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Northern Spain Travel Guide

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This past week I have been sharing snaps from our amazing trip to Spain. Last September, we rented a car at the Bilbao Airport and for 12 days explored northern Spain – from San Sebastian, through the wineries of Rioja, to Barcelona. In this post, I’ll be sharing my recommendations and highlights from the trip with you, so you too can have a trip like ours!

Travel

  • Airplanes: One of the great things about Spain is that it’s pretty easy to get to and to get around. We took a connecting flight from New York to Bilbao, through Paris. Since the end of this trip will land you in Barcelona, we took a direct flight home from Barcelona to New York.
  • Automobiles: I would recommend booking a car in advance to be picked up at the Bilbao Airport. Driving around Spain is very easy. They drive on the right side of the road, the roads are well paved, and most of your driving will be on highways. It gives you  a lot more flexibility in your travel and parking is relatively easy.

First Stop: San Sebastian

Driving from Bilbao Airport to San Sebastian takes about an hour. If you have time to spare in Bilbao, definitely make a stop at the Guggenheim Museum there. It was designed by Frank Gehry (who also designed Hotel Marques de Riscal in Rioja) so you have a few chances to see his amazing work.

  • Where to Stay: We stayed at the beautiful Maria Cristina Hotel, which is centrally located and near the beach. Another option is to stay on the other side of Concha Beach, where hotel prices are a bit cheaper. Barcelo Costa Vasca is a good option in that part of town and it’s only about a 20 minute walk along the beach from that hotel to the old part of town.
  • What to Do:
    • Pintxos tour – San Sebastian is known for its pintxos, which are their version of tapas. There are so many places that offer pintxos, so the best way to try all of the best ones is by going on a pintxos tour. I would absolutely recommend doing this on one of your first nights in San Sebastian, because it will give you a great taste of the town, plus it is SO fun, and a great way to meet other travelers that love food! We did the MiMo food tour (link here) and I could not recommend it more! Something important to note for this activity and for booking restaurants here in San Sebastian – a lot of restaurants are closed on Sundays and Mondays, so plan around that. This activity is best done on another day so you can try the best that San Sebastian has to offer.
    • Visit Concha beach – Concha beach is a beautiful attraction in San Sebastian. Since it is as the northern tip of Spain, it gets cooler much earlier than other places in Spain. We were there in early September and it was too chilly to enjoy any beach time, but it is still a beautiful beach to walk along when it’s too chilly to do any sun bathing! If you are looking to get some bikini time in, definitely plan your trip to San Sebastian earlier in the summer.
    •  Hike Monte Urgull  – Monte Urgull is a military fortress that has a great view of Concha Beach and all of San Sebastian from the top. It is a bit of a hike but it is worth it!
  • Where to Eat: When in San Sebastian, you have to hit up the pintxos bars.
    • If you are looking for a fancier meal and no longer want any pintxos, Arzak is an amazing choice. However, you have to plan your trip around their schedule. They are closed Sunday and Monday so keep that in mind when you are booking your trip!
    • For pintxos, try Casa Urola (for their scallop), Gandarias (for their solomillo), Bergara Bar (for their wide selection of pintxos on display), Sirimiri (for patatas bravas and squid croquettes), Borda Berri (for their risotto) and A Fuego Negro (for their kobe beef burger)
    • For breakfast, try Sakona, which has amazing coffee, breakfast sandwiches, smoked salmon, and other items.
    • For a good lunch option, with no reservations needed, try Kata 4. They have great seafood options including octopus, squid, and mussels.

Next Stop: La Rioja

The drive from San Sebastian to the Rioja region of Spain is about 2 hours. It’s a beautiful drive and it’s easy! If you are as passionate about food as we are, you absolutely have to take a short diversion to have a meal at Etxebarri. It is one of the best restaurants in the world and Anthony Bourdain said he would want to die there. It’s in a beautiful, mountainous town and the scenery is almost as amazing as the food.

