Walking and eating in Catalonia

We’ve always considered that a good meal at the end of the day is crucial to making a walking holiday into a great walking holiday. It’s so much more than just fuel – it’s an experience in itself, and a celebration of what you’ve achieved during the day.

We and our hedonistic walkers spend a lot of time hunting out the best places to eat, only occasionally encountering a dud along the way…  The search is much easier in places known for their fabulous food, and we can now recommend Catalonia to you with added authority, as it is officially World Region of Gastronomy 2025. This recognition brings into focus the wonderful local produce and cooking of the northeast corner of Spain – see more here.

While hiking our Catalonia: El Priorat route there are lots of typical Catalan dishes to look out for, all making the most of the first-class ingredients produced in these landscapes. You’ll find lots of pork, and also plenty of grilled vegetables, garlic and ground nuts. Botifarra is a pork sausage that appears in many different varieties, and typical sauces include picada, a basic combination of almond, bread and liquid that can be flavoured with garlic, saffron or parsley. You might finish your meal with crema catalana, a sweet custard that is also found in pastries.

And, of course, in the Priorat region there’s a multitude of excellent wines to pair with the freshest seasonal cuisine. Make time for a wine tasting at Clos Figueras, our accommodation in Gratallops, followed by an excellent meal in their Slate Wine Bar, or add a bespoke wine tour with our local contact, Joanna.

The Wine Fair (Fira de Vi) in the town of Falset, your final destination, is a fun way to find out more about local wines – take a look at what’s on if you already have a booking to be there in early May 2025 (some events require advance booking). Falset is also planning a new Food & Wine Inspiration Centre, which we hope walkers will be able to visit next year!

If you’d like to push the boat out a little bit one evening, you could consider the Michelin-starred restaurant Quatre Molins in Cornudella where you’ll find influences from French and Asian cuisines as well as the best local ingredients.

Whatever gastronomic delights you discover in Catalonia, you’re sure to come away enthused by the wonderful flavours of this very special part of Spain.

Find more about On Foot’s route in Catalonia here

See more walking routes in Spain

Considering a Career in Travel?

We are looking to expand our small team further, with recruitment of a travel consultant to join our bookings team.

The job primarily entails:

• advising customers on our wide range of self-guided walking holidays
• taking and tailoring bookings to their requirements
• using our bespoke reservations software (full training will be given) to book hotels and other services in the UK and Europe

On Foot is very customer focused so there is ample opportunity to engage with our walkers, many of whom have done multiple holidays with us.

You should:

• have excellent and up-to-date computer literacy (Word/Excel/Outlook)
• be outgoing, assiduous and confident
• have a professional yet friendly telephone manner
• have excellent written English

It would be great if you had in addition:

• language skills (in particular Spanish/Italian)
• an all-round education to degree level
• a love of walking in your spare time
• an understanding of Europe and its cultures

The job can be full-time (40 hours per week, Monday to Friday), or part-time (24-40 hours per week), with some Saturdays (after initial training, time off in lieu). Job sharing may be considered. The job will be fully office-based, so the ideal candidate will live in the Salisbury area or within 30 minutes commute.

We can offer:

• excellent prospects for the right candidate, within and outside the bookings team
• an initial quoted salary, based on 40 hours per week, from £25,500 per year
• 29 days paid holiday (including bank holidays) if full-time
• generous pension contributions
• the opportunity to walk our much-loved routes

To apply, send your CV and a personal covering paragraph explaining why you think you are a good fit for this particular position. Applications without will not be acknowledged. Apply by email to Simon Scutt, Director, at simon@onfootholidays.co.uk, or call us on 01722 322652 if you have any questions.

(No agencies, please.)

If you’re a keen movie-goer, you probably also like to keep a lookout for well-known film and television locations while on your travels. We’ve scoured our maps for some familiar places you might want to spot on our walking holiday routes.

In the moving final moments of Gladiator (the original, and we think the best…), Maximus walks through a beautiful landscape of rolling fields and cypress trees. This highly Instagrammable spot is just a couple of minutes from our path into Pienza in Southern Tuscany.

To be released this spring is a film adaptation of The Salt Path by Raynor Winn, the true story of a couple’s restorative walk on England’s South West Coast Path. Spot locations at Porlock Weir, Lynton and Heddon’s Mouth while walking our Coastal Exmoor route, and you can hike other sections of the Coast Path with On Foot in Cornwall and Dorset.

While in Dorset, we recommend stopping at Mapperton House as you pass by. Its beautiful stone west front and barns appeared as the farm of Bathsheba Everdene in an adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s Far from the Madding Crowd, starring Carey Mulligan. It has a pretty garden in the valley below and woodland walks to explore, if you have time.

In Castellabate it’s impossible to ignore that this was the setting for the comedy Benvenuti al Sud – very well known in Italy, but perhaps less so elsewhere. The unspoilt little town in Cilento National Park charmed a prejudiced northerner who was forced to move there unwillingly, only to find himself loving the gentle pace of life and warmth of the people in the south. We think you will too!

Walking the green hills of England’s Peak District, you’ll be reminded of the 2005 adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, starring Keira Knightley. It was from the crags of Stanage Edge (pictured, top) that she gazed out over the Hope Valley, and you can visit the stately Chatsworth House that so bewitched Elizabeth Bennet in its guise as Mr Darcy’s Pemberley.

And finally, a little more action! James Bond fans might recognise the French town of Menton from a classic chase in Never Say Never Again. Bond (Sean Connery in this case) races on a motorbike through the narrow streets in pursuit of his quarry. Your pace will be a little slower as you complete your Alpes Maritimes walk in this elegant town.