Day 1: Arrive Bilbao
Arrive at Bilbao Airport where you’ll be collected and transferred to your centrally located 3-star hotel. The remainder of the day is yours to begin exploring. Stroll along the Nervion River to see the shimmering titanium curves of the Guggenheim Museum, cross the Zubizuri Bridge (Santiago Calatrava’s white arched pedestrian bridge), or wander into the Casco Viejo — the Old Quarter’s Siete Calles (seven streets dating to the 1400s) are lined with pintxos bars, boutique shops, and the 14th-century Bilbao Cathedral. Evening briefing with your bilingual tour leader about the exciting days ahead. Overnight Bilbao.
Day 2: Bilbao Estuary, Gaztelugatxe, Bermeo, Gernika & City Tour
A packed day exploring the best of Bizkaia province. Morning: guided exploration of the Bilbao Estuary, the waterway that transformed the city from an industrial port into a cultural capital. View the magnificent Bizkaia Bridge — a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the world’s oldest transporter bridge (1893), still ferrying passengers and vehicles across the Nervion in its suspended gondola. Then, into the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve, a protected coastal paradise of wetlands, oak forests, and dramatic cliffs. Your guide points out San Juan de Gaztelugatxe from the best viewpoint — the 10th-century hermitage perched on a rocky islet, connected by a winding stone bridge of 241 steps, famously featured as Dragonstone in Game of Thrones Season 7. Continue to Bermeo, the Basque Country’s most important fishing port, where colorful houses cascade down to the harbour. Here, enjoy a guided pintxos tasting — sampling the bite-sized masterpieces that define Basque cuisine, paired with a glass of txakoli. Afternoon: Gernika, the historic town immortalized by Picasso’s anti-war masterpiece. Visit the Casa de Juntas (Assembly House), where Basque leaders have gathered since the Middle Ages, and stand beneath the sacred Tree of Gernika — the living symbol of Basque liberties. Return to Bilbao for a guided walking tour: the Casco Viejo’s medieval lanes, the elegant 19th-century Ensanche district, and the vibrant Plaza Nueva with its 64 arches. Overnight Bilbao.
Day 3: French Basque Coast — Biarritz, Saint-Jean-de-Luz & San Sebastian
Today you cross the border into France to explore the elegant French Basque coast. Morning in Biarritz, the glamorous resort that became the summer playground of European royalty in the 19th century. Walk along the Grande Plage, admire the belle epoque Hotel du Palais (Napoleon III’s former summer palace), and view the iconic Rocher de la Vierge pierced by Napoleon’s iron bridge. Continue to Saint-Jean-de-Luz, a charming fishing port with a rich history — Louis XIV married the Spanish Infanta Maria Theresa here in 1660 at the Church of St. John the Baptist (the door was famously bricked up after the ceremony so no one else would pass through it). Taste the town’s typical sweet — the gateau basque, a buttery pastry filled with cream or black cherry jam. Afternoon: arrive in San Sebastian, one of the most beautiful urban settings in Europe. A guided walking tour introduces the elegant belle epoque buildings, the crescent-shaped La Concha Beach, and the Parte Vieja. Ascend Mount Igueldo by its vintage funicular for the definitive view — the scalloped bay, Santa Clara Island, and the Basque coastline curving toward France. Check into your hotel. Evening free to explore San Sebastian’s legendary pintxos scene. Overnight San Sebastian.
Day 4: Rioja Alavesa — Laguardia Wine Tasting & Vitoria Discovery
Morning: journey south into Rioja Alavesa, the Basque Country’s premier wine region at the foot of the Sierra de Cantabria. Explore Laguardia, a perfectly preserved medieval hilltop village founded in the 10th century. Enter through fortified gates, wander the narrow cobblestone streets, and discover a town whose name means ‘the guard’ — for centuries, this was a strategic defensive stronghold of the Kingdom of Navarre. The Church of Santa Maria de los Reyes features an extraordinary polychrome Gothic portico, and beneath the streets, a labyrinth of over 300 underground wine caves burrows through the rock. Visit a traditional bodega for a guided tour and wine tasting. Descend into the calados — centuries-old cellars carved into the rock where the temperature stays constant year-round — and learn about Rioja’s classification system (Crianza, Reserva, Gran Reserva) before tasting the region’s signature Tempranillo-based wines. Free time in Laguardia for lunch (perhaps the famous lamb chops grilled over vine clippings). Afternoon: continue to Vitoria-Gasteiz, the political capital of the Basque Country. Enjoy a panoramic tour including the beautifully preserved medieval old town — one of Europe’s best-preserved historic centers — perched on its almond-shaped hill. Walk the narrow streets, visit the Cathedral of Santa Maria (an extraordinary ‘open for restoration’ project where visitors observe archaeology and restoration in progress), and stop at an artisan chocolatier to taste typical Basque sweets — vasquitos (almond paste with chocolate) and neskitas (hazelnut praline). Return to Bilbao. Overnight Bilbao.
Day 5: Depart Bilbao
After breakfast, free time in Bilbao depending on your departure schedule — perhaps a visit to the Guggenheim Museum (not included but easily booked), a walk through the Mercado de la Ribera (Europe’s largest covered market), or last-minute souvenir shopping. Transfer to Bilbao Airport or train station for your onward journey. Depart with vivid memories of the Basque Country — a land where dramatic coastlines meet medieval villages, where world-class wine flows from ancient cellars, and where the pintxos bars never close.
