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Help Needed San Sebastian, Rioja, Basque Country

Amy

100+ Posts
We are contemplating a trip of perhaps three weeks to explore these areas, probably divided into a week stay in each. I have just begun my research, happily reading Maribel's excellent guides to the regions. I would love to hear of other's experiences. At this point, I'd like to get a feel for neighborhood to look for an apartment rental in San Sebastian; and towns in the Rioja and in the Basque country that would make for good home bases. Our interests are architecture, scenery, food and wine, traditional culture, art. Another thought I had for the Basque country was going over the border to the French side of things.

Our windows for travel would either be in May, or in October, probably not leaving until the 10th. I'd also like to hear any pros or cons for either season.

Thanks, as always!
 
Hi Amy!

I wonder if you can transfer Nancy's comments from Facebook here? Although there was overlap in our 2016 trip, I'm not familiar with many of the restaurants and little towns she mentions. Of course, I'm sure they're all good suggestions.

I agree that the Pintxo crawl in San Sebastian's Old Town is the way to go. We went to Akelarre, a Michelin-starred restaurant, and had a lovely and very expensive lunch. I'd definitely recommend it - and lunch is nice because it has a great view. But frankly, I kind of enjoyed the pintxos in town better. To Nancy's list of pintxo places in the Old Town, I'd add Borda Berri. When you do the pintxo crawl, make sure that you are not completely exhausted. It takes energy to deal with the crowds at some places - they can be kind of aggressive. Everyone's having a lot of fun, but it's like nothing I've ever seen before. For instance, at Borda Berri, the only way we got food was to really push our way to the bar and be VERY assertive. But when you get your order, all is good!

We spent a couple of days in Bilbao and I'd recommend it. The Guggenheim is just fantastic and the town has a great vibe. We walked around a lot; also had pintxos in Bilbao's old town (not nearly as crazy as San Sebastian, with some good places), just enjoyed the city. We also drove to Guernica one day - worth the visit.

I've gotta go now (I'm in Graz and am teaching...), but I'll post again about Rioja, which we loved! Love to you and Larry!

(Hi Pauline!!!!!)
 
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For Rioja, We stayed in a winery, Antigua Bodega de Don Cosme Palacio, just outside of the hill town Laguardia. It is a good home base to explore Rioja. Another option is to stay at Marques de Riscal in El Ciego a Frank Gehry designed wine village https://bit.ly/2KCbqWJ. Book an appointment at R. Lopez de Heridia (see picture below) Very traditional winery in Haro. Right across the street is La Rioja Alta and Muga and next door is Roda. The wine museum at Dinastia Vivanco in Briones is worth a visit. I can recommend more wineries if you need some.
IMG_2180.JPG
 
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Hello Amy:
We stayed at Casa Erletxe in Laguardia ( http://www.erletxe.com/ ) and found the service and accommodation of a high standard. The only downside was the room we had had a smallish bathroom. From Laguardia one can easilt visit Marques de Riscal bodega. Tickets are available on-line. One walks by Geary's building but to visit the interior one needs to book a room or meal. Across the valley is Calatrava's building which houses the Ysios bodega (tickets online also) Both tours are worthwhile. The town is pedestrianized. We found experiencing the small wine producers in town a good time.

Logrono is a larger work-a-day town on the edge of the Rioja region. It has gained some fame for its tapas bars along the Calle Laurel. It is very crowded on week-ends. Each bar has a specialty. In October the city hosts a wine festival. Smaller towns also have festivals during this time.

I second Mark's recommendation regarding the wine museum in Briones.

We have travelled the area three times, always in March and April. We found the weather to be settled (warm and sunny) But then we're from Alberta!
 
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With her permission, here are some notes sent me by Parigi.

**************************

I'm going back to Basque Country this September. As before, we are renting a house in the village of Sare, very close to the border.
San Sebastian is less than an hour's drive away. Saint Jean de Luz-Ciboure and the Basque Coast is 20 minutes away.
Sare itself is a listed Plus Beau Village. There are quite a few other plus beaux villages around.
Our favorite nearby villages are Saint Etienne de Baigorry, Ciboure, Bayonne.

Don't think of French Basque country and Spanish Basque Country as two places to be visited separately. They really are one unit, and you'll find yourself crisscrossing borders all the time. Ex: although we lived on the French edge, the closest supermarket - and fiendishly cheap and excellent - is in Spain, 15-min drive away, in Dantxaria. Check its nearby village Urdax. Another beautiful tiny village in Spain but very near Sare is Zugarramurdi. I can never remember the name and call it Krishnamurti.

