We are looking for some help with our 14 day itinerary in Spain for next June. So far, we think North of Madrid. Cantabria, Navarre, Aragon, Barcelona and Valencia?! Does anyone recommend other areas n this region? We tend to like off the beaten path, less crowds, quaint villages, castles, wineries, etc?
Thank you!
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
6401 posts
Are you saying that you are arriving in Spain in 2 weeks and have no reservations? In high season? What types of accommodations would you want? How do you plan on getting around?
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Hi. Sorry I should have clarified. We are going next June and trying to figure out our itinerary. We are renting a car. Maybe a train for a day trip.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7848 posts
If you want off the beaten path then avoid Barcelona and Valencia. In 2022 we spent 3 weeks in mostly La Rioja and Aragón alone. In 2017, for 18 days, we made a loop from Madrid over the Santiago de Compostela, then up to the north coast and over to France. From there we returned to Madrid via Pamplona and Burgos.
Places we stayed and used as bases on the 2022 trip: Chinchón, Alarcón, Teruel, Zaragoza, SOS del Rey Católico, Olite, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, Soria, Sigüenza, Alcalá de Henares, Madrid. Of those, the Paradors in Alarcón and Olite are castles.
For the 2017 trip it was: Zamora, León, Villafranca del Bierzo, Santiago de Compostela, Ribadeo, Santillana del Mar, Hondaribbia, Bayonne, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, Burgos, Tordesillas, Madrid.
If you wanted to head west of Madrid, then consider Extremadura.
We stayed in some places for only a night while others were 2-4 nights stays. From the bases we made day trips and also stopped at places in between our lodging locations. There is no shortage of quant, small towns where there are few tourists. There are plenty of wineries in the Olite, Haro, Logroño area. We did wine tastings in Olite on a day no driving was involved.
Posted by
Eastern Iowa, USA
8731 posts
Probably too many stops already. Trains and transport through that region is good, but not always high speed trains. Try to narrow down some actual towns, I get the "off the beaten path" vibe, but figure those places take a day to get there, a day from there, then needing a couple days there to appreciate.
Not off the beaten path, but in those regions, you could do Bilbao, Donastia San Sebastian, Zaragoza, and Barcelona, and little else, and that does not include Madrid. Yes there are smaller towns, but then you will be skipping the big hitters.