Looks like it’s been a view years since this topic has been broached…
My wife and I are visiting La Rioja for a few days in October as part of our 20th Anniversary tour of Spain and I’m interested in any recommendations for winery tours, hotels, restaurants, and other sights in the region.
Thanks in advance!
I cannot make any recommendations but I am interested in the responses as we hope to visit Spain again in the next few years.
My wife and I really enjoyed our visit to La Rioja a little over a year ago, following a few days of great eating in San Sebastian. We stayed at Marques de Riscal, not cheap but a really nice hotel (albeit with kind of funky rooms). You can stop in a lot of places just to taste but we made a number of appointments and are very glad we did. We had very nice tours at Muga, La Rioja Alta, Lopez de Heredia and CVNE and an improvised no appointment tour at Roda. We stopped in at a lot of other places just to taste but the scheduled visits were much nicer. We did the tour at Marques de Riscal just because we were staying there but otherwise I wouldn’t recommend it. The restaurant at Marques de Riscal is Michelin starred and priced accordingly but was excellent. For more low key and affordable, consider Beethoven II in Haro (we ended up there twice).
+1 on Riscal. My daughter and I had a great visit at Contador.
Haro is a great place to stay – nice town, centrally located, and several wineries located right on the town’s edge for easy access. Add in some great restaurants and walkability and I found it a pleasure…
I would stay in Logroño near the town center, the narrow streets are lined with tapas bars, full of people at night, eating, shopping, or enjoying outdoor concerts. Haro is only half a hour away, so you can easily visit all the Rioja wineries. Haro is a very cute town but it gets very quiet at night.
Well, not always… One of my favorite memories from last trip to Rioja was sitting outside along the main square in Haro. Way to many glasses of Vina Gravonia (on glass pour in the tapas bar at ~ $4 euros), along with way too many plates of meats and cheeses. There was a DJ playing music in the square, and it seemed as if the whole town was out there dancing. Kids, adults, senior citizens - folks of all ages.
Then, about 1:00 in the morning, it got a little strange - in a good way. The DJ started the next song, and it sounded vaguely familiar. As more of the locals starting heading back out to dance - and I they were getting into line dancing formation - I finally realized what the song was. It was the old Billy Ray Cyrus hit, “Achy Breaky Heart”. My wife and I both just busted out laughing – a very surreal moment. And, I swear to god, it’s a true story.
Once you’re in Rioja, you’re not that far from San Sebastian. Would recommend you really try to spend a couple days there as part of your trip. What a great city! (just be prepared to gain about 10 pounds…)
Michael
Would recommend Hotel Los Agustinos in Haro. In town and within walking distance to most of the wineries in Haro. Riscal is nice to visit, I’m sure the hotel is nice but it’s a bit in the middle of nowhere.
Would also recommend Dinastia Vivanco, not so much for the wine the but the wine museum.
If you’re looking to do a tour during your visit I recommend one of two local guides:
Love Rioja (David), Love Rioja :: Tours, wine and life style
Taste Rioja (Jenny), http://www.tasterioja.es
Last summer we based ourselves in Legrono and took advantage of all the pincho (Basque version of tapas) bars located there in the evenings.
My wife and I were there Fall 2014. We stayed in Logroño and it was very easy to navigate from there to all of the wineries we visited. Calle Laurel is the heart of the tapas crawl area and there are also several good restaurants in town. As far as the wineries we visited, the best visit (and one of the best among all regions we have been to) was VIÑEDOS SIERRA CANTABRIA/VIÑEDOS DE PÁGANOS. In addition to touring the wineries and vineyards, we were treated to a lunch of typical regional fare and a selection of several of their wines, including a couple from other regions. Other winery visits we enjoyed were Contador, Viña Real (C.V.N.E.), Marqués de Murrieta, Muga, López de Heredia and Remirez de Ganuza. We followed up our Logroño stay with a few days each in San Sebastián and Bilbao. San Sebastián is a real foodies town, both for pintxos and sit-down restaurants. Overall, a great trip.
Thanks so much for the recommendations…now to start booking!
Ive said this before, but email Contador and taste there, or go to their tasting room … go to La III Estación, their winebar, where you can taste and buy all of their wines. It is placed in San Vicente de la Sonsierra, in the Main Street (C/ El Remedio, 14).
Plenty of good and fun suggestions here, especially the short walking distance winery visits at LRA, LdH, & Muga in the town Haro.
I’ll break out from the pack on Marques de Riscal hotel. It’s not my favorite building and I thought it’s just so over-the-top that didn’t do justice to the ruggedly-handsome and traditional Riojan landscape.
Depending on what the OP wants, during our visits to Rioja, we usually come from the hustle-and-bustle of the very lively nightlife in either San Sebastian or Barcelona, and so we rend to very much favor the small, quiet village hotels between (inclusive of) Laguardia and Haro.
While we’re on the subject…what’s your pick for dining in San Sebastien (bearing in mind that I will be with a pescatarian)? Thanks!
I’m sure you’ll get plenty of responses here, or at least be able to search on positive experiences at, Arzak, Mugaritz and Akelarre. Those are generally what I would call the holy trinity of restaurants in SS. You will have to inquire with them about doing all-pescatarian dishes. it’s been at least 5 years since I’ve gone to those, so others with more recent experiences can hopefully chime in.
I’ll add a couple of spots that very much hit the spot for us during a more recent trip. El Rekondo in SS is a good spot for the regional/traditional Basque cooking. Plus the wine list (bible) is a total blast, and you can go nuts here, especially if you want aged stuff at stunningly reasonable prices.
The other restaurant that I really liked is one that is a 1-hour drive from SS. Asador Etxebarri is a great restaurant that’s located in the hills with awesome views all around. A must for us, again, the next time we make our way to the area. A perfect lunch place if you’re driving to/from SS and La Rioja Alta.
http://asadoretxebarri.com/
For local pintxos in SS, there are plenty within the historic old city center, and you can probably search here for recommendations. But we’ve taken a liking, a lot of liking, to walking 15 minutes to the predominantly locals pintxos restaurants in the lively Gros District. Speaking in English will be a challenge, but you can always point to the many pre-cooked foods on display by the bar.
Bar Senra, Hidalgo 56, and Bar Zeruko are awesome among plenty of awesome places in the neighborhood. There’s a place from the guys at Cuchara San Telmo called Borda Berri that I heard from friends as also very good in the neighborhood.
La Muralla.
I definitely understand this opinion and cannot really disagree with it. I like the building and the hotel, so I’m glad we stayed there, but once is enough. Next visit will probably be somewhere in Haro.
These are really good recommendations. Based on a visit about a year ago, I think Arzak will work with you on a pescatarian menu; just be sure to contact them in advance. It might be tougher with Etxebarri, which is a great place to stop for lunch not only between SS and Rioja, but also between Bilbao and SS.
In 2013 we spent a week in Haro/San Sebastian, a few recommendations below:
Just did a short trip there 2yrs ago.
Stayed one night in Logrono as my wife has extended family there. Great to walk around at night and eat the 1€ pintxos(tapas) from bar to bar. Not very good wine, but great food. Plenty of good wine bars/shops though.
Stayed 2 nights at Marques De Riscal. Gehry designed hotel, funky but very very nice. Excellent Michelin star restaurant. Cashed in all of my spg points for that stay!!
Just drive around one day. Good spot to stay would also be the quaint and beautiful town of Laguardia. Right in the heart of the area and all different ranges of accommodation.