Our favorite restaurants are :
- Restaurant olhabidea. The restaurant is the old family home of the restaurant owner, exquisitely decorated. The garden is beautiful. The food only uses fresh ingredients from its own garden or adjacent farms.
- Urtxola. Very relaxed country inn, in an old smuggler's house walkable to Spain.
- Chez Mattin in Ciboure. Old school restaurant using a ton of butter on its ultra fresh seasood. Full of very chic oldtimers, esp boat owners.
- Erreguina, in a tiny village with a trout pond, in the Aldudes valley, which is David's favorite drive in all of Europe. At Erreguina, get the baby trout, which you should reserve at least half a day in advance. The restaurant will pick it up from the village pond.

My favorite pilgrimage spots - absolutely hadj, - are
- Socoa beach in Ciboure
- Market in St Jean de Luz (choose one of its mad market days)
- the Aldudes valley drive
- Parte Vieja (old town) of San Sebastian. Walk off your pintxos run in the old port. I love love love it.
- a dinner at Olhabidea, preceded by apéro in the garden.

In San Sebastian, we never leave the old town. We prefer a pintxos crawl instead of a 3-hour-long starre meal. Our favorite pintxos bars - also favorites of Anthony Bourdain's, as he kept coming in behind us, - are Astelena, Cuchara San Telmo and Xeruko. We like to share 4 little plates between us, then go on to another bar and repeat, constituting our itinerant tasting menu.
Astelena is on a beautiful square. Point to the raw seafood, then go out and choose a table. The seafood will be cooked and brought to you. In these places, esp on game days, the vibes are intense.

******************
 
Thank you David, Mark, Dennis and Parigi! Very helpful as we sift through information and think about some plans.

Any thoughts on weather, particularly along the coast? We are thinking of either mid May into early June; or the last three weeks of October.
 
I was west of Basque country along the coast in October (Galicia and Asturias). Storms swept in across the Bay of Biscay on a regular basis. Perhaps my bad luck but fall does bring rain along the coast. However with the vagaries of weather patterns these days who knows.

Here are the Geary and Calatrava buildings:

Aa Riscal bodega (6).JPG
Ab Ysios bodega (00).jpg
 
Hi Amy!

I wonder if you can transfer Nancy's comments from Facebook here? Although there was overlap in our 2016 trip, I'm not familiar with many of the restaurants and little towns she mentions. Of course, I'm sure they're all good suggestions.

I agree that the Pintxo crawl in San Sebastian's Old Town is the way to go. We went to Akelarre, a Michelin-starred restaurant, and had a lovely and very expensive lunch. I'd definitely recommend it - and lunch is nice because it has a great view. But frankly, I kind of enjoyed the pintxos in town better. To Nancy's list of pintxo places in the Old Town, I'd add Borda Berri. When you do the pintxo crawl, make sure that you are not completely exhausted. It takes energy to deal with the crowds at some places - they can be kind of aggressive. Everyone's having a lot of fun, but it's like nothing I've ever seen before. For instance, at Borda Berri, the only way we got food was to really push our way to the bar and be VERY assertive. But when you get your order, all is good!

We spent a couple of days in Bilbao and I'd recommend it. The Guggenheim is just fantastic and the town has a great vibe. We walked around a lot; also had pintxos in Bilbao's old town (not nearly as crazy as San Sebastian, with some good places), just enjoyed the city. We also drove to Guernica one day - worth the visit.

I've gotta go now (I'm in Graz and am teaching...), but I'll post again about Rioja, which we loved! Love to you and Larry!

(Hi Pauline!!!!!)
With her permission, here are some notes sent me by Parigi.

**************************

I'm going back to Basque Country this September. As before, we are renting a house in the village of Sare, very close to the border.
San Sebastian is less than an hour's drive away. Saint Jean de Luz-Ciboure and the Basque Coast is 20 minutes away.
Sare itself is a listed Plus Beau Village. There are quite a few other plus beaux villages around.
Our favorite nearby villages are Saint Etienne de Baigorry, Ciboure, Bayonne.

Don't think of French Basque country and Spanish Basque Country as two places to be visited separately. They really are one unit, and you'll find yourself crisscrossing borders all the time. Ex: although we lived on the French edge, the closest supermarket - and fiendishly cheap and excellent - is in Spain, 15-min drive away, in Dantxaria. Check its nearby village Urdax. Another beautiful tiny village in Spain but very near Sare is Zugarramurdi. I can never remember the name and call it Krishnamurti.

Our favorite restaurants are :
- Restaurant olhabidea. The restaurant is the old family home of the restaurant owner, exquisitely decorated. The garden is beautiful. The food only uses fresh ingredients from its own garden or adjacent farms.
- Urtxola. Very relaxed country inn, in an old smuggler's house walkable to Spain.
- Chez Mattin in Ciboure. Old school restaurant using a ton of butter on its ultra fresh seasood. Full of very chic oldtimers, esp boat owners.
- Erreguina, in a tiny village with a trout pond, in the Aldudes valley, which is David's favorite drive in all of Europe. At Erreguina, get the baby trout, which you should reserve at least half a day in advance. The restaurant will pick it up from the village pond.

