The Pyrenees, closer than you think
A regional train from Sants reaches the high country in under two hours, which puts genuine alpine terrain inside a day trip from a city-centre hotel.
La Cerdanya
Europe's widest valley, a high plateau of meadows and stone farmhouses strung along the line to Puigcerdà and on to La Tour de Carol. Flat walking with two-thousand-metre walls on both sides.
Vall de Núria
Arrive by rack railway from Ribes-Enllaç, because there is no road up the valley. The station sits beside a sanctuary at 1,964 metres with trails radiating from the door.
Ribes de Freser
The practical base at the bottom of the Núria line, with an old quarter, a gear shop and a set of valley walks in reserve if the summits are sitting in cloud.