Spain
For the table above all, and the coast and country around it.
San Juan de Gaztelugatxe
The Basque Country is Spain’s green north: San Sebastián’s bay and its kitchens, Bilbao and the Guggenheim, the cliffs and fishing towns of the Bay of Biscay, and the vineyards of the Rioja Alavesa. Avelia plans private, tailor-made time across the region.
A trip with us typically includes hotels, private transfers, guided days and restaurant reservations, and always support while you travel.
01Where to go
Eight places. San Sebastián and Bilbao have pages of their own; the rest we plan as a day out or a stay, and if the place you have in mind is not here, we plan it just the same.
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
The map runs from the Bay of Biscay to the Ebro, each place pinned where it stands. The distances are short: Bilbao is under 80 km from San Sebastián in a straight line, and the widest pair, Gaztelugatxe and the Rioja Alavesa, about 100.
Day excursion
Getaria
A walled medieval fishing town, birthplace of Juan Sebastián Elcano, who brought the first voyage around the world home in 1522, and of Cristóbal Balenciaga, whose museum opened here in 2011. Best for an afternoon from San Sebastián, and a long lunch at the port.
Day excursion
San Juan de Gaztelugatxe
An islet off Bermeo, joined to the shore by a stone bridge, where 241 steps zigzag up to the hermitage of San Juan, 150 m above the sea, in a protected stretch of cliffs and seabird islets. Best for a morning from Bilbao, with Bermeo and Mundaka the same day.
Region
Urdaibai
A UNESCO biosphere reserve since 1984 around the Oka's estuary, from Gernika to the sea at Mundaka: salt marsh, sheer cliffs, the beaches of Laga and Laida, and Santimamiñe's painted cave. Best for a day's walking and birds from Bilbao.
Wine region
The Rioja Alavesa
Rioja's Basque zone, on the north-east bank of the Ebro below the Sierra de Cantabria: 219 wineries in 18 municipalities, and Laguardia, a walled town on a hill with cellars beneath its streets. Best for a day among the vines from Bilbao.
Day excursion
Oñati
One of Gipuzkoa's most monumental towns: the Renaissance university of Sancti Spiritus, which taught from 1542 to 1901, and 9 km away the sanctuary of Arantzazu, built in the 1950s with work by Oteiza and Chillida. Best for a day inland.
Day excursion
The Salt Valley of Añana
Salt made here for more than 7,000 years: brine from the springs runs by gravity along hundreds of wooden channels to stepped terraces of salt pans. One of the FAO's agricultural heritage systems since 2017. Best for a morning on the way to the Rioja Alavesa.
02Inspiration
Each of these is arranged privately for your dates, subject to availability.
The pintxo bars of San Sebastián’s old town with a guide, tasting menus booked well ahead, and Getaria’s grilled fish with the txakoli from the vineyards around the town.
The Guggenheim on the museum’s own private tour and lunch by the estuary in Bilbao, then a day among the Rioja Alavesa’s cellars, the old ones and the ones famous architects built.
The Guggenheim and La Concha among our 12 treasures of Spain
A private boat from San Sebastián or Getaria, the steps up to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, a day’s walking in Urdaibai, and quiet days inland at Oñati, Añana or a house in the hills.
03Seasons
Green and good for walking, before the summer crowds: average highs of 15–20°C (58–68°F) at San Sebastián and 15–23°C (60–73°F) inland at Vitoria-Gasteiz.
Good to knowRain falls on 11 to 13 days a month on the coast in spring, and on fewer inland.
The coast's season and the sunniest months: average highs of 22–23°C (71–73°F) at San Sebastián and 26°C (78–79°F) inland at Vitoria-Gasteiz.
EventsIn San Sebastián, Jazzaldia in the second half of July, then the Quincena Musical's orchestras through August and the Semana Grande, the week of 15 August.
Summer carries into September, 21°C (70°F) at San Sebastián and 23°C (74°F) inland; October cools to 18°C (65°F) and brings the rain back.
EventsSan Sebastián's Film Festival each September, and the grape harvest in the Rioja Alavesa, which generally runs through September and October.
Mild and wet on the coast: highs of 11–14°C (52–57°F) at San Sebastián, wettest in November and December. Inland, Vitoria-Gasteiz has frost on about 12 days in January.
EventsSan Sebastián Day, 20 January, when the Tamborrada's drummers play through the city for 24 hours.
Region by region across Spain, our best time to visit Spain guide.
04Shape your trip
Each itinerary is a starting point, tailored to you. For the Basque Country inside a longer journey, see all our Spain itineraries.
from $27,200 per person
from $16,800 per person
from $15,300 per person
05Planning with Avelia
We start with which places and in what order — San Sebastián first or Bilbao, and how long for each — then choose the hotels, and only then fill the days. Ramin Jafari plans it from Málaga, where Avelia is based, and is your contact until you are home.
Tell us your dates, who is travelling and the pace you like, and whether La Rioja, Madrid or the French Basque Country belong in the same journey.
Before any payment, we send a written proposal with a quoted trip price and what it includes — such as a hotel in San Sebastián, a chauffeur between the cities, and the tasting menus that need booking well ahead — and refine it with you.
Once you approve the proposal and complete the agreed booking requirements, we confirm your arrangements. We coordinate the details and support you while you travel.
Financially protected. Your payments for a package trip are covered against our insolvency by a guarantee with AXA. Plan with peace of mind
Your proposal sets out the arrangements included in your trip.
When to go, where to stay, the food, the sights and three days in the city.
The Basque table, where to eat, and the market, the txakoli and the cider.
Season by season and month by month, with the festivals, the crowds and the rain to plan around.
When to go, our itineraries, and Spain's leading destinations and hotels.
06Questions
Every trip is priced individually. After discussing your plans, we prepare a tailored proposal with a quoted trip price and a clear outline of what is included.
Five to seven days make a well-rounded trip, combining San Sebastián and Bilbao with a day or two in the country: the fishing towns of the coast, the Rioja Alavesa’s cellars or the valleys inland.
April to June, and September and October. July and August are the coast’s season, the busiest and sunniest months, and inland the days are warm rather than hot. Rain falls in every month, which is why the region is green, so we plan every day out with a wet-weather alternative.
Yes, and we often do. The Rioja Alavesa runs on into La Rioja, the French Basque Country begins just east of San Sebastián, and Madrid is a train ride away. Our luxury trip planning page explains how a trip with several stops comes together.
All of it. The places on this page are the ones most of our clients ask for; Hondarribia, Zumaia and its cliffs, Lekeitio, Elantxobe and the valleys of Álava we arrange just as readily, as a day out or a stay.
Yes. We book guides who work in English and choose each one for what you want to see: the food, the architecture or the history.
Both. We plan complete trips, and we also arrange a stay on its own: a hotel matched to you, with transfers, a guide or a few reservations added if you wish.
Avelia suits travellers who want a private, well-paced trip planned around them: the right places in the right order, hotels chosen for them, guides who know the ground, tables and tickets taken care of, and one point of contact from the first conversation until they are home.
Five to seven days in the Basque Country for San Sebastián, Bilbao and the countryside: tell us your dates and who is travelling.
Usually answered within one business day.
