Europe

Your passport must meet 2 requirements. It must be:

• less than 10 years old on the day you enter (check the ‘date of issue’)

• valid for at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave (check the ‘expiry date’)

For the latest details on visiting countries within the EU or the European Economic Area (EEA), please check the UK Government website

The information that we provide is for UK passport holders. A passport with 6 months remaining validity at the end of your stay is generally required, and you should have at least 2 blank pages for each country that you visit.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the correct travel documents and visas for your holiday. Please ensure that you check for the latest advice before travel. For the most up to date information on entry requirements, please visit the UK Government website.

If you have a severe allergy please inform the KE office before you travel. We will do all we can to help, but we cannot guarantee an allergy free environment on KE trips. You will need to carry your own treatment for the allergy with you, as 'adrenaline auto-injectors' are not carried as standard by KE leaders and staff. You should inform your leader on arrival of your allergy, and let them know where you keep your adrenaline pen.

Vaccinations

You should contact your doctor or travel clinic to check whether you require any specific vaccinations.

GHIC / Medical cover

UK residents should carry a free Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC). This entitles you to state provided medical treatment when you're visiting an EU country or Switzerland. This is not a substitute for medical travel insurance which is vital when travelling overseas.

The currency for part or all of this holiday is the Euro.

Getting some additional exercise before coming on an active holiday makes a lot of sense. The fitter you are, after all, the more enjoyable you will find the experience.

You should be aerobically fit and comfortable with walking 3 to 6 hours for consecutive days. Hill walking, with a good amount of ascent and descent, is the best training. Running, cycling and swimming are also good for developing cardiovascular fitness and stamina.

The Costa Blanca has a Mediterranean climate, characterised by lots of sunshine (3000 hours each year - that's about 325 days of sunshine). Sea breezes and the general elevation of the walks we undertake (around 1000 metres) help to moderate the temperatures that we will encounter. At the season that we travel to this region (outside of the hottest Summer months) we can expect daytime highs of between 15 and 25 degrees centigrade depending on the elevation. At night, the temperatures will fall to 10-15 degrees centigrade. 

As a reputable tour operator, KE supports the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's ‘Travel Aware’ campaign to enable British citizens to prepare for their journeys overseas. The 'Travel Aware' website provides a single, authoritative source of advice for all kinds of travellers and we recommend that before travel, all KE clients visit the official UK Government website at travelaware.campaign.gov.uk and read the FCDO Travel Advice for their chosen destination. North Americans can also check out the U.S. Department of State website: www.travel.state.gov for essential travel advice and tips.

KE treat the safety and security of all clients as the most important aspect of any trip we organise. We would not run any trip that we did not consider reasonably safe.  Should the FCDO advise against travel for any reason, we will contact everyone booked to travel to discuss the situation.  We receive regular updates directly from the FCDO and are in constant touch with our contacts on the ground.  If you have any questions about government travel advice, please call our office.

KE do not encourage the use of single use plastic items. We are ensuring that our agents all over the world are working together to reduce the problem and educate those around them. We are leading by example in our KE office by reducing our plastic use.

• Costa Blanca Walks (Vols 1 and 2). Cicerone Guide.

•  Mountain Walks on the Costa Blanca. Bob Stansfield.

• Valencia and the Costa Blanca (Lonely Planet Regional Guides)

• Costa Blanca Berlitz Pocket Guide (Berlitz Pocket Guides)

• Costa Blanca and Alacante (AA Essential Guides Series)

Marina Baixa: Serra d'Aitana. 1:20,000 Scale & Marina Baixa: Serra de Bernia. 1:20,000 Scale.

Marina Baixa: Serra d'Aitana & Marina Baixa areas at 1:20,000 in a series of GPS compatible maps from Editorial Piolet with cartography based on Spain’s civilian topographic survey overprinted with hiking routes and other tourist information. Road network indicates locations of petrol stations. Local villages are annotated to show what facilities can be found there, including accommodation, restaurants, etc.

It is an essential condition of joining a holiday with KE Adventure Travel that you have a valid travel insurance policy to cover the cost of medical treatment and to protect the value of your holiday in the event of cancellation.  When taking out insurance please ensure the policy you choose covers you for the activities and altitude included in your itinerary.

For appropriate insurance cover we recommend Campbell Irvine Direct.  Please go to our Travel Insurance page for further information and to get a quote.

Please try to keep the weight of your baggage to a minimum. See the ‘baggage allowance’ section for further details.

You must bring the following items:

• Hiking/walking boots

• Trainers / sandals / evening footwear

• Socks

• Trekking trousers

• Lightweight waterproof overtrousers

• Underwear

• Baselayer shirts

• T-shirts and/or casual shirts

• Fleece jacket or warm jumper

• Lightweight windproof/waterproof jacket

• Lightweight thermal gloves

• Sunhat

• Warm hat

• Sunglasses

• Daypack c. 30 litres

• Sun protection (including for lips)

• Water bottles 1 Litre (x2) (we encourage re-filling water bottles rather than single use plastic)
  

• Washbag and toiletries

• Antibacterial handwash

• Basic First Aid Kit including: Antiseptic cream, throat lozenges, diarrhoea treatment (Imodium), painkillers, plasters and blister treatment. Glucose tablets and multi-vitamin tablets are also a good idea.

The following items are optional:

• Gaiters

• Shorts

• Towel (for swimming)

• Swimwear

• Trekking poles

• Headtorch and spare batteries

• Spare laces

• Insect repellant – (DEET)

• Camera

• Reusable cloth bag for shopping (to avoid plastic bags) 

Many of the equipment items listed above are available from Cotswold Outdoor - our 'Official Recommended Outdoor Retailer'. When you book a holiday with KE you will receive a 12.5% discount with Cotswold Outdoor, Snow+Rock and Runners Need. The discount code can be downloaded from your MyKE account and you can use this code at the checkout, either in store or online.