8 days / 7 nights
Casual
Fully Guided
Bilbao
Rioja
Madrid
Hi there active travel lovers! Welcome to Northern Spain Travel where every journey offers you a chance to travel deep into the region, off the beaten path to places only a local would know, while providing you with luxury comfort, unforgettable food and wine, and exquisite care. Join one of our 2024 Walking & Wine journeys through the Rioja, Navarra and the Basque lands. Our 8 day journey for small group journeys two departure dates. We are passionate about walking and gastronomy, and our experienced travel designer team has been cooking up a storm to create authentic encounters, immersive experiences that will generate both curiosity and enthusiasm. Let this culturally rich region of Spain and its people surprise, engage and inspire you.
This enchanting territory and our immersive tours are well worth the discovery, and we can make your vacations unique and memorable, so come and join us on one when it’s optimal for you.
July 20, 2025
August 21, 2024
September 20, 2024
October 7, 2024
We customize to fit with fabulous experiences, the comfort of great accommodation, out-of-this-world gastronomy and a chance to discover this spectacular region.
Bilbao is famous for its museum Guggenheim, modern architecture and has won many international awards for its transformation last century from industrial river-port city to a thriving art, architecture and cultural centre. We will transfer from the airport to the hotel, then regroup mid afternoon for a meet and greet cocktail at the hotel.
Food: Mid afternoon meet and greet cocktails
Travel: Transfer from Bilbao Airport to your hotel
Sleep: Hotel ****
We will transfer from Bilbao to the capital of the wine region, Haro, where we will enjoy a wine tasting in the wine bars of two top wineries. We will enjoy a sitdown lunch at a traditional family run Rioja restaurant which specialises in roast lamb, and visit the restaurant’s underground wine cellars, then stroll through this quaint town, before we transfer to your accommodation. We will regroup for an in-house dinner at your hotel.
Food: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Travel: Bilbao / Rioja
Sleep: Boutique Hotel ****
This morning we will enjoy a walk among the vineyards and cereal fields from the medieval village of Cuzcurrita, past the majestic Castle Cuzcurrita to Sajazarra Castle. We will walk the pathway known by locals as the Virgen de Cillas pilgrimage passing by the Santa María de Cillas Hermitage. We will enjoy a Michelin Star recommended restaurant for lunch, followed by an exclusive opportunity to open an old age wine in their underground cellars (wines will date back to the 1950s). Afternoon pleasures include a private visit to the most complete wine museum in the world, Vivanco Cultura de Vino, then we transfer to your accommodation. We will regroup for an entertaining wine lover’s experience and informal dinner in a local family winery.
Food: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Travel: Rioja
Sleep: Boutique Hotel ****
We walk among the vineyards where we will enjoy a mid morning vineyard experience, where you will enjoy a hands-on wine growers experience, followed by wine tasting and aperitif in gorgeous winery vineyards. This is followed by a private winery visit and sit down for lunch in the winery. We transfer to the capital of the Rioja, Logroño for an afternoon on your own to shop and discover the city on foot. We will transfer to the hotel and regroup for a relaxing informal in-house dinner.
Food: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Travel: Rioja
Sleep: Boutique Hotel ****
We will leave your accommodation on foot and enjoy a morning walk through gorgeous rolling hills of the Basque Country vineyards region. Today’s theme is ‘in search of Dolmens’ whereby we walk to 3 legendary examples of 6000 year old architecture in the middle of nature. We will enjoy a mid morning picnic with views of the Rioja Alavesa. We will visit for lunch at a family winery. Afternoon pleasures include an inhouse show cooking experience on how to cook a paella.
Food: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Travel: Rioja
Sleep: Boutique Hotel ****
We walk a portion of the pilgrimage pathway Camino Ignaciano to the medieval fortress town of Laguardia. The Ignaciano Way recreates the path that Ignacio de Loyola made in 1522 from Loyola-Azpeitia to the city of Manresa, Catalonia. Upon arrival at Laguardia, we will visit an ancestral underground wine cellar. The family has been making artisanal wines for more than 500 years, followed by a sit down lunch at a stellar Michelin Star recommended restaurant in the town. Laguardia is perched on top of 300 cellars carved out of the rock and is a delightful town to discover and shop on your own in the afternoon. We regroup to return to the hotel to relax, then regroup for an inhouse dinner.
Food: Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Travel: Rioja
Sleep: Boutique Hotel ****
After breakfast, we will transfer to Madrid. After checking into your hotel, you will enjoy a walking and driving tour of Madrid with our driver and local guide. Expect to see the Plaza Mayor, the San Miguel Market, and the Royal Palace. Thereafter, enjoy the city on your own. Today you take a break and feel free to shop, visit the museums or just stroll the city. We would be happy to make lunch or dinner reservations for you.
Food: Breakfast
Travel: Rioja / Madrid
Sleep: Hotel Madrid****
We will transfer you from the hotel to the Madrid Airport.
Food: Breakfast
* NST itineraries may be subject to slight route changes, hotel substitutions, and other modifications.
Alma Pamplona is an active travel friendly hotel. Modern and avant-garde, has its own personality, which seeks to surprise. This quiet enclave is where we luxuriate in the Spa and Treatment center, and chill at the gastro bar after a morning of activity.
Hotel Sercotel Calle Mayor is a four star hotel in the capital of the Rioja province. This design hotel occupies an 16th-century mansion in the historic center of Logroño. Traditional warm stone and authenticity with a modern interior. This charming hotel is in the heart of Logroño. The hotel offers a dinner menu that is adapted to seasonality and that is of course, accompanied by one of the most incredible wine lists you will ever encounter.
It is strategically located in the town Briones, it is the ideal location for our culinary journeys to discover the region and its gastronomy. It is already one of the best hotels in La Rioja.
Stephanie, the dynamo of our organization, is a Canadian who has fallen in love with this region of Spain. She is enterprising, innovative and has an endless amount of energy to design unique outstanding travel plans, making her passion her profession. She has the firm conviction that until the product standards are exceptional, they should not be offered.
“Our goals are two: one is to dazzle our visitors and another is to share with them what we find so extremely enchanting about this region of Spain”.
Oliver is our greatest ambassador of Pamplona. Oliver has it all: charm, conversation and deep knowledge of his Basque culture. You will feel like you’ve made a new friend during one of his energetic tours. Oliver is always on the beat searching for the perfect pintxo and exciting, outside-the-box experiences. He is dedicated to designing the most exclusive events for our guests, such as the Hemingway to the Basque Coast tour, or a walking tour of the Running of the Bulls course with an international bull runner. He knows the all the best destinations and activities on the off-the-beaten cultural track.
“This is our essential hallmark that sets us apart from any other events agency”.
