Passadiços do Paiva: Areinho to Espiunca Route

Trail experience from Areinho

Beginning at Areinho, you’ll travel on a trail (partially dirt, partially boardwalk) for 0.6 mi 0.9 km before crossing the highway. Then you’ll immediately ascend 538 stairs over 0.4 mi / 0.6 km using wooden boardwalk staircases to the official entrance of the Passadiços do Paiva trail and the side trail to the 516 Arouca pedestrian bridge.

After that point, the trail descends a labyrinth-like staircase and levels out, traveling on the boardwalk alongside the river and traveling with a slight decline until the end in Espinuca. The Areinho trailhead is the one of the two that is closest to the 516 Arouca bridge. At the end, taxis and jeeps are available to take you back to the Areinho trailhead, where you started. We paid 16 euro to get back in a jeep. We’d recommend this route because it gets the steep staircases over with relatively early in the hike (while you are still fresh), allowing you to expend your energy