From The Salt Path to The Snowman Trek: 10 bucket list walking challenges for 2025

Hiking has been increasing in popularity for years now, and it shows no sign of slowing in 2025. Searches for ‘hiking gear for women’ are up a whopping 4,250% in the UK over the last 30 days (Google Trends), and there is growing interest in the new Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs film The Salt Path (out in April), which focuses on a married couple walking the UK’s longest National Trail, the South West Coast Path.

With that and January resolutions firmly in mind, there’s no better time for hiking holidaymakers to set themselves a challenge for 2025 – and luckily, walking holiday experts The Natural Adventure have over 700 to choose from, all split by difficulty level and with carefully-curated itineraries to give you the best possible experience on your trip.

“Our walking holidays are actually running out the door this year, and it’s clear that a rapidly-growing number of people want new ways to slow down. The world is a stressful place right now, and self-guided walking holidays help alleviate that stress,” says Yana Tudzharova, CEO at The Natural Adventure. “My top tip for anyone wanting to get into hiking this year is to just do it. You don’t have to conquer cols or struggle up summits. You can just take things at your own pace in the right place.”

Whether it’s a gentle amble through a French vineyard, a winding walk up Japan’s Nakasendo Trail or a challenging climb to Everest’s Base Camp, The Natural Adventure has something for everyone – below are just a selection of the biggest bucket list trips to tick off your list.

EASY

Pilgrims’ Way to Canterbury (UK) – 67.5km

• 6 Days
• Self-guided
• From £960
• April – September

Passing through the Kent Downs, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, this 6-day self guided walking holiday coincides with some of the old Pilgrims’ Paths and takes in the places that Chaucer’s pilgrims visited in the Canterbury Tales. Your adventure starts in Rochester and takes you to England’s most prominent Cathedral City – Canterbury. Reconnect with England’s cultural heritage and the natural world while enjoying the company of other pilgrims and like-minded walkers you meet on the route.

Walking Bordeaux’s Vineyards (France) – 74km

• 8 Days
• Self-guided
• From £1,155
• April – September

Walking Bordeaux’s vineyards and valleys doesn’t get much better than this carefully-crafted itinerary that takes you between two famous wine-producing towns of Saint-Émilion and Sauternes. Spend eight days sauntering from château to château, winery to winery, exploring the Entre-Deux-Mers region at a pace that allows you to indulge not only in the gastronomy but also the history and natural variety of the region. As well as walking alongside vineyards and through ancient villages, your trails take you to the famous Canal du Midi, and through the tranquil terrain of the Garonne Valley.

Walking at Lake Como (Italy) – 31km

• 5 Days
• Self-guided
• From £510
• March – October

Take a quick dip into the dramatic beauty of this iconic region of Italy on a centre-based holiday with trails that include some of the region’s great villas, as well as the rolling hills overlooking the lake. Enjoy boat transfers across the lake on several days, disembarking in some of the prettiest lakefront towns and villages, such as Bellagio and Bellano, followed by walks along ancient mule tracks, through olive groves and orchards, and to traditional villages enveloped by vineyards.

MODERATE

Walking the South West Coast Path: St Ives to Penzance (UK) – 66.4km

• 8 Days
• Self-guided
• From £1,030
• April – October

Walking the South West Coast Path is a journey along the UK’s longest walking trail at over 1,000km, clinging to the coasts of Somerset, Cornwall, Devon and Dorset. This eight day, self-guided walking holiday covers the section from St. Ives to Penzance in Cornwall, staying in a mix of small, locally-owned hotels. The walk includes iconic Cornish spots such as Land’s End, some of Cornwall’s prettiest villages with Mousehole and Newlyn topping the list, and historic sites at every headland. If secret coves, rocky peninsulas and paths that take you well away from crowds appeal, then walking the South West Coast Path hits the spot.

Walking the Nakasendo Trail and Kamikochi (Japan) – 59km

• 6 Days
• Self-guided
• From £1,655
• May – October

Traditionally created so that 17th century feudal lords, samurai and traders could transport their missives and minions between Kyoto and Edo (now Tokyo), the Nakasendo Trail now has a more peaceful mission: to provide a slow, central mountain route through ancient forests, along ridges and mountain paths with views of the Japanese Alps, all dipping down to a collection of 69 ‘post towns’, such as Magome, Tsumago and Narai, still proudly hosting travellers in traditional ryokan inns. The traditional trail is 500km, but this self-guided walking holiday covers a rich collection of Nakasendo highlights, with two days in the wetlands of Kamikochi thrown into the magical mix.

Walking Hadrian’s Wall Path (UK) – 135km

• 8 Days
• Self-guided
• From £990
• March – October

This eight day, self-guided adventure walking Hadrian’s Wall Path takes you along England’s iconic National Trail, from east to west. Start in Newcastle on the North Sea and complete your Roman ramble of 135km at Solway Firth on the Irish Sea, with some transfers to help you along the way from your cosy accommodations. Also a UNESCO site, walking Hadrian’s Wall Path is a journey not only to historic sites such as Vindolanda and Housesteads Roman forts but also through natural triumphs such as Northumberland National Park. One of the final stretches is walking along the River Eden into Carlisle, the ancient city just 13km south of the Scottish border.

Walking Sintra to Cascais (Portugal) – 74.5km

• 8 Days
• Self-guided
• From £590
• January – December

Easily accessible by train from Lisbon, this self-guided tour gets off to a high on day one, with the colourful and colossal Pena Palace at Sintra and surrounding mountains. Travellers will then head into Sintra-Cascais Natural Park, trekking up to its iconic castles, mansions and palaces, and down through vineyards and pine forests to the coast. This tour follows part of the GR11 Costa Atlántica trail, with views out to Cabo de Roca, the westernmost point of the European continent.

CHALLENGING

Tour de Mont Blanc Highlights (France, Italy and Switzerland) – 93.5km

• 8 Days
• Self-guided
• From £1,655
• July – September

This Tour du Mont Blanc highlights walking tour is an eight day adventure along the world-famous trail that circumnavigates Europe’s iconic mountain (4,807m), as well as through France, Italy and Switzerland, all home to the massif. Walk in an anti-clockwise direction, starting in Les Contamines and finishing in Chamonix, experiencing all the main highs en route, with the help of public transport and cable car transfers.

Everest Base Camp Trek (Nepal)

• 16 Days
• Privately-guided
• From £1,755
• September – May

Embark on the remarkable journey that Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa took on their way to the summit of Everest with this privately-guided Everest Base Camp trek. Starting with an overnight in Kathmandu before flying to Lukla and walking through Sherpa country past cultivated fields and small villages, early stages of this 16-day tour are all about acclimatisation. You’ll then experience Namche Bazaar, Tengboche and Dingboche and Ghorak Shep before reaching Everest Base Camp at 5,364m, taking in views of Ama Dablam, Everest and the other mighty Himalayan peaks.

The Snowman Trek: World’s Toughest Trail (Bhutan) – 355km

• 32 days
• Privately-guided
• From £14,275
• March – May, September – November

The Snowman Trek gives you an opportunity to enjoy the Himalayan highs over a long period of time and really immerse yourself in their greatness. This month-long clockwise circuit takes travellers around Jigme Dorji National Park and the ten main passes that form a natural border with Tibet. You start off taking the same route as the Jomolhari Base Camp trek but then continue with daily pass challenges such as to Gubu La (4,420m), Jere La (4,750m) or Shingela (5,010m), and valley descents with great sights such as Teri Kang glacier.