Best Hikes in La Gomera

Start from La Laguna Grande — the park's main hub with parking, toilets, and a good restaurant — and follow the broad, well-signed path northwest through increasingly dense laurisilva to the 1,487 m summit. The forest on the ascent is among the most intact anywhere on the island: ancient til trees with massive canopies, Canarian laurel draped in hanging moss, and tree heathers growing to dimensions that look wrong until you realise this ecosystem has had 15 million years to scale up. The mist that pours across the ridge on most mornings gives the forest an atmosphere that photographs cannot convey.

The summit itself is compact — a cairn, a small shrine to the island's patron, and 360° views that, on clear days, encompass all seven Canary Islands simultaneously. Tenerife's Teide dominates the horizon to the north-east; La Palma's dark mass sits to the north-west; and on exceptional visibility days you can pick out Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, and Lanzarote strung across the eastern horizon. Arrive in the morning for forest atmosphere; aim to reach the summit by early afternoon when the cloud most often breaks. Book a guided audio tour of Garajonay for this route in particular — the ecological detail transforms the walk.

Of all the trails we've walked on La Gomera, this is the one we return to most. El Cedro is a tiny settlement at the bottom of a deep northern ravine, surrounded by the most undisturbed and ancient section of the laurisilva — trees here are measurably larger and older than anywhere else in the park, the spring-fed streams run clear year-round, and the moss architectures on the boulder fields reach a complexity that makes the forest feel genuinely alive in a way difficult to articulate.

The descent from Meriga takes you through progressive layers of forest, each one darker and more enveloping than the last. By the time you reach the ravine floor and the handful of stone houses at El Cedro, the outside world has completely disappeared — replaced by the sound of water, the calls of the two endemic pigeon species overhead, and a quality of light that seems entirely its own. The ascent back climbs the opposite ravine wall through dense tree heath to the plateau rim. Arrange a car shuttle or use a private transfer from the El Cedro trailhead for the linear descent option if you prefer not to retrace steps.

The GR 132 is a long-distance trail that circuits the entire island of La Gomera, typically completed in 7–8 stages over several days. The northern stage — from San Sebastián de La Gomera through Hermigua and Agulo, crossing the park interior — is the most scenically diverse single day on the route. You move through four distinct ecosystems: coastal scrub, agricultural terraces, deep ravine laurisilva, and the open highland heath of the park's northern edge.

This stage demands a proper early start, solid fitness, and a vehicle or pre-arranged transfer pickup at the end point — it is definitively one-way. The rewards are proportion to the effort: the terraced village of Agulo seen from above, the ravine drop into Hermigua, and the transition from the humid green north into the forest interior are three genuinely memorable passages within a single day's walking.

The four volcanic plugs of Los Roques — Agando, Zarcita, Ojila, and La Fortaleza — are La Gomera's most recognisable geological landmarks and appear on virtually every photograph of the island taken from the ferry. The full circuit connects all four in a loop that crosses the ecological boundary between the park's northern laurisilva and the drier southern scrub, giving a concentrated version of the island's landscape variety in a single manageable day.

Roque Agando (1,250 m) is the visual highlight — a sheer-sided basalt plug rising 200 m from the ridge, its summit home to a nesting peregrine falcon pair that has occupied the same ledge for at least fifteen years. The path around its base offers extraordinary close-up views of the volcanic geology and, looking south, a vast panorama across the agricultural terraces of the island's southern slopes falling to the sea. The full loop requires an early start and good fitness; the shorter Roque Agando return (6 km) suits those with less time.

Agulo is widely considered the most beautiful village on La Gomera — a cluster of white-domed houses on a volcanic promontory above the sea, visible from the road but most strikingly seen from this trail as you approach from the east. The path linking Agulo to Hermigua traverses the ridges between La Gomera's northern ravines, crossing through banana plantations, small pockets of laurisilva, and traditional stone-walled terraces that have been farmed continuously for five centuries.

