Best of the Basque Country

Fly from London to Bilbao and transfer to Pamplona for a four-night stay at the 4-star Hotel Maisonnave, offering every modern comfort at the heart of the historic city. In the afternoon, an introductory walking tour will give you your bearings; and this evening enjoy a welcome dinner in a local restaurant.
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On a morning walking tour of the city’s landmarks, our knowledgeable local guide will talk about the history of Pamplona and its famous running of the bulls; give you an insight of the Kingdom of Navarre; and take you, via streets and squares of colourful façades, to the Santa Maria Cathedral, its imposing outline matched by its glorious interior. The rest of the day is yours to explore at leisure, perhaps picking one of the many tapas bars for a light lunch.
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A full-day excursion crosses the border into the French Basque Country, where, in the 1950s and 60s, celebrities put the ritzy into Biarritz, as the ‘in crowd’ congregated here for the summer. Less star-studded now than then, its promenade is still as glamorous, its coastline just as gorgeous, and its quaint houses equally charming. Enjoy Biarritz on a walk with your tour manager, punctuated with a stop for Pernod or coffee at one of the seafront cafés.
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Today’s full-day tour explores the Rioja region, beginning at Puente de la Reina, where two of the pilgrim ‘camino’ paths meet, and walk a section of the Camino de Santiago (5km approx.), the only UNESCO protected route in the world; before driving to picturesque Laguardia, where there is free time for lunch in the medieval walled town. Continue to the Marqués de Riscal winery, its building a 21^st-century icon designed by architect Frank Gehry and our venue for a tasting of wines, and Iberian meats.
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We leave Pamplona this morning and drive first to San Sebastian, set on a scenic stretch of the Bay of Biscay. Famed as a ‘foodie’ city, with the most Michelin stars per square metre, it is also renowned for its grand, French-inspired architecture, vibrant old-quarter, promenade strolls and La Concha beach. Continue from here to Getaria for a guided tour of the Cristobal Balenciaga Museum, with exhibits of the fashion designer’s fabulous creations; and complete the journey to Durango, the historic ‘heretic city’, perfectly positioned for forays in Basque Biscay. Three-nights at the 20^th-century palace hotel, the 4-star Silken Gran Hotel Durango.
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Today’s excursion is a full day of discovery in revitalised and disorienting Bilbao, teaming its seventeen river bridges with the ‘Seven Streets’ of its medieval Casco Viego core, and the audaciously modern Guggenheim Museum, Gehry’s masterpiece in gleaming fish-scale titanium, which we visit this morning. With the afternoon free for independent exploration in the city, perhaps seek out the stately façade of Spain’s oldest private university, the Deusto, visit the Fine Arts Museum, or stroll the striking pedestrian crossing of the estuary, the Zubizuri (Basque ‘White’) Bridge.
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Today’s tour takes us first to Gernika, the revered Basque town made famous by Picasso in his depiction of the bombing it suffered by the Luftwaffe in 1937. Continue to Bermeo, the fishing port for Bilbao, where we have time for a ‘pintxo’ tapas lunch, before heading to the islet of San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, a stark rock rising from the sea, connected to the coast by a stone bridge, and crowned by its little church, at the top of a long staircase. Enjoy a coffee break with spectacular views, before returning to Durango for a farewell dinner at the hotel this evening.
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Transfer to Bilbao airport for your return flight to London.
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