Spain: Basque Country and Rioja Valley

The best beaches in Basque Country are in San Sebastian and Hondarribia, on the northern tip of Spain.

Within a short driving distance from San Sebastian are small coastal port towns like Zumaia and Getaria, with beautiful beaches and fantastic seafood restaurants.

On our roadtrip to the southern part of Basque country, we took the scenic route through Gorbea Natural Park, where we sought the enchanted Otzarreta Forest with its mossy trees.

Rioja is wine country and our local expert guide, Inma from Rioja Wine Trips, helps us make the most of it. Through her patient teaching, we discover the religion of wine (hint: it's a meditation).

San Juan de Gaztelugatxe is a small island that has served several purposes throughout the ages - monastery, fortress, and witch-hunting ground. The 240+ staircase to the top is a mini-pilgrimage, with crosses along the way to remind you to say a prayer or think of a loved one.

Guernica is also infamous for the 1937 bombing by the Nazi German Luftwaffe, acting to support Francisco Franco's efforts to overthrow the Basque government. The small city was almost entirely flattened and perhaps a thousand people were killed. Picasso memorialized this horrific attack in a painting.

Bilbao is home of the Guggenheim museum, designed by famed architect Frank Gehry. The city is also renowned for its Michelin-star restaurants, but $150 for a "tasting" lunch (per person) was hard to rationalize...

Although located within the borders of Spain, the Basque region bordering the Atlantic ocean is a completely unique culture, with its own language and heritage. Getxo is a town located in the Biscay province of Basque on the outskirts of Bilbao and was once the residential neighborhood of the bourgeois industrialists of the early 19th century.