EAT, DRINK AND SEE FRANK GEHRY:
7-Day Northern Spain (Basque Country) Food & Cultural Tour
May 18-24, with three day optional extension in Paris
Kaixo! Last October I went to Northern Spain. I ate well, I drank well, enjoyed the warmth of the people
and all the sights of Basque Country. Working with a terrific tour operator in Bilbao, I have put together a
package that includes what I saw and experienced, plus an optional three days in Paris to see the latest
Frank Gehry building. This is a tour I know you will find exciting and informative.
Call Brian Stein at Talk of the Town Travel, 416-960-1393 ext 55 to book as there is limited
seating available.
The Basque Country is a lovely region of the north of Spain where you will discover wonderful, varied landscapes,
impressive architecture - including the iconic Guggenheim Museum designed by renowned architect Frank Gehry that tells stories of a colourful past and a vibrant present, a unique culture and an amazing local gastronomy drawing
on traditional foods and incorporating cutting-edge techniques.
With its nearly 40 Michelin starred restaurants, the Basque Country is one of the best fine dining destinations in the
world. From traditional to experimental dishes, it's all here: Sample some of the famous Basque cuisine. It isn't just
about the pintxos. The Basques are famous for having the classiest cuisine in the country.
Among Spanish wine regions, Rioja ranks as the granddaddy of them all. Located in northeast Spain along
the Ebro River, protected to the north by the Cantabrian Mountains and anchored by the city of Logroño,
Rioja boasts centuries of wine-making history. It entered the modern commercial era in the 19th century,
when French wine-makers crossed the Pyrénées and settled in Rioja. Today, Rioja offers an elite mix of
Iberian history, stunning scenery, proprietary cuisine, brilliant wines and a unique meshing of old and new.
TRAVEL ITINERARY
DAY 1 – ARRIVE IN BILBAO, SPAIN
Today is the first day of your unforgettable Basque experience. Arrive at Bilbao airport, the "Paloma" designed by the
Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. (While in Bilbao, you'll want to cross his controversial foot bridge.) Meet your
local guide and transfer to Domine Hotel located in front of Bilboa's main attraction, the Guggenheim Museum
designed by Frank Gehry
Meal: welcoming cocktail and traditional dinner at the Doma Restaurant located on the roof of your hotel, admiring
great views of the Guggenheim by night.
DAY 2 - DISCOVER BILBAO AND GEHRY
Today you will begin to discover the city of Bilbao, its past and its recent history, a great example of renovation and
reinvention. Meet your private guide at the lobby of your hotel and discover the main icons of the city which include
old and new areas and buildings designed by Phillip Starck, Cesar Pelli and a subway by Norman Foster.
A walking tour will provide an overview which you will want to explore in more depth during your free time. Go into
the Guggenheim, passing Jeff Koon's amusing floral sculpture "Puppy" and enjoy a private guided tour of this
amazing building.
The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is a museum of modern and contemporary art, designed by Canadian-American
architect Frank Gehry, and inaugurated on October 18, 1997, by the past King Juan Carlos I of Spain.
One of the most admired works of contemporary architecture, the building has been hailed as a "signal moment in the
architectural culture", because it represents "one of those rare moments when critics, academics, and the general
public were all completely united about something." Using cutting-edge technology, unusual materials, and daring
forms, Gehry created a piece of sculpture that smoothly integrates with its environment and serves as the perfect stage
for some of today's edgiest art.
The building looks like a huge, silvery fish, and visually connects the city with its river. Its skin - shiny, metallic, fish-
like scales - is made of thin titanium tiles, carefully created to give just the desired colour and reflective quality. Go
ahead, push one of the sensuous titanium walls. Yes, it gives under the pressure of your hand. The museum was the
building most frequently named as one of the most important works completed since 1980 in the 2010 World
Architecture Survey among architecture experts.
See the permanent collection, which includes works by Richard Serra and Jenny Holzer, as well as a temporary
installation from the Guggenheim's vast holdings.
Lunch: Savour the best local gastronomy in a guided pintxos tour around the city centre.
Pintxos are the Basque version of tapas. Remainder of the day at leisure – you can return to the Guggenheim Museum
on your own if desired, or take a cruise on the Nervion River out towards the sea.
The emblematic buildings of Bilbao such as the Church of San Nicolás, the patron saint of sailors, as well as Santiago
Cathedral, a beautiful Gothic building dedicated to the patron of the city. Other noteworthy buildings include the
Biblioteca de Bidebarrieta (library), the Teatro Arriaga, the Mercado de la Ribera (the largest covered Market in
Europe) or the Plaza Nueva, built in a neoclassical style. The latter is a happening place for pintxos and locals after a
day's work.
Meal: breakfast & lunch
DAY 3 - BISCAY COAST SANTILLANA
Check-out and meet your private guide at the lobby of your hotel. You are going to realize the connection between
Basques and the sea. Enjoy the tour along the Biscay coast and the Biosphere reserve.
Discover the coastal villages of Bermeo, Mundaka -- well renowned world-wide for the quality of its surf -- and
Gernika, the city Hitler bombed during the Spanish Civil War, at the request of Franco.
Picasso's most famous work is based on this bombardment. It was returned to Spain many years ago from the MoMA
in New York. It can be viewed now in Madrid.
Recommendations for lunch will be provided as there are really good places around the Biosphere reserve to
experience the local food. After lunch relax on your private bus on the way to the historical village of Santillana del
Mar located in the region of Cantabria.
