Hiking La Ruta del Cister
THE stunning “CATALONIAN CAMINO”
Santes Creus
WHAT IS LA RUTA DEL CISTER?
Eager to walk the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage but without the time to dedicate to the full experience, my husband and I turned to an adventure closer to where we lived in Catalonia, Spain: La Ruta del Cister.
What we found on the 105 km walk through the Catalonian countryside was expansive scenery, medieval towns, centuries-old history, warm hospitality and a deliciously unfussy gastronomy. The circular trail is linked together by three Cistercian Monasteries, hence the name.
WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO HIKE?
We hiked the trail in early November to coincide with Rich’s 40th (hoorah!) Since we were at the tail end of the season, we practically had the trail to ourselves; we saw only a couple of other hikers the entire time!
Being the beginning of November, we also were incredibly lucky with great weather. We encountered light rain on one of the days, but otherwise had relatively moderate temperatures and lots of blue skies.
As far as the “best” time to hike, I would say shoulder seasons (spring and fall) are always preferable to the peak heat of the summer season.
PLANNING YOUR RUTA DEL CISTER HIKE
Below I breakdown the locations and distances hiked for each of the six days of our adventure. We technically hiked the trail “backwards,” but we chose the direction based on availability of accomodation. Another thing about the November hike was that some of the accommodation options I researched had closed for the season. We still managed to find good alternatives and they are all linked below.
I recommend checking out this official Ruta del Cister website for more information, but I hope you find this first-person account and route breakdown helpful in your planning.
Below the “Route Overview” section I’ll share some brief notes about each day so you can get an ideas for the flow. Although each day was different, there certainly was a rhythm. Of course part of the beauty of an experience like this is that you make it your own and let the adventure…unfold.
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ROUTE OVERVIEW
DAY ONE (24k)
Start in Santes Creus and walk to Rocafort || Accommodation: Casa Miret
DAY TWO (15k)
Rocafort to Rocallaura || Accommodation: Iberik Rocallaura Balneari
DAY THREE (10k)
Rocallaura to Vallbona de les Monges || Accommodation: Pati de Cal Espardenyer
*We originally booked their other property Cal Baster, but due to some repairs we stayed in the other apartment.
DAY FOUR (23k)
Vallbona de les Monges to L’espluga || Accommodation: Hostal Senglar
DAY FIVE (20k)
L’espluga to Prenafeta || Accommodation: Mas de Planella
DAY SIX (20k)
Prenafeta back to Santes Creus || Cheers to the end of a beautiful adventure!
DAY ONE (24k)
*Start in Santes Creus and walk to Rocafort || Accommodation: Casa Miret
We had a gorgeous first day walking to Rocafort. Upon arrival we had beers and bravas in town. Marta from Casa Miret kindly picked us up as the B&B is located in Vallverd de Queralt, which is located slightly off the route. After a bit of R&R we enjoyed a wonderful dinner prepared by Marta: Crema de calabaza (pumpkin soup), couscous salad with mint and shrimp, tortilla de patata, and Longaniza (a typical Spanish sausage) plus red wine and after-dinner tea.
Casa Miret
DAY TWO (15k)
*Rocafort to Rocallaura || Accommodation: Iberik Rocallaura Balneari
After our 15k day, we checked in and had lunch: A delicious lentil soup, a fish and a chicken fried steak and potatoes. The Balneari also has a Spa thermal circuit we took advantage of. We rested and had dinner there as well (it’s the only option in the area anyway!)
Vallbona de les Monges
DAY THREE (10k)
*Rocallaura to Vallbona de les Monges || Accommodation: Pati de Cal Espardenyer
After breakfast at the Balneari, we encountered some light rain on our walk. Luckily it was our shortest day. Upon arrival to Villbona we had lunch at a cafe in town, checked into the apartment then took a tour of the Monastery, which included an impressive audiovisual component. The town was very quiet. For dinner we ended up back at the same cafe for beer, pizza and Catalan Monopoly. We ordered bocadillos (sandwiches) to go for the next day’s hike.
outskirts of L’espluga
DAY FOUR (23k)
*Vallbona de les Monges to L’espluga || Accommodation: Hostal Senglar
We walked through Montblanquet and a long stretch of field without any towns. There was a decent incline on this day’s walk as well. The outskirts of L’espluga admittedly wasn’t the prettiest. We checked into the hotel (also not the prettiest, but it served it’s purpose) and walked back to a restaurant we had passed, Las fuentes, for a delicious 3-course lunch with beer/wine and coffee. Starting the day early and arriving to these spanish towns by lunch meant we ate well; a typical spanish lunch is the biggest meal of the day.
We tried to check out the local caves, but they were closed for the day, so we wandered through the museum of rural life. We turned in early.
Montblanc
DAY FIVE (20k)
*L’espluga to Prenafeta || Accommodation: Mas de Planella
We ate breakfast at the hotel then set off for the day. It was a long one! First stop was Poblet. It was a nice walk on the mountain road through town followed by a big ascent. We took a minor detour up the mountain and stopped at a ermitra (hermitage).
After a decent descent into Montblanc, we stopped for lunch in town. We walk around the muralles (the old town city walls) then enjoyed a coffee and crepe. The last leg of the day took us to Prenafeta at sunset. We made our way to the accommodation, which was bed no breakfast, though Ramon was kind enough to send us home from dinner with bread and jam. He owned the restaurant in town where we ate that night, Cal Goya. It was a lovely meal including a cheese and meat appetizer and red wine followed by salmon and longaniza and topped off with a chocolate dessert.
DAY SIX (20k)
*Prenafeta To Santes Creus…Cheers!
This was our final day and I was feeling fatigued from the jump. We ate aforementioned bread and jam for breakfast then our trail kicked off with an ascent. We walked through one town then stopped in Pla de Maria for a tortilla francesa sandwich and a coffee (I needed fuel!) From there is was the final stretch to Santes Creus where our journey had begun. Once we arrived, we explored the church briefly, but decided to come back another day for the tour. At that point the only things on my mind were beers, burgers and fries.
Santes Creus