The views north across the Atlantic and west towards Tenerife's Teide are persistent throughout, giving this trail an open, airy quality quite different from the enclosed forest paths. The approach to Agulo from above — the dome-capped church appearing first, then the village spreading across its promontory, the sea glittering below — is one of the best moments of any La Gomera walk. Return by bus from Hermigua (check the local guagua schedule in advance) or arrange a pre-booked private transfer.

Valle Gran Rey is La Gomera's most famous valley and one of the most visually striking landscapes in the Canary Islands — a deeply cut V-shaped ravine falling nearly 900 metres from the central plateau to a black sand beach and palm-fringed coastal village. The descent trail follows the original mule path that connected the valley's farmers to the highland markets, descending through a succession of micro-climates: cool laurisilva at the top, drier palm-dotted terraces in the middle section, subtropical garden warmth near the sea.

The walk ends at La Calera, the uppermost cluster of the valley's villages, with the beach and waterfront restaurants a 30-minute walk below. It is a definitively one-way route — the climb back up would take most walkers 5–6 hours in the heat. Plan for an overnight in Valle Gran Rey and take the bus back the following morning; the valley's seafood and sunset views reward staying the night.

Benchijigua is La Gomera's deepest southern ravine — a dramatically dry, palm-lined gorge that cuts from the plateau edge to the sea near Playa de Santiago. It is almost entirely ignored by hikers who stick to the forest and northern routes, which means that on any given day you may walk its entire length without meeting another person. The landscape is emphatically different from the north: volcanic rock exposed by erosion, Canarian date palms growing from impossible crevices, and the stark beauty of a landscape that survival has shaped into functional minimalism.

The upper section of the ravine is the most dramatic — sheer walls of columnar basalt closing in to create a narrow canyon before the valley opens into broader agricultural terraces near the coast. The hike down is best done in the morning before the southern sun becomes intense; the return climb is demanding in afternoon heat. Carry at least 2 litres of water per person — there are no sources on this route.

La Fortaleza (1,243 m) is the southernmost of Los Roques volcanic plugs and the most sacred site in pre-Hispanic Gomeran culture — the indigenous Guanches used its summit as a ceremonial site and observation platform. A low-scrambling ascent reaches the flat summit table, which gives one of the most dramatic views of the island's southern architecture: the entire fan of barrancos spreading from the plateau to the sea, with Valle Gran Rey visible to the west and the Benchijigua ravine below. On clear days, the dark line of El Hierro — the smallest of the seven islands — appears on the south-western horizon.

The loop continues down the southern flank through an interesting transition zone where the laurisilva meets the drier southern scrub, and back to the starting point via a comfortable forest path. Best in afternoon light when the sun drops behind Tenerife and the southern landscape is bathed in warm oblique light.

While La Laguna Grande draws hundreds of visitors on peak weekends, the Epina plateau on the park's western edge receives a fraction of that traffic despite offering equally fine laurisilva and the additional draw of year-round waterfalls. The Chorros de Epina are spring-fed cascades in the ravine below the plateau — accessible only on foot via this narrow, less-maintained trail that descends through dense tree heath and fern understorey to the ravine floor.

The botanical density at the ravine bottom is extraordinary, with Macaronesian endemic species growing in configurations rarely encountered on the more-visited routes. Winter and spring give the most impressive cascade flow; in late summer the falls reduce but the water never stops entirely. The return climb demands stamina in its final section. Download an eSIM with offline map capability before attempting this — the trail markers deteriorate on the lower section and there is zero mobile signal.

San Sebastián de La Gomera was the last port of call for Columbus before he crossed the Atlantic in 1492. The town wears this history lightly but specifically — the Casa de Colón where Columbus stayed, the church where he attended mass, the well from which he filled his water barrels. The historic centre is compact and walkable, and the mirador above the town gives an encompassing view of the ferry port, the island's eastern coast, and the distant silhouette of Tenerife across the strait.

This walk is the perfect arrival or departure activity — an hour and a half that introduces the island's human history before you head into its ancient forest, or a final contemplative stroll before the ferry back to Tenerife. The evening light on the white-washed buildings and the ferry coming in from Los Cristianos is a quiet, unhurried pleasure that asks nothing of your fitness. Don't skip it in favour of rushing straight to the park — it earns its place on the list.