There is an old saying that Santillana del Mar is The Town of Three Lies, since it is neither a Saint (Santo), nor flat
(llana), nor is it by the sea (Mar) as implied by its name. Santillana is, in reality, a pretty little medieval town, which
stuns visitors by its perfectly preserved cobbled streets and stone buildings. It won me over in a matter of minutes,
even if a film company had taken over the town, shooting a movie with Antonio Bandaras. No, we never saw him.
Check in to the Parador of Santillana Mar for the night.
Walking tour of town on your own (A visit to the Capricho in nearby Comillas can be arranged. It is a building by
Antonio Gaudi whose most famous works are found in Barcelona.)
Meal: A traditional dinner at the Parador and breakfast.
DAY 4 - VITORIA-GASTEIZ LAGUARDIA (GREEN CAPTIAL & RIOJA REGION)
Check out of your hotel and drive south towards our next stop.
Walking tour around the green capital, Vitoria-Gastiez, a designation it received in 2012, before enjoying one of the
best Pintxos places in Spain: the Sidrería Sagartoki. You'll have no trouble finding this gastronomic like I did with
my very simple map. The police of the city became my hero, as two of them had us following their car to the
restaurant. That's what I call service.
(In the photo above, those are not a selection of sushi. Those are the artistic pinxtos creations from Sagartoki.)
After lunch, proceed south to the wine region and to the historical village of Laguardia.
Hardly mentioned in the guide books, Laguardia might not seem like a destination city for Spain but there are two
good reasons to visit and spend a night or two within its old walls. Laguardia is a gateway for experiencing the Rioja
wine region and it is a good example of a walled village that has not change much since the 13th century.
Check in to the hotel Parajes housed in the medieval town located in the village of Laguardia.
Meal: breakfast, lunch
DAY 5 - LAGUARDIA
Discover the art of wine from local producers in and around the village of Laguardia. Meet your private guide to go
into the oldest winery at Laguardia.
Wine tasting and lunch: Savour the traditional food while admiring the vineyards. Visit the village of Haro and the
wineries designed by Gehry (Marques de Riscal)
and Santiago Calatrava (Ysios). Calatrva designed the Bilbao Airport and the foot bridge over the Nervion River in
the centre of Bilbao.
Meal: breakfast in Laguardia and lunch at Marqués de Riscal winery.
DAY 6 - PAMPLONA & SAN SEBASTIAN
We're heading north to the most glamorous city in Basque County. Check out of your hotel, meet your private guide
and first head north to Pamplona. Walking tour of the city famous for its annual running of the bulls evokes memories
of Ernest Hemingway, Jake Barnes and Lady Brett. The Sun Also Rises, the novel and film, are set in Pamplona.
Enjoy the walk along the course without the threat of the charging bulls. Proceed to San Sebastian for visit and
shopping.
Discover the most famous Belle Époque town of the north, San Sebastian, once a meeting place of kings and
aristocracy and today a destination for the rich and famous, including the international actors who celebrate each year
at the international film festival.
Stroll into the old town to enjoy its special atmosphere made of history, sea and architecture, savour the great pintxos
offered around the old town.
Returning to Bilbao, discover one of the oldest places in Bilbao for dinner and one of its most revered traditions -- the
Gastronomy Society. You will enjoy the best gastronomies Basque has to offer and also may have the opportunity of
rubbing shoulders with locals.
Overnight at the Silken Domine hotel
Meal: breakfast and dinner
DAY 7 - DEPART FOR TORONTO
Checkout & transfer in your private coach to the Airport.
If your tour ends here, adiós. If you are remaining in Paris for Frank Gehry's latest architectural masterpiece in the
Bois de Boulogne, the Louis Vuitton Foundation, bienvenue!
Meal: breakfast
PARIS OPTION
Anyone who has visited Paris in May has probably wondered why on earth the song is about April,
when May is clearly the nicer month in this beautiful city? There’s no accounting for song lyrics
(something about poetic license), but maybe the song about April will lure more people into visiting
then as opposed to May, when you really want to go. The bottom line is that you should forget
whatever you’ve heard about April. May in Paris is what it’s all about.
May is a great time to meander the city's many beautiful Paris parks and gardens, read or discuss life's
meaning on a cafe terrace (think Jean-Paul Sartre or Simone de Beauvoir), or do some relaxed, entirely
uncommitted window shopping in Paris' best shopping areas. Is there anything more glorious than a
few days in the City of Lights? Oui. Being in Paris in Spring, which is sublime. There's a lot you can
do and see in three days if this is your first time. And for the return visitor, there's always that special
place, that cozy little bistro you discovered the last time you were there.
First order of business: Frank Gehry's much-anticipated Louis Vuitton Foundation (Fondation LouisVuitton), in Paris. The massive museum for contemporary art, the third structure on your trip designed
by Frank Gehry, is a spectacle: The gallery spaces are contained in cement blocks covered by massive,
curved pieces of glass. Set in a public park in the Bois de Boulogne in the western part of the city, the
structure seems to alight on the earth like a spaceship from the future.
INCLUDED IN THIS TOUR (SPAIN ONLY)

Return airfare from Toronto to Spain on Air France via Paris

6 Nights accommodation in 5 star hotels

Meals included where indicated
PARIS ADD-ON

Return airfare from Toronto to Spain to Paris

3 Nights accommodation with breakfast in Paris at 3 star hotel

Transfers
NOT INCLUDED IN THIS TOUR

Transportation (unless otherwise indicated)

Travel, Cancellation or Health insurance
PRICES FOR SPAIN AND PARIS ADD-ON
10-19 passengers
$4615.00
20 or more
$4382.00
Single Supplement
$1345.00
PRICES FOR SPAIN ONLY
10-19 Passengers
$4062.00
20 or more
$3561.00
Single Supplement
$919.00
LAND PRICES ONLY AVAILABLE ON REQUEST