The magnificent mountain Puig Campana

Apart from the Pink Lake, the mountain Puig Campana is one of the best-known attractions in the Region of Alicante. If you want to do more than go up to the grand castle of Alicante or strolling through its streets, there is an amazing hike close by - Puig Campana. There is a lot of physical effort involved to reach its peak at 1,406 meters, but if you like hiking and are looking for a beautiful and challenging route – the fifteen kilometres around Puig Campana is the hike you should do while staying in the area.     

Starting Point

The starting point is a 30 minute drive west from Benidorm or 45 minutes north from Alicante to get to Font de Moli in Finestrat. There you will find a parking area and an information point about the upcoming route. Make sure to be equipped with sufficient food and drinks. Each person should wear a backpack with at least 2 litres of water, bananas, energy bars and sandwiches.

Information and parking area - Font de Moli, Finestrat

03509 Finestrat, Alicante, Spain

Twelve of the fifteen kilometres are circular, so if you are not in the physical and physiological shape to do the whole way up to the summit then just do the circular route around the mountain. These twelve kilometres are amazing as well - offering beautiful views over the surrounding mountains and sea areas. Personally, I highly enjoy circular routes, especially when they surround a mountain like the Puig Campana, because the landscape often changes and you never get bored of impressive views from above.

Going clockwise

We did the circular route counter-clockwise, although usually hikers do it clockwise. In the end it does not make a huge difference. We started around 11 am and you shouldn't start the route much later, because it takes up to seven hours. The first part of the trail is on a small concrete street leading to the sign for the hiking route, which you should attentively follow. We were not blessed with sun that morning, but the views were very nice anyway and later we were happy climbing up the summit without hot sunshine. Not only the views were the surrounding areas extraordinary, but also the views of the Puig Campana mountain itself.

On the route

We did the hike on the 23th of March – the beginning of the spring session. There were already a lot of beautiful blooming flowers around.

After around 4 km (clockwise) or 6 km (counter-clockwise) you will get to an intersection where you have to decide if you dare to go up to the summit of Puig Campana. The ascent is very steep and you need to feel up for it physically, in order to enjoy it.

After a while walking turns almost into climbing and your muscles begin to ache. The steep trail goes for around 1.5 km up. If you arrive at the sign in the following picture, the most challenging and steep part is over. You can enjoy the wide views over the valleys with only 900m more to go in order to reach the summit.

At the summit

Keep going and ignore your aching leg muscles - there are a lot of trails from the sign in the above picture to the summit, but just one is indicated with yellow-white flags or with green graffiti. Pay attention and stay on the right track, the other trails lead to the peak as well, but they are not as well prepared. Arriving at the Puig Campana is amazing – feeling disconnected from everything below and connected with the mountains and the peacefulness up there. We were lucky to have the Puig Campana for ourselves – fascinated by the views and how silent it can be in nature, away from the noise of civilization.

If you arrive at the summit you can be proud of yourself as you will have reached an altitude of 1,070 meters. At the foot of the stone in the centre of the following picture you will find a book where you can leave your initials as one of the hikers who has mastered the Puig Campana.

And down again

Before going down again make sure that you have rested enough and have had an re-energizing meal. Going down might not be as physical challenging as going up, but you have to be attentive and concentrated. Take your time and make regular stops to enjoy the view as going down is easier.

Return to the intersection and enjoy the rest of the circular route back to its starting point at Font de Moli in Finestrat - around the magnificent mountain of Puig Campana.