Albacete – Riópar bus

Getting to Riópar by public transport is possible, but only with a lot of planning. The Town Hall publishes two bus lines: one with Albacete, run by Autocares Molinero, and another with Hellín, run by Novatour. Both make one trip a day in each direction, and only on some days of the week. Neither allows a return trip in a day, so they only work if you are going to sleep in the village.

Albacete – Riópar (Autocares Molinero)

It runs on Mondays and Fridays. From Albacete it leaves at 15:30 from the bus station, at platform 20. From Riópar to Albacete it leaves at 5:20 in the morning, from the stop on Paseo de los Plátanos. With this timetable, the most useful combination is to arrive on a Friday afternoon and return early on Monday, or spend the whole week in the mountains. To confirm times and prices, Autocares Molinero's phone number is 679 172 486; the Town Hall does not publish the ticket price.

Hellín – Riópar (Novatour)

It runs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. From Hellín it leaves at 15:00 from the bus station and passes through Villaverde de Guadalimar and Cotillas before reaching Riópar. From Riópar it leaves at 6:15, from the stop at the Chárter supermarket, next to the Town Hall, and makes the journey in reverse. Novatour's phone number is 967 431 186. If you are coming from the Levante, it is the line you want, because the Town Hall recommends entering the mountains via Hellín.

Once in Riópar

The bus drops you in the village, not at the Source of the River Mundo, which is about 7 km away by mountain road. There is no public transport to Los Chorros, so you will have to walk or ask your accommodation to drive you. One option for walkers is the descent from the Puerto del Arenal, although to get to the pass you also need a car. In the village you can get about on foot: the tourist office, the Royal Factories and the restaurants are near the stops.

If you go by car

For most visitors the car is the only practical way of getting there. From Albacete, the Town Hall recommends several roads; the shortest, but slow, goes through El Salobral, Peñas de San Pedro and Aýna before taking the CM-412. From the Levante coast you enter via Hellín and Elche de la Sierra, about 75 km on a secondary road in good condition, and from Andalusia, via Siles and the Puerto del Arenal, passing beside the Source. Before travelling by bus, call the company: the times on these lines may change, especially on public holidays.