For a long time the Costa Blanca has had a reputation for having the best chance of winter sun, the cheapest flights and the most reasonably priced accommodation. However, the ‘white coast’ has a lot more to offer than the simple beach holidays enjoyed by thousands of tourists every year. Not only the spectacular and varied mountains close to the coast, but also the marvelous spring blossom and warm autumn days have attracted walkers and climbers from all over Europe for decades. High barren mountains and their series of steep ridges contrast with fertile garden landscapes and widespread fruit plantations on the coast.

Wien ist anders (Vienna is different) is posted on the signs at the city limits of this metropolis between the Eastern and Western Worlds; indeed, hardly any other European city can offer such a wealth of excursions as the megalopolis on the Danube.

This guide aims to give you the courage to make a trip into the unknown. It opens up, together with the beach area developed by tourism, a hugely diverse landscape both geologically and in respect to its vegetation. Only if you have hiked along the coast and into the hinterland can you truthfully say that you have indeed visited this varied region. The detailed route descriptions are preceded by up-to-date information in fact-file form. Small walking maps marked with the line of the route make route finding easier and numerous photos complete the picture.

La Gomera can be considered the wildest of the Canary Islands. From the central highlands of the almost 1500-metre high island, countless, steep-walled gorges wind down to the sea, slicing the otherwise gently sloping island coast like a cake.

Bizarre coastal cliffs, charming sandy bays, beautiful chestnut and pine forests, sparkling clean brooks, magical mountain lakes, summit destinations at over 2700 metres high, as well as predominantly unspoilt nature – what other holiday destination in Europe can boast a similar offer? There is hardly another place where a walking and bathing holiday can be combined in such an ideal way as on this Mediterranean island.

As a result, Tenerife is not only a refuge for central Europeans who shy away from winter, but mainly an ideal island for hiking. With the wide ocean at all times in sight, the range of the 70 hiking tours presented in this guide includes easy paths over rough cliffs and picturesque trips to heights as well as ascents to peaks that offer a fabulous view - hiking paths through fairytale-like nebulous primeval forests are also included, such as the partially paved Caminos, which in the early days where the main connecting routes between villages.