May husband and I will fly into Bilbao 20 October and then fly out of Madrid 29 October.
We will rent a car but not sure what route to take. Do you suggest stay in in the North , perhaps 2 nights Bilbao, two nights San Sebastián then 3 nights in the area , drop the car back to Bilbao and fly to Madrid for 2 nights before we fly home.
Have considered shorter time in San Sebastián then driving to Madrid but concerned about navigating the car drop off in Madrid .
Any suggestions would be helpful
Posted by
Bilbao
947 posts
Your plan sounds good. Plenty to see around both cities (Getxo, Bermeo, Gernika, Es, Elantxobe, Lekeitio, Elorrio, Zumaia, Getaria, Hondarribia, Pasai Donibane...). And Rioja wine country (medieval) on the way back to Madrid.
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7991 posts
There are plenty of places one could visit, but 9 days isn’t that long. Depending on what you want to visit, using public transportation may make the most sense. A vehicle works best when visiting places not well served by public transportation or visiting multiple smaller towns/villages on the same day. If you did rent a vehicle, drop it off at Madrid’s airport that is northeast of the city, so no need to drive in Madrid itself.
There are a number of towns and sights in the area bounded by Logroño, Pamplona and Olite, such as Estella, Puente la Reina, Artajona, the Alto de El Perdón overlook, Monastery of Iranzu. Nearer to Logroño are Laguardia, Briones, and San Vicente de la Sonsierra. Heading south from Bilbao are Burgos, Lerma, and Cartuja de Miraflores.
Posted by
la rioja
714 posts
Hi Kathy, and welcome to the forum.
So I see 7 nights up north. How about 2 nights in Bilbao, 2 nights in San Sebastian, 2 nights in Logroño/La Rioja, and 1 night in Burgos.
If you do not like wine, maybe you could skip Logroño, but for me that time in October is a real sweet spot. The evenings are still longish, the weather is usually agreeable, and the vineyard still have a lot of Fall color.
Instead of going back to Bilbao you could stop in Burgos. It really is a lovely visit. The cathedral and the Cartuja are amazing. You could leave the car in Burgos, and then take a bus to Madrid. People often overlook the bus, but it is very good in Spain.