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September Plan for Madrid & Northern Spain

Posted by (SFO) on

Hi All,
Traveling to Madrid/Northern Spain 9/3-9/24/24-can you help?
Seeking comfortable, clean, courteous and well situated to museums/galleries/restaurants hotels (amenities-YES; minimum 3 star) in:
-Madrid
-Bilbao
-San Sebastian

Still planning, but hope to get into the Pyrenees: all suggestions on charming villages, best routes, and accommodations very welcome. As well as any current cautions we should be aware of.

Itinerary Suggestions & Transportation: MADRID-Bilbao: train or car rental? If we don't rent in Madrid will definitely need a rental from Bilbao.
Plan on driving the coast then into the Pyrenees, could include France. Then returning.

Your suggestions on reputable car rental companies. We had very discouraging experience with SIXT. How are the Hertz & Avis in Spain?

Thank you!

Posted by
1 posts

Hi Josie,
This is similar to the itinerary I will be taking in Sept also.
My husband and I looked into car rental from Madrid to Basque region. We used our Costco Travel account, the prices were very reasonable, they even had options for electric cars which was nice since gas is so pricey in Spain. We decided to stop in Burgos on the way to San Sebastián so we will be doing train, but might rent a car once we get to Basque region, still trying to figure out the logistics.

I will keep an eye on your post because I am also interested in recommendations in the same regions.

Happy travels!

Posted by
24 posts

Add Europcar to your short list. Despite a similar-looking logo, they're not affiliated with Enterprise but rather Advantage (and/or Fox?). Speaking of northern Spain, look into visiting Santander while you're there. Hope this helps, and enjoy your trip!

Posted by
97 posts

Thank you so much! Very much appreciate the tip on rental cars....and joining with you to plan a great trip! Will be in touch...Patricia

Posted by
6616 posts

If you decide to rent a car and plan on driving in rural remote locations, I’d stay away from an all electric vehicle. Once away from the cities there is a lot of open land with no charging stations.

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