Cabeçó d'Or

The Cabeçó d'Or is a limestone massif of 1,209 m rising over Busot, crowned by a geodetic vertex, with the summit ridge looking over the Alicante plain to the sea. In its northern flank, at 700 m of altitude, opens the Canelobre show cave: a karst cavity in Upper Jurassic limestone, 145 million years old, with a chamber of more than 80,000 square metres reached by a 45 m tunnel, full of stalactites, stalagmites, columns and draperies. The municipal tourism site sells entry tickets for the cave and publishes walking routes on the massif, a day out from Alicante.

Cave and summit

The cave visit is guided and ticketed: buy the municipal entry in advance, since the ticketed show cave draws crowds while the summit trails stay quiet. The cave is one of the few Jurassic reliefs of the Prebetic in the province. The summit walk itself has no entry fee, but it is a full mountain outing with no water on the ridge, so treat it as a full-day walk.

Getting there

Drive to Busot, about 140 km from València; a car is needed, as no public transport reaches the cave road or the trailheads. The cave car park sits on the CV-776; the village offers a second base for the summit paths.

Tips

• Book the cave tickets ahead: the ticketed entry is the massif's restriction and weekend slots fill.
• Climb from autumn to spring; the bare ridge gives no shade in summer.
• Carry plenty of water for the summit; there are no fountains on the high paths.