El Puente Nuevo in Ronda
After a great visit in Granada, Spain we rented a car and headed into the countryside. Our destination was a small town named Ronda which is considered one of the “white villages” of Andalucia, Spain. It is a lovely little town. (little compared to the other cities we visited) and a welcome relief from the crowds. As with our other stays, we checked into our vacation rental apartment and walked to dinner. We wanted to get to bed early in order to get a good night’s sleep before tackling our big adventure the next day–El Caminto del Rey.
The suspension bridge over the gorge.
I didn’t even know about the El Caminito until I began researching Ronda and the white villages in the area. It is known as “The most dangerous walkway in the world” but I think that title is a bit dramatic now that it’s been completely updated. Its actual title is “The King’s Pathway.” It was originally built to provide a pathway for workers building a dam and hydro-electric power plant back in the early 1900s. The walkway is 3 feet in width and rises over 330 feet above the river below. Eventually falling into disrepair (and after several people lost their lives) in the 2000s, it was closed for over 10 years to completely rebuild and make it secure and safe.
Yes…that’s the gorge 330 feet below!
Because safety is a big cause for concern only 600 people per day are allowed to make the walk. It is also very popular so I bought tickets and was required to pick an appointment window several weeks before we even left home. Complicating things is the fact that the gorge is an hour drive from Ronda. The hike itself is over 8 kilometers long and take anywhere from two to four hours to hike. And bathrooms? Only one before and one after (and a long line to access both). Was it worth it? Absolutely!
Cafe in Setenil de las Bodegas, Spain
As far as food goes, while the food has been pretty tasty all along the trip, nothing sticks out too dramatically. BUT…what we have managed to do is to pick restaurants with amazing ambiance. A highlight came when we stopped in the small town of Setentil de las Bodegas that is built into the side of a mountain. In fact many of the stores, restaurants and even homes are literally caves. Yes that is a huge cliff above Thom’s head.
Plaza del Toros in Ronda
Over all we loved Rhonda and wished we stayed longer. While there were a number of things to see and do in there, we enjoyed our time in this village very much. Here is a fun photo of our time in Plaza de Toros, their famous bull ring.
So that’s it for now. Thanks for following along!
With each picture I either said ‘oh my goodness’ or ‘you go girl’ I stared at the last photo like it was a video and I was waiting for a bull to come running out. LOL and I got so tickled reading Gordon’s comment. I got where he was coming from. In my travels I was constantly reminded to ask for the toilet not the bathroom haha You guys keep having fun and keep the photos coming!!
WOW! That’s a long way down into the gorge. Not sure I could do it now. In my younger years, definitely. It looks stunning around there. I have never heard of the town Ronda. I’ll have to do some research on it.
I loved the shot of Thom is the café with the cliff over him. What an interesting place to have it. Glad you two are having fun and lots of neat experiences you’ll remember for a lifetime.
Always enjoy reading your posts and these travel ones have been great!
Why did you need a bathroom? Did you need a bath before or after? Oh, you mean a toilet. You’re in Europe now, we call a toilet a toilet.
Hi Gordon! You are so right! I’m finding that they also call them WC or lavatorio here as well. Doesn’t matter what you call it though…it’s really nice to have when needed. Thanks for keeping me straight! ~Kathy
Thanks Kathy. Re-reading my comment it comes across as more aggressive than I intended. Apologies for that. I hope you continue to enjoy your travels. My wife and I went to Rondo a few years ago – it rained the whole time!
Hi Gordon! No problem at all! I sort of thought you were just teasing me…and it’s true…it isn’t a “bath room” at all. I actually thought that I’d do an series on bathrooms (restrooms, WCs, toilets, etc.) but I wasn’t sure how it would go over very well on the blog. And if you’ve been to Rondo then you know what a great little town it is. Sorry about the rain though…we had it good. Thanks for following our travels. ~Kathy
What a great-looking couple, and an amazing trip! Spain looks fun, and how neat that you guys got to go into the Plaza de Toros.
Hi Ana! Yes it’s been a great trip so far. We’ve both enjoyed Spain very much. Next is Sevilla! ~Kathy
You are braver than I!
Hi Janet! Like I said to Galen…we all have our limits. But this one was definitely worth it for me. ~Kathy
Wonderful experiences!
It was/is! Thanks Gary!
Ronda has been on my list ever since I saw a picture (probably on a travel blog) of that magnificent stone bridge. Now, I’ll add El Caminto del Rey. Funny they give you those hard hats to wear… I doubt they’d be of much help if you went over the side. I love these little tidbits of your travels!
Hi Janis! Yes Ronda is a sweet little town. It was nice to be right in the thick of things there because you could easily walk to every where in the town. But if we stayed longer I probably would have picked a place a little further afield. Do put it on the list and definitely do the El Caminito. It would be a walk in the park for you and Paul. ~Kathy
Oh heck no — that walk suspended so far up in the air is not for me. I love mountains, and mountain trails, but I like my feet on the ground. You are now my hero of daring adventure. Love your travel posts.
Hi Galen! I know there were some people walking the trail that were clearly terrified…but all the sport material warns in advance. However, the only unsettling part was walking across the suspension bridge because bounced a bit. But hey, I’ve jumped out of an airplane before and Thom has bungee jumped so it wasn’t nearly as exhilarating as that. But rock climbing? Nope! We all have our limits! ~Kathy