Where to: After Bilbao, Before Madrid?

Burgos is the logical choice and it deserves a full day and a little more. The cathedral is beautiful and one gets a great view of the town from the Mirador del Castillo. Nearby, and within walking distance (3.5km) if you like to walk, is Cartuja de Miraflores. It’s worth a couple hours. Also nearby (17km) is the Atapuerca archaeological site.

Another possibility is Zaragoza. It is out of the way from where you’re starting and ending, but no further than Salamanca.

Thanks Jaime--Zaragova does look interesting!

Any feedback on 1 night in Vitoria-Gasteiz and 2 nights in Zaragoza? The train connections are very good.

Would you consider coach connections? Much more, and clean, modern, safe and very comfortable buses, in case there´s not a train connection.

I also suggest Zaragoza, located in the shadow of the Pyrenees, Zaragoza was once the seat of the mighty Kingdom of Aragon, whose possessions included southern France, Sicily, and even Greece during the middle ages. More importantly for you it's well connected to both Madrid and Bilbao lol!

These days Zaragoza is a charming city to explore with more than 2,000 years of history including Roman ruins of the city walls, forum, and amphitheater, and the Aljafería; an 11th-century Moorish palace, the most northern Islamic palace in Europe. Throughout Zaragoza you'll find Mudéjar architecture, a unique mix between Moorish and Christian styles and motifs. Zaragoza is also the home to the Nuestra Señora del Pilar Basilica, which has one of the best church exteriors in Spain.

I think that Zaragoza is one of those undiscovered gems that Rick Steves calls "back doors". It reminds me a lot of Barcelona before international mass tourism really took off. Virtually unknown to foreign tourists, who just zoom past it on the highspeed train from Barcelona to Madrid.

I recommend Hotel NH Ciudad de Zaragoza, an incredible location for a very reasonable price, directly overlooking the Pilar Basilica and the old Roman walls, in the old town. Recently renovated and very modern. The best area for tapas in Zaragoza is a neighborhood called El Tubo (https://www.spain.info/es/lugares-interes/barrio-el-tubo/). Another good place to eat is a Gourmet Food Market off the Plaza de España, called Puerta Cinegia Mercado.

2-3 nights should be good for Zaragoza.

I like the idea of Zaragoza if you only want to stay in one additional city. Burgos and Vitoria-Gasteiz are very worthwhile destinations but I think wouldn't take as long to see. (I spent a couple of nights in Burgos and day-tripped to Vitoria-Gasteiz.)

Vitoria-Gasteiz has a large historic district on top of a hill (outdoor escalators assist with most of the climb). They charmingly call it the "medieval almond" because of its shape. There's a playing-card museum I didn't have time to see. The cathedral was under heavy renovation at the time of my 2016 visit; I imagine it's accessible now. There are also a couple of small art museums. In 2016 the same stored-value transit card used in Bilbao worked in Vitoria-Gasteiz, which was nice.

Zaragoza can be blisteringly hot in the summer, so this would be a good opportunity for you to see the city in more pleasant conditions. It might be useful to know the train station is quite some distance from the historic center and is in a food desert. I would not choose to stay again at the otherwise-nice Eurostars hotel located above the train station because the location is so inconvenient. There's lots of bus service into the center from right outside the train station.

Thank you all for the helpful posts!
Carlos--after reading your post we're sold on Zaragova! The hotel and restaurant recommendations are much appreciated!
@MikelBasqueGuide: Tell me a little more about the Coach (Bus?) travel. I did check the website "Rome to Rio " (just informational, we would buy directly from the coach company) Looks like it is only an hour to Vitorio, so a bus would be fine. Is there one company that's better, or just depends of which has the best schedule? Could we wait to buy our tickets from Bilbao to Vitoria-Gasteiz while we are in Bilbao? That would be 2-3 days ahead of travel. Or should I purchase online before then?

Thanks so much for all the great info and advice!

I am currently planning a similar route for my upcoming Spain/Basque Country trip.

Once we land in Madrid, we plan on a quick stop to Avila to see the city walls. Than 2 nights one day Salamanca (most looking forward tot he night life at the Plaza Mayor).

Than a day in Burgos on our way to Haro for 4 nights. We plan on basing ourselves in Haro to exploare La Rioja wine country.

Than Bilbao and staying 4 nights in San Sebastian and 3 nights Biarritz, French Basque Country.

@Nate - one can get a good view of the town (Ávila) and walls from the Cuatro Postes overlook. It’s easy to reach and there’s a large parking lot. You can walk most of the way around the town on its wall. There is a charge for walking the wall. Ávila is about an hour’s drive from the airport while Salamanca is just under three hours from the airport. Other than the walls, there’s little else to see in it.

Hi jaimeelsabio,

thanks, we have 2 children and the walls walk and the view you suggested is the perfect thing to do to break the drive up and stretch our legs on our way to Salamanca.