Caminito del Rey, Spain: World’s scariest footpath to re-open to tourists

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This was published 9 years ago

Caminito del Rey, Spain: World’s scariest footpath to re-open to tourists

By Jolyon Attwooll
Not for the faint-hearted: Caminito del Rey.

Not for the faint-hearted: Caminito del Rey.Credit: Flickr/Gabi

Caminito del Rey, the so-called world's scariest hike, will reopen early next year after undergoing a multi-million pound restoration. However, the new version is likely to be much more sanitised than the walk that has become very well known online.

The trail, which translates as "the King's walkway", skirts the edge of the narrow Gaitanes Gorge in southern Spain.

Millions of people have watched YouTube footage of dare-devil walkers negotiating the rickety, metre-wide path.

However, both entrances were closed to the public following fatalities in 1999 and 2000. Despite the closures, walkers have continued to try to navigate the trail, much of which has fallen into a state of disrepair.

In places, only slim metal rails remain, with walkers needing to have sure footwork to prevent falling into the Guadalhorce River far below.

In 2011, the regional Andalusia government and the city government of Malaga, agreed to share the costs of its restoration, which are now estimated at more than €5 million.

Work began in March this year, with authorities hoping the new walkway will provide a boost for tourism in the area. The 1.2 kilometre trail was originally installed to allow workers access to the Guadalhorce dam.

The royal association derives from the dam being inaugurated by King Alfonso XIII in 1921. His great-grandson, King Felipe VI, has been asked to open the new camino next year.

Once it reopens to the public – in January or February next year, according to the most recent report – the trail will be free to visitors for three months. There will then be a charge for tourists to walk along it, although the amount has not yet been decided, with only a limited number of tourists allowed to go on the bridge each day "for security reasons," according to the Malaga council.

The Telegraph, London

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