Medieval castles & commanderies in Spain & France.
With regards to Colin Fletcher’s impetus of having walked through the country where you live or where you’re from, Andreas M. Cohrs offers selected tours to some of the more fascinating places throughout Germany and Europe. Leaving the Walker’s footsteps geographically, though, the tours follow his idea of contemplative walking and combining nature and wilderness experiences with an interest in the historic paths we walk upon.
Tour: The Knights Templar tour takes you right into the fascinating and mystic epoch of the High Middle Ages. Between Southern France and Northern Spain you will follow a route of the medieval Templar order across the Pyrenees and visit remote castles and commanderies.
Crossing the Camino de Santiago (St. James road to Santiago), it combines one of the best hiking experiences one can have on the Iberian peninsula with visiting historic towns and castles. During two weeks, you’ll be visiting several cities and points of interest in Northern Spain and Southern France; in between you’ll cross the Pyrenees on foot along an old trail.
Following the knights’ tracks will lead you to famous castle complexes like Carcassonne but also to mystic places like Rennes-le-Chateau and Montsegur where the most incredible events of European Christian history took its course.
Date & costs: This trip is scheduled for September, when the summer heat has left the mountainous regions. Tour prices depend on the group size, transfers, accommodation, and extras. The booking includes:
- Organizing Transfers from Madrid or Barcelona
- Hotel in Lleida, 2 nights
- Transfer to trailhead, Tour of 6 days, preparations, photo documentary
- Hotel at trail’s end and two nights in Carcassonne, 3 nights
- Organizing Transfers back to Madrid or Barcelona
Trip schedule (ca. 220 miles, 80 on foot)
- 1st day > Arrival at Lleida (from Madrid or Barcelona)
- 2nd day > Tour through Lleida
- 3rd day > Transfer to trailhead at the foothills of the Pyrenees
- 4th-10th day > Crossing the Pyrenees (ca. 80 miles)
- 11th day > Arrival at trail’s end,
- 12th day > Visit to Rennes-Le-Chateau and Montsegur
- 13th day > Visit to Carcassonne
- 14th day > Transfer to Madrid or Barcelona or connecting tours
Since you might travel a long way to get here, you may be interested in connecting tours or further vacation opportunities. Please don’t hesitate to ask for advice or bookings. Here you’ll find a choice of nearby must-do’s, however, once you’re there, other places like Italy, Germany, Austria or Great Britain aren’t too far as well.
- France – Switzerland – Italy: The tri-state corner is surely one of the most beautiful spots in Europe. It offers the best glacier skiing, hikes around Lake Geneva, the Mont Blanc or Matterhorn, and the lake country of northern Italy, Lago di Como, Lago di Maggiore, and Lago di Lugano.
- French Côte d’Azur & La Provence: Marseille, Cannes, Nice, Monte Carlo/Monaco, Avignon and Sisteron
- Paris, France
- Barcelona and Madrid, Spain
- Mallorca, Spain: A wonderful Mediterranean island with picturesque beaches, ancient villages and fine cuisine. The Serra de Tramuntana is a wonderful hiking region with monasteries and old villages.