The best Way to know the Basque Country

KEY DETAILS

• LIVE GUIDE: English, French, Spanish, Basque
• INSTANT CONFIRMATION

WHAT YOU´LL DO

Explore our highlights in the Basque Country and start a wonderful journey through Bilbao, Rioja Alavesa and San Sebastián

• Day 1: Visit the Guggenheim Museum and a city tour of Bilbao
  
• Day 2: Visit the Oma forest and a boat trip along the Urdaibai Reserve
  
• Day 3: Visit the Valle Salado de Añana and a guided tour through Vitoria
  
• Day 4: Visit Laguardia and the Marqués de Riscal winery
  
• Day 5: Discover San Sebastian by a walking tour and a pintxo tour
  
• Day 6: Guided tour in Getaria and visit the Cristobal Balenciaga museum
  
• Day 7: Guided Tour in the museum of Chillida Leku and visit the city of Bilbao
  
• Day 8: Take off day
  

WHAT TO EXPECT

Day 1 - WELCOME

Welcome to Euskadi-Basque Country!
Transfer to the hotel. Check-in at Hotel Domine.
In the afternoon, a guided private visit to the Guggenheim Museum. Defined as the best building in the second half of the twentieth century, it has transformed the city, placing it in the world and radically changing its image.

Afterwards Citytour in Bilbao.

Day 2 – BOSQUE DE OMA – TXAKOLI DE BIZKAIA

Breakfast at the hotel

Transfer to Oma Forest

Visiting the Bosque de Oma (2 h):

Lunch at Arzumendi Restaurant. We will visit the Bistro Prét Á Porter with the biggest cellar of Txakoli in the Basque Country.

Boat trip along the Urdaibai Reserve.
The route taken by the boat offers us the opportunity to discover the fascinating interior of the Mundaka Estuary, allowing us to understand the reasons why this environment around the estuary has been converted into the only area in Euskadi to be declared Biosphere Reserve, included in the M&B programme and thus protected by law.

Back to Bilbao, stop at San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, just wonderful!
Overnight at the hotel in Bilbao.

Day 3 – LA RIOJA ALAVESA

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer to Valle Salado de Añana.

Something special will happen today: The salt valley in the Alavese locality of Añana is currently one of the most spectacular and best-preserved cultural landscapes in Europe. Its value lies not only in its unique architecture or in its more than 1,200 years of documented history, not even in its geological characteristics, its biodiversity or in its prized landscapes, but in the union in perfect harmony of all this in a privileged context.

In the oldest town in Alava, and in what were waters of a vast sea 200 million years ago, stands the Salt Valley of Salinas de Añana. A magnificent outdoor cultural landscape (monument) formed over more than 5,000 eras: platforms on which the brine, salt water, is poured to obtain salt through solar evaporation. A unique and extensive network of wooden channels distributes the water to the most remote corners of the Salt Valley.
During the morning we will have a guided tour through the Salt Valley, including salt production and SPA. After the visit, you will be able to taste some of the salts that are produced, such as wine salt.

Lunch at the restaurant “Palacio de Añana”.

Afterwards, transfer to Vitoria.

Guided Tour in Vitoria
Visiting the Sant Maria Cathedral

Afterwards, transfer back to Villabuena de Álava.

Check-in at Hotel 4* Viura and free time to enjoy a glass of wine.
Dinner with wine tasting at the restaurant at hotels Viura.

Day 4 – LA RIOJA ALAVESA

Breakfast at the hotel.

Another territory will be explored today “the wine territory” our “Basque Napa Valley”
Let's travel to the 16th Century visiting Laguardia, whose history is written on its stones and is waiting to be read by visitors. The subsoil of Laguardia is pierced by wineries or ‘caves’, dug under the houses and streets, about 6 feet deep. The oldest building in Laguardia is Casa Primicia, here, in this emblematic space, the church collected the tithes and first offerings, the tax that obliged the servants to pay the tenth part of the harvest and the first fruits. Archaeologists have just discovered the secrets kept in Casa Primicia for more than five hundred years The files relate that in this emblematic XI century building the elaboration wine was started in the Laguardia village (XV century).