  • Where to Stay: Rioja is a large region with an amazing selection of wineries. When choosing a hotel, you will want to make sure that you are centrally located so you can easily access the different wineries.
    • We stayed in Laguardia, which is a walled city that is central to a lot of the wineries. The hotel we stayed at, Hotel Hospederia de los Parajes, was a really cool hotel built on top of a wine cave. There is a little bar and restaurant in the cave under the hotel, which was really pretty cool to explore. Laguardia has a lot of history and is a really interesting place to walk around and visit. However, I wouldn’t recommend staying there. It is a walled city that does not allow driving, so you have to park your car outside of the city walls. The hotel is not far from the entrance, so this is truthfully a minor inconvenience. But in the mornings, a group of locals walks around the city singing traditional songs in front of the hotels. I happen to be a light sleeper, so I didn’t love getting woken up early in the morning to the singing. Laguardia is worth a visit if you are going to Ysios winery (which you should), but I wouldn’t stay there.
    • Another option is to stay at Hotel Marques de Riscal, which is the hotel designed by Frank Gehry. It is a beautiful hotel that is very close to some of the major wineries. But it is more expensive than staying in Laguardia, so you will have to decide what is more important to you.
  • Wineries to Visit: There are several amazing wineries in this region. Whichever ones you choose, make sure you make reservations in advance so you can tour the wineries and do a tasting. The wines are a lot cheaper at the wineries than they are back in the US. Plus the wineries have all of their wines available at their wineries, while not all of them are available for purchase in the US. So I definitely recommend buying the wines you love while you are there. If you don’t want to pay for the shipping back home, I suggest you invest in a wine suitcase. It has foam cutouts that will perfectly hold the wine bottles in place, and you can use it as a regular suitcase if you remove the foam inserts!
    • Vivanco – Vivanco is a massive winery with beautiful grounds, a good restaurant, and an entire wine museum. Out of the wineries we visited, the wines themselves were probably our least favorite (though still good). But the winery is definitely still worth a visit for the wine museum. They have a huge collection of wine related items, including art, sculptures and wine bottle openers. We loved their 2010 Reserva made with Tempranillo grapes.
    • Muga – Muga has great wines and their tour is really interesting because you not only see the way they make wines, but also the way they make their barrels. We loved their Prado Enea Gran Reserva 2009.
    • Ysios – Ysios is a really awesome winery. The architecture alone is worth a visit, because the structure mimics the mountains behind it. They are a much smaller winery and don’t produce as many varieties, but we loved some of the wines we tasted. Plus their tasting room is amazing, so even if you don’t buy anything, the tasting is worth the visit! We loved their Edicion Limitada 2012.
    • La Rioja Alta – La Rioja Alta has extremely well known wines, for good reason. This winery is very close to Muga, so if you are visiting one, definitely visit the other! We We loved their Vina Ardanza Reserva 2008, which is a great wine for the price. But their 2005 Gran Reserva 904 was one of the best wines of 2016, so definitely give that a try too!

 

Final Stop: Barcelona

  • Where to Stay: We stayed at Ohla Eixample, which we loved. It is a centrally located hotel and Eixample is a quieter district within Barcelona so you are close to where all the hustle and bustle is but you don’t have to hear it. If you are looking to be closer to the beach, the W hotel is right on the beach. But this location is farther from all other attractions, so I would recommend staying in the Eixample district.
  • What to Do: Barcelona is full of amazing architecture by Gaudi, great shopping, vibrant markets, and delicious food.
    • Sagrada Familia – The Sagrada Familia is an absolute must in Barcelona. The architecture is unbelievable and the way the sun shines through the stained glass to unveil a world of color is truly amazing. Book tickets in advance to secure a time to go up to the top of one of the spires. You take an elevator up to the top and walk down, so don’t worry about having to walk up all of the stairs!
    • Park Guell – Park Guell is another amazing Gaudi landmark, which is filled with Gaudi sculptures, mosaic covered buildings, and amazing views of Barcelona. Buy tickets for a time slot to visit the bottom half of the park, where most of Gaudi’s work is displayed. You can walk to the top of the park without a ticket to see the amazing views of the city.
    • La Boqueria Market – The Boqueria Market is right off of La Rambla and is a major tourist attraction. The market is vibrant, with great produce and little restaurants. But be careful of tourist traps.
    • Take a cooking class – Take a cooking class at Born to Cook Barcelona. This class is amazing and a great way to learn how to recreate the amazing Spanish dishes at home. The class starts with a trip to the Mercat de Santa Caterina, which is much less touristy than the Boqueria Market. You will be able to taste the produce that you will use in the dishes that you will prepare, learn how to best pick our your fish and produce, and learn about the large variety of speciality food items in Barcelona. You will then get to taste several different types of olive oils from Spain and then get into the cooking! During our class, we made gazpacho, patatas bravas, paella, and creme catalan (which is just like creme brûlée).
    • Visit a gin bar – Gin is a very popular drink in Spain and there are some amazing bars doing really cool stuff with gin. I happen to not really like gin, and I still found a really great drink at Old Fashioned, that had strawberries in it! They had some truly inventive drinks and the staff was amazing!
    • Visit the beach in Barceloneta – the beach is packed on warm days, but it is really beautiful. You can walk through the downtown are near the beach where there are open markets, seafood restaurants, and a boardwalk. On your way back to Eixample, take a stroll through Parc de la Ciutadella.
    • Hike up Montjuic – This is a bit of a hike but there are amazing views at the top. Along the way, you can see buildings from the Olympic Games, the Olympic stadium and the botanic gardens.
    • Explore La Rambla – There is more to La Rambla than just the Boqueria Market. There are tons of shops and restaurants to explore. Walk through the winding back streets off of La Rambla for some interesting shops. If you are a fan of pottery and ceramics, make a stop at Carme Balada’s little studio.
  • Where to Eat: You really can’t go wrong with the food in Barcelona, but you have to be wary of tourist traps. Like if you see yellow paella – steer clear! For some authentic and delicious food, see some recommendations below.
    • Cinc Sentits – This is an amazing restaurant at a price point that won’t make you want to eat ramen for the rest of the trip. They have really innovative dishes that are absolutely delicious.
    • Old Fashioned Gin Bar – For a drink before (or after) dinner, visit Old Fashioned Gin Bar. For someone who doesn’t love the taste of gin, they made a believer out of me!
    • Blavis – This is a cozy little restaurant in the Gracia district. They change their menu frequently, but its a great place to taste some exciting takes on traditional tapas.
    • Somorrostro – This is a great dinner stop in Barceloneta. They also change their menu and write it up on a big blackboard. Their seafood and vegetable dishes are particularly good.

I hope this travel guide helps you create a trip that is as magical as ours was. I will never forget the amazing flavors of Spain (and since we took a cooking class, I get to recreate those flavors at home!).

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