Looking for recommendations for day trip from Barcelona to Pyreness.

Would like to hike a bit and explore surrounding area. Trip Advisor has many (minivan) tours for around 128.00 US. Has anyone done this? Any input appreciated.

In April, while staying in Ceret, I got in touch with a local guide named Christian Piquemal who took my friends and me on a fantastic hike around hills above the town. He particularly enjoys guiding people on hikes (at all levels of ability) in the Spanish side of Catalonia, and he is just a delightful and fascinating person. I cannot recommend him highly enough. You can reach him through his website, which does not do justice to the personalized hikes he offers: http://www.enchemin.com. When I wrote to him I just described where, when, and what we were hoping to do and he figured out the rest.

If you where staying in the foothills of the Pyrénées-Orientales, as abbydog was, then it would be easy to do a day of hiking in the area, but Céret is a two-hour drive from Barcelona.

You might take a look at what Spanish Trails has to offer. They are located in Barcelona and offer a 9-hour Medieval Village & Panoramic trails tour for up to 8 people.

http://spanish-trails.com/day-trips/...-day-trip.html

Yes. I was looking at these 8 person mini van tours. We would like to do more hiking than touring. There are many choices. Any recommendations on tour companies. We wiil be there July 1-8. Should we book online in advance or wait to see how weather is ? Thx

Catalunya has a Mediterranean climate, it's generally mild year around, but can be warm and humid during the summer, so waiting to see what the weather will be like when you arrive, you may not find anything available. The first of July is only 7 days away.