We have news for all tourists (and the odd countryman): ladies & gentlemen: Spain is much more than flamenco, paella and Gaudí! And eye, God (or Buddha, Allah, Ra or Zeus) we witness: we love flamenco, paella and Gaudí. Peeeeero, we must recognize that many of us have a hard time leaving “the usual places” to discover new corners, even if we have them a stone's throw away.
The North of SpainFor example, it is a real wonder: It has spectacular beaches, with landscapes of an intense green, with a very interesting ancient culture, with hundreds of stories and legends, with a gastronomy that falls in love with the first bite and with super hospitable people, although perhaps not from the first but from the second bite.
If you have not yet made plans for this summer or if you are already back with the post-vacation deprecation and your only reason for happiness is to plan an occasional getaway, we will give you a cable: we bring you 6 plans to fully enjoy the north of Spain , since The Rioja untilGalicia, going by Navarre, the Basque Country,Cantabria Y Asturias. Make the backpack that we are going on a trip!
That La Rioja is the wine soul of our country It is no secret and if the world of wine fascinates you, you can not miss an oenological break through this region and enjoy the pleasures of the Bacchus nectar and the beautiful landscapes in which the vineyard is dyed in the most unique shades, especially in the months before the harvest (August, September and October) when it is at its best.
A good plan is to visit Vivanco, that besides being one of the 100 best wineries in the world according to the list “Wine & Spirits Top 100 Wineries of the Year for 2015”, count on the Museum of Wine Culture, is considered as the “Best Wine Museum in the World” by the World Tourism Organization (UN Agency). Its cellar is built in the subsoil so as not to damage the natural environment and thus take advantage of the humidity conditions and the elaboration by gravity of the wine offered by this structure. Within its walls you will understand that wine is much more than a drink, it is an experience
As for its museum, you can take a tour throughout the history of wine - which is over 8,000 years old. You will find original paintings by Sorolla or Miró, engravings and sculptures from Greece and Rome, mosaics, a collection of more than 3,000 corkscrews and a long etcetera. Currently and until May 3, 2017 there is a temporary exhibition that has minutes of the Titanic, incunabula of Gutenberg and the original versionOde to Wine from Neruda, among others.
If you only know the Navarre that goes on television during the San Fermines, we propose a great plan: in addition to spending a couple of days discovering its capital Pamplona, Escape to the Irati Jungle. The second largest beech / fir tree in Europe (it has 17,000 hectares of forest) offers walks that will return some of the connections you have lost with Mother Nature during all these years of urban life and that will allow you to enjoy absolute relaxation. If you do not have much time at your disposal make sure you travel (at least) the Errekaidorra trail, one of the most beautiful routes in the forest.
The best time to visit it is autumn, when it is shown as an immense impressionist painting.
And if you want to extend your day of contact with nature until night, why not stay at sleep in a tree house? We did it in Sri Lanka and it was an amazing experience! In Navarra there are several alternatives, the Basoa Suites are one of them… and they look very good (from € 90). More info on their website: www.basoasuites.com/es/
If you always dreamed of riding the waves and even considered dyeing a strand of blond to look like the typical cool Australian ... luckily you didn't do it in the end, right? We said ... if you always wanted Learn to surf The time has come to take your first wave and Euskadi is the best place to do it. The Sopelana or Zarautz beaches They are excellent options to show your hidden surfing skills.
But don't you know where to start? There are several schools that offer introductory courses. The course usually lasts about 2 or 3 hours and costs about € 30-35. Of course, stay away from hairdressers: the blonde hair is still a horrible idea.
Here you find all the posts we wrote about the Basque Country
Cantabria is a paradise for lovers of nature, hiking (do you sound the Picos de Europa?) And the good life ... Although the proposal we bring you is quite classic, but absolutely unmissable: visit the beautiful town of Santillana de Mar and approach the caves of Altamira.
Santillana de Mar It is one of the most beautiful corners of the whole region, full of cobbled medieval streets and flowers that appear from the balconies of the houses. Do not forget to bring the camera well charged, we assure you that you will not stop taking one photo after another.
Near Santillana is the Altamira Cave, which many know as 'the Sistine Chapel of rock art'. Only a handful of lucky people have the opportunity to visit it (every Friday from 9.30 to 10.30, 5 tickets to the authentic cave are raffled), why not be one of them? If you have not had fortune do not get sad: in the museum of Altamira they recreated an exact copy of the original cave that can be visited without raffle or na, well, you will have to pay € 3 (or visit it for free on Saturdays from 2:00 p.m. or Sundays).
If you are not interested in the cave option, we have another idea: a workshop to learn how to do sobaos pasiegos! Who resists these delicious biscuits? (This was not expected, huh?).
To think of Asturias is to think of the greenest green, of the granaries (the typical elevated constructions to keep the grain and the food away from the humidity of the soil, you would not be thinking of unlucky men, right?), In good food and, of course, in cider. But the plan we propose is different: what do you think about going to give yourself a dip to the beach of Gulpiyuri, one of the most curious of all Spain? The reason is simple: it is a beach that is located on the second line of the sea! Gulpiyuri receives water from the Cantabrian Sea through an underground cave, that's why they call it the "hidden beach."
One tip: if you want to enjoy it for yourself, don't go in high season!
And well, it's true that there is not only cider in Asturias ... but it is well worth taking advantage of the visit to take a cider culin (or 2, or 3, or 10) that accompany a good cachopo or a fabada. Mmm!
The plan that we propose last is to enjoy the wild and beautiful beaches of "Galifornia", and the earthly paradise of the Cies Islands. This treasure of the Ría de Vigo became very famous a few years ago when The Guardian declared the Rhodes Beach as the 'best beach in the world'. An original idea is to travel the 3 islands that form the archipelago (Monte Agudo, O Faro and San Martiño) by sailboat ... the day trip costs about € 50 and will take you to explore the main beaches of this Galician corner of which the world The whole envy us.
* All photos in this article are from Shutterstock
