiking with humans, not with nature ha ha!

Fantastic trip , the guides Carlos and Jimenez were superb, professional and knowledgeable the huts and food were clean and what was needed after a an exhausting hike

Many thanks for a great adventure in the stunning Picos de Europa. The two guides , Carlos and Jaime were excellent in ensuring we coped with changes to our itinerary due to adverse weather , introducing us to the natural wonders of the mountains and creating a wonderful team spirit amongst the group.

Stupendous week hiking in the Picos de Europa with a great bunch of people, very knowledgeable and friendly guides, wonderful weather, and the most amazing landscape! Simply breathtaking views! They did not lie when they said it would be challenging, but it was very well managed and we were looked after so well that it was an entirely enjoyable experience despite the considerable physical effort. Everything was organised perfectly and went completely smoothly, from the first pick-up to the accommodation and meals to the last airport transfer. An absolutely wonderful week.

Follow your guide & just enjoy an epic trail.

What an amazing trip! Thank you so much.

I struggled a bit whether to give a 4 or 5 star review. I settled on a five because my reasons for providing a four were more on the observations on the organiztional aspects.

The route, the area, the quality of our guides, the mountain huts were all top notch. I especially want to highlight our two guides, Irene and Clara, who are highly competent, thoughtful, fun, smart, skilled, etc. And highly responsive to client needs.

We had a mix of weather from the glorious sunshine to days which we spent in continuous, but variable rain intensity, with low cloud/fog that made trail conditions more challenging. Our guides led expertly, confidently and all the while were aware of a responsive to everyone’s skill set and comfort.

I have trekked many of the planet’s mountain ranges. The Picos hold their own in terms of beauty, splendour, grandeur, effort (without the greater extremes in elevation) and variety.

The main improvement I can recommend to MBA and our local guide company (which overall was top notch) is to send out your pre-hike preparation and reminders a few days earlier. Receiving an email on the travel day of what to do if you miss your flight or kit reminders are of little value. For an experienced traveller these are not big issues but for first timers or less experienced these can be upsetting or useless.

Fun multi day trip hiking through the Picos. Magnificent scenery and guides who were very competent and personable.

Varied hiking, different terrains each day. The second day is particularly beautiful. Great guides- super knowledgeable- thank you Irene and Clara.

Hugely successful trip. The group really bonded over 5 days of challenging hiking. 1 1/2 days of wet musty weather but other days a mixture of sun and cloud, with stunning cloud inversions. Our guides, Irene and Clara were fun, informative and safety conscious. The scenery was breathtaking, all the more so because of the ever changing light due to the coastal cloud, and variety of landscapes from almost lunar limestone to alpine meadows (almost no wildflowers in September) to deciduous wooded valleys. The hotels and hostels were very comfortable. The refuges were challenging in terms of cramped sleeping areas (particularly the second, Vegabaño). Refuge food was plentiful - very basic in the first refuge, simple but tasty in the second, and excellent in the third. The hostel in Santa Marina was like an oasis in the desert after 2 nights in refuges! Make no mistake, the hiking was tough - 5600m ascent in about 75 km, although there are options to take taxis or split the group to shorten several of the days. Jose Miguel and Irene’s emphasis on packing light should be taken seriously. Pack carefully! Hiking poles are strongly recommended. I hiked in grippy trail shoes without goretex. My feet got wet but shoes dried quickly. Many used boots, but lightweight and grippy is recommended. A few scrambles are fun and not too challenging. A bit of a head for heights is helpful (I was fresh form a fear of heights weekend). Some training hilly hikes with a laden rucksack is recommended. The Picos are as good for hiking as the Alps or Pyrenees, and I would recommend this trip without reservation!

A fantastic week trekking through the magnificent picos and a real escape from civilisation. The guides, Dario and Txetxu, were excellent and I could not have had the company of a better gang of trekking buddies. Recommend!

The Picos had beautiful trails, landscapes and mountain huts. But what made it memorable were the two amazing guides Dario and Txetxu who made it constantly fun and entertaining, and all the trekkers in the group who were all great people.

Unreal experience hiking through this amazing landscape in the best possible company! Could not have had more beautiful trails, lovelier hiking mates and a better pair of guides to take us through these remote paths with enthusiasm and a real love for the region - will miss it all!

Such a great time, with truly special guides and other hikers.

40 years after I bought the guide the inspired us to join this trip, we felt it even exceeded expectations. (Even capturing the front cover view). The stunning beauty of the Picos, the amazing variations and paths that cut through them, the mix of the harder and easier days, the luck with the weather. The great, friendliest group of people with us, the great guides looking out for each and everyone of us. Maybe the shared bunk styled refuges aren't for the easiest of sleeps on occasion (they do have a hotel version ;-), but picture the views we got as a result. A worried a little about being GF, but we more than adequately catered for in the evenings. Highly recommended.

Really fun and well organised trip with excellent guides!

I've just got home from a week in the Picos. It was incredible. The local team (Dario and Alejandro) looked after us, guided us, made us laugh and really helped us all feel like a team.

The week definitely had it's challenges whether that was the heat or the climbs, learning to manage these with a 12kg bag is not to be underestimated.

The highlights for me were the views and the constant changing landscapes each day. This part of Spain is so green and lush in the valleys.

I loved each of the refuges we stayed in. Vegabaño being my favourite, I hope I can find a way to return here one day. Where else can you shower with mountain views and cats and chickens at your feet 😂

We had a really good group who all supported each other. It wasn't just a great week of hiking it was a great holiday. ❤️

This was my first Much Better Adventures trip and I was highly impressed. Love the airport/city transfers made getting to/from the start/finish hotels very simple. The guides were very knowledgeable and passionate. The hiking was more scenic than I could ever imagine. The food wasn’t amazing, but its mountain huts so to be expected, however, I do wish I’d known all the water would be unfiltered mountain stream water so I could have taken a proper water filter (my stomach ended up very upset for 2 days which detracted from the joy of hiking 🤣) most people seemed fine. But if you’re sensitive definitely consider a filter. The group was amazing and I think I ached more from laughing than hiking 😁. I can’t wait to book my next trip with MBA.

This trek is for those who enjoy hiking off the beaten path. While we’ve met other hikers, the Picos are still a hidden gem by comparison to better-known locations. The route was perfectly chosen: we traversed through a diverse landscape ranging from lush meadows, streams, forest, and alpine karst with stunning views around every corner. If you enjoy sleeping outdoors, bring a pad and tarp; it's well worth it. Pack protein shakes, as the food supply is limited due to the remote mountain hut locations!

This is a superbly put together week, with just the right balance of challenge for experienced hikers to be pushed a little (especially in unexpectedly hot weather!). The Picos are a genuine hidden gem, laced with challenging and rocky limestone trails and studded with remote refugios that free you from the added difficulties that come with camping. The route goes at just the right tempo (marshalled by our excellent guides, Sergio and Alejandro), with the tougher days balanced by some gentler ones - though every day is a proper mountain day. It merits its challenging rating - not for the first-time hiker: we averaged nearly 1000m a day of ascent. Logistically, everything ran extremely smoothly, with great communication before and on the trip. Overall - a really amazing experience and a strong recommend!