This site is dedicated to tickets for Caminito del Rey without a guide: the standalone entry ticket that lets you walk the trail unaccompanied at your own pace. Below you will find a price comparison between the official ticket office and GetYourGuide, opening hours, cancellation rules, practical tips and what to see along the route without a guide.
The Caminito del Rey runs one way from north to south through the Desfiladero de los Gaitanes Natural Area, a UNESCO World Heritage candidate site. The walkway hangs up to 105 metres above the river, ends with a 35-metre suspension bridge with a glass floor, and takes 2.5 to 3 hours to walk. Daily admissions are capped, and tickets sell out 5 to 15 days in advance during high season.
Ticket Prices and Where to Book
Two channels sell unguided entry tickets: the official site caminitodelrey.info at €10 and GetYourGuide from €15. Tiqets does not sell entry-only tickets, only guided tours from €41. Both channels grant identical walkway access, same time slots, same helmet at the Control Booth.
| Ticket | Official | GetYourGuide |
|---|---|---|
| Entry ticket (no guide) | €10 | from €15 |
| Free cancellation | no | yes, up to 24h |
| Reserve now, pay later | no | yes |
| Support languages | Spanish only | 11 languages |
| Booking confirmation | email PDF | instant QR voucher |
| Inventory updates | manual | real-time |
The €5 difference is the booking fee for free cancellation, multilingual support, and the option to lock a slot without paying immediately. GetYourGuide is the only practical option for international visitors because the official site still shows a 2021 copyright, sells in Spanish only, runs strict non-refundable terms, and its calendar often hides slots that the marketplace still has in stock.
Why GetYourGuide
#1 selling- Free cancellationup to 24 hours before, full refund
- Reserve now, pay laterlock a slot without paying
- Instant QR voucherscanned at the Control Booth
- Support in 11 languagesincluding English, French, German
- Same walkway accesssame helmet, same one-way route
Opening Hours and Cancellation
The Caminito del Rey opens Tuesday to Sunday, 09:00 to 17:00 in summer (April-October) and 09:30 to 14:30 in winter (November-March). Closed every Monday and on 24, 25, 31 December and 1 January. Time slots run every 30 minutes; late arrivals are not admitted and tickets are not refunded by the official channel.
On GetYourGuide, tickets can be cancelled free of charge up to 24 hours before the visit, with full refund in 5-10 business days. The official site sells non-refundable tickets only. Weather closures happen 10-15 days per year due to high winds in the gorge; in that case both operators reschedule for free. Support: getyourguide.com/contact.
Tips for Unguided Visitors & Sold Out
Six things worth knowing before you book the entry ticket:
- There are no tickets sold at the gate. Arrive without a booking and you will be turned away at the first checkpoint; book online 5 to 15 days ahead in high season, since both channels sell out.
- Check GetYourGuide if the official site is sold out. Both channels keep separate inventories, so a fully-booked date on one is sometimes still available on the other.
- Wear closed-toe shoes. Hiking trainers minimum: no sandals, no high heels. The Control Booth turns away visitors with unsuitable footwear and the ticket is lost.
- If unguided slots are gone, the cheapest alternative is a guided combo from €29. The #1 selling guided tour adds an official guide for just €14 more than the entry ticket.
- Plan the return shuttle. From El Chorro back to the Visitor Centre car park: €2.50 cash, every 30 minutes.
- Helmets are free and mandatory. Every ticket includes a safety helmet, fitted at the Control Booth — you do not need to bring your own, and staff will not let you start the walk without one.
What to See Without a Guide
The walkway divides into three sections you can navigate solo with the printed map handed out at the Control Booth:
- Gaitanejo Gorge1.5 km of restored 1905 boardwalks, 100 m above the river through the narrowest stretch with sheer cliffs on both sides.
- Valle del Hoyo4.8 km of flat forest path between the two gorges, with views of the Guadalhorce reservoir and the Conde de Guadalhorce Dam.
- Gaitanes GorgeFinal 2.7 km ending with the 35-metre suspension bridge, glass-floor viewing platform, and descent to El Chorro railway station.
History: From Workers’ Path to World-Famous Walkway
The Caminito del Rey was built between 1901 and 1905 to give maintenance workers access to two hydroelectric plants inside the Gaitanes Gorge, threading a concrete catwalk along the sheer limestone walls above the Guadalhorce river. King Alfonso XIII walked its length in 1921 to inaugurate the nearby Conde de Guadalhorce Dam, and locals began calling the path “El Caminito del Rey” — the King’s little pathway — after his visit.
Decades of exposure to wind and damp rotted the handrails and cracked the concrete slabs, until entire stretches hung from bare steel beams with nothing below but the gorge. Five hikers fell to their deaths between 1999 and 2000, and the regional government closed the path completely in 2001. It stayed shut for 14 years while officials argued over whether to demolish it or rebuild it.
Reconstruction began in 2014, funded with roughly €9 million from the Junta de Andalucía and the Diputación de Málaga. Engineers suspended an entirely new boardwalk — steel frame, tropical hardwood decking, steel mesh handrails — a few centimetres above the crumbling 1905 original, sections of which are still visible underneath. The rebuilt Caminito del Rey reopened to the public on 28 March 2015 and has run on capped daily admissions ever since.
What Visitors Say
Recurring themes from feedback about the unguided entry ticket:
“Official site showed nothing left for our dates in July, GetYourGuide still had the 10:30 slot. Booked in five minutes, no regrets.”
Helen · Manchester
“A storm warning came through two days before our visit. Free cancellation meant a full refund instead of losing the money, and we just rebooked for the following week.”
Marco · Turin
“Took our son at exactly 8, the minimum age. Staff checked his passport at the Control Booth and fitted his helmet themselves before we set off.”
Anne-Sophie · Lyon
“Didn’t realise the walkway only goes one direction until we’d started. The return shuttle back to the car park was 2.50€ cash and ran right on schedule.”
Jorge · Valencia
“Paid a bit more than the official price but got a real answer in English when I had a question about the meeting point, which the .es site could never have given me.”
Peter · Rotterdam
“The glass floor on the suspension bridge is the part everyone warns you about. Legs shook for about ten seconds, then it was fine — the view down the gorge is worth it.”
Karolina · Kraków
“Booked the first slot of the day, 9am, and had entire stretches of the boardwalk to ourselves before the tour groups caught up around 11.”
David · Dublin
Practical Information
| Address | Puerto de las Atalayas, 29550 Ardales, Málaga |
| Official website | caminitodelrey.info |
| Distance from Málaga | 57.7 km via A-357 |
| Distance from Sevilla | 200 km via A-92 |
| Total walkway length | 7.7 km |
| Boardwalk sections | 2.9 km |
| Maximum height | 105 metres above the river |
| Suspension bridge | 35 metres, glass floor |
| Walking direction | one way, north to south |
| Average duration | 2.5 to 3 hours |
| Closed | Mondays, 24-25 and 31 Dec, 1 Jan |
| Minimum age | 8 years, mandatory ID check |
| Under 18 | must be accompanied by an adult |
| Annual visitors | approx. 300,000, capped |