My favorite pilgrimage spots - absolutely hadj, - are
- Socoa beach in Ciboure
- Market in St Jean de Luz (choose one of its mad market days)
- the Aldudes valley drive
- Parte Vieja (old town) of San Sebastian. Walk off your pintxos run in the old port. I love love love it.
- a dinner at Olhabidea, preceded by apéro in the garden.

In San Sebastian, we never leave the old town. We prefer a pintxos crawl instead of a 3-hour-long starre meal. Our favorite pintxos bars - also favorites of Anthony Bourdain's, as he kept coming in behind us, - are Astelena, Cuchara San Telmo and Xeruko. We like to share 4 little plates between us, then go on to another bar and repeat, constituting our itinerant tasting menu.
Astelena is on a beautiful square. Point to the raw seafood, then go out and choose a table. The seafood will be cooked and brought to you. In these places, esp on game days, the vibes are intense.

******************
Thank you David, Mark, Dennis and Parigi! Very helpful as we sift through information and think about some plans.

Any thoughts on weather, particularly along the coast? We are thinking of either mid May into early June; or the last three weeks of October.

Hi again:

Amy, we stayed at Casa Rural La Molina Etxea in Samaniego (just a couple of miles from Laguardia) and we enjoyed our stay there. Samaniego is a tiny town with not too much in it, so we were frequently in Laguardia or elsewhere for meals. The upside of staying there was that we were able to walk to Bodegas Baigorri, one of the wineries that we enjoyed the most - another fantastic piece of architecture with a great tour and wonderful wine - so I'd recommend you put that one on your list, in addition to Marques de Riscal and Ysios. The tour at Marques de Riscal was great. Ysios is just an incredible building (and the wine is also excellent).

San Vincente has a couple of good restaurants (can't remember the names right now), but it's worth a stop. So is La Bastida. We didn't spend any time in Haro, but we did tool around one afternoon in Logrono and I liked the vibe there.

I agree with Mark's and Dennis's advice. We also very much enjoyed the wine museum Vivanco in Briones.

As far as when to go, we were there in July. Up on the coast in Bilbao and San Sebastian, there was some rain, and some beautiful summer weather. Rioja was hot and dry - very different micro-climate than the coast. I've heard that it just rains a lot, a lot, a lot on the coast. So if you went in May or October, you'd likely have rain. But inland in Rioja, it's different and I bet either of those months would be beautiful.

Hope this helps! XO
 
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So, we have decided to do the trip over three weeks, (we may stretch it out another week, depending on some family responsibilities) beginning the third week of May. Here's a preliminary outline, and I'd welcome your thoughts:

Fly Boston-Madrid (using ff miles, nonstop, hooray!) arriving early morning. Train that day to Zaragoza (@2 hours). Why? I've always wanted to go there for the architecture and the Museums.
Spend 3-4 full days in Zaragoza, prefer an apartment.

Pick up rental car, drive up to La Rioja (@2 hours). Perhaps stay in apartment in Logrono. Perhaps 4-5 days there to visit wineries, towns, churches, etc. (I have an interest in Romanesque churches, and have found that it can take a day or so of phone calls to get someone to unlock doors. We often luck into someone who is thrilled someone takes an interest)

Drive up to the Pays Basque, (2..5 hours) Rent a house perhaps in the Sare area for 10 days to explore the area, take our time. Seaside and mountain towns, sites, churches, etc.

Drive to San Sebastian, return the car. Spend 3-4 days in San Sebastian. Fly home from Bilbao (change planes in Madrid)
 
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Lol Dennis, that was exactly what I was thinking! Thanks for the link. An alternative to the Zaragoza stay would be a few days in the Zamora area, another area good for Romanesque hunting.
 
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Hi again, Amy. Sounds like a lovely trip. As far as churches, we very much enjoyed Yuso and Suso - check them out: http://www.monasteriodesanmillan.com/ The tiny Suso, up the hill from the large monastery Yuso, is very cool. And they're in a gorgeous setting. Not too far from Haro - a bit further from Logrono, but not too bad.
 
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Oh, Amy, I'm sorry to hear that. We also have to cut our travel time these days. But, dreaming and planning are such an enjoyable part of the process!

We're heading back to Pays Basque as well. Like Dennis, the rain usually follows us as it did two years ago. Oh, well! We will stay in Sare again in July, at Nancy's recommended gite that is incredible (Madame is aging and I don't think it will be available much longer).

We will visit San Sebastián again, but would like to stay overnight instead of just day-tripping. Does anyone have a suggestion for a small, intimate place to stay right in the city? We're easy to please and enjoy interacting with owners and other travelers. Thanks in advance, everyone!

Laura
 

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