A visit to such a singular building is a walk through history and through wine. To visit Casa Primicia is to travel through the time tunnel, searching for the essence of a shore that has made the fruit of the vine its reason for being. Wine tasting.

Lunch at a typical Riojan restaurant.

In the end, we'll travel to the modernity visiting Marqués de Riscal winery. The best representation of the innovative spirit of Marqués de Riscal and its world of sensations is, without a doubt, the building designed by Frank O. Gehry. It is a work that, although full of distinct forms, is in perfect harmony with the landscape of the area. Like the Guggenheim Museum, the building designed by Gehry is covered with titanium. In this case, however, the architect wanted to infuse his work with the signature colours of Marqués de Riscal: pink like the wine, gold like the mesh on the Riscal bottles, and silver like the bottle top.

Dinner at the restaurant „La Cueva“ with a beautiful view of the Bodega Riscal.

OPTIONAL: Freetime and dinner on own account.
Transfer back to the hotel.

Day 5 – SAN SEBASTIAN

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer to La Rioja (Alta)

Transfer to Haro, the capital of Rioja. Guided tour through the historic city with a visit to one of the important Wineries of Rioja afterwards, “Bodega López de Heredia”
Picnic in the middle of the beautiful wine region.

Transfer to San Sebastián.

Check-in at the hotel.

We will discover San Sebastian on a walking tour. Also known as the Pearl of the Cantabrian Sea, is one of the cities that best combines gastronomy, culture and beauty, combining all in an unrivalled natural environment also welcomes the traveller as one more in the city.

During the experience sightseeing tour of the romantic city that runs along Cortázar’s Elance, designed in the second half of the nineteenth century after the demolition of the walls protecting the town. Its perpendicularly drawn street, show us an ordered and serene city where the sandstone buildings are integrated into the environment and is easy to guess the French influence in their designs.

Let try our “pintxotour” (miniature dishes tasting) for dinner and feel like a “Donostiarra” people living in San Sebastián.

Back to the hotel.

Day 6 – SAN SEBASTIAN

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer to Getaria

Guided Tour in Getaria

A charming seaside village with great fishing tradition, best known for being the birthplace of Juan Sebastián Elcano (Basque explorer who completed the first circumnavigation of the Earth) but it also hides famous restaurants of grilled fish and small beaches with spectacular scenery.

We will have the opportunity to live a special gastronomic experience with anchovies manufacturing like in the 17th. Let´s go and taste the Getaria’s txakoli (Basque white wine) in a winery called “txakolindegi”.

Visiting the museum Cristóbal Balenciaga Museoa

Visiting Maisor.

Transfer back to San Sebastián.

Day 7 – BILBAO

Breakfast at the hotelFrühstück im Hotel

Transfer to Chillidaleku.

Guided Tour in the museum of Chillida Leku.
Eduardo Chillida's wish to share his work resulted in the foundation of Chillida-Leku Museum, in Caserío Zabalaga Farmhouse, dating back to the 16th century. The adjoining lands are home to over 40 large-size pieces created by means of iron and granite. Within the building are located works of smaller sizes, such as drawings and even his first chest sculptures. But the real nature is found outdoors, where not only his most beloved sculptures are displayed but also the essence of his work.

Transfer to 11:00 Santuario de Arantzazu

Lunch at the restaurant Goiko Benta

Transfer to Bilbao.

16:30 - Check-in at the hotel and free time.

Dinner at the restraurant Café Iruña

Transfer back to the hotel.

Day 8 – BILBAO

Breakfast at the hotel.

Transfer to Puente Bizkaia.

Transfer to the airport.

BEFORE GOING

With a private tour guide, the schedule, duration and activities can be adjusted to meet your needs. Please, provide any special requests you have.

Please note that this tour is a culture and food tour. But, you will get a pair of local snacks as well as a walk through the old quarter of San Sebastian in order to learn about the Basque culture and gastronomy. Please note that you will not receive a full meal.

CANCELLATION POLICY

• Cancel up to 15 days in advance for a full refund
• Cancellations between 15 days and 48 hours will be charged 50%
• Cancellations 48 hours in advance will be charged 100%