8 Day Self-Guided Cycling Tour in Spain: Journey to the Center of Rioja
Self-Guided Bike and Wine Tour in Spain
Pirineos PUNTO BIKE is convinced that if Jules Verne had included La Rioja in his visit to Spain in 1878, the history of the great works of universal literature would have been different. If, instead of sailing the Iberian Peninsula with his boat, he had ridden on horseback (in the absence of bicycles), if he had entered the endless vineyards of La Rioja, if he had visited its by then already ancient wineries, and above all; if he had tasted his wines... we do not doubt that his immortal novel would have been titled: Journey to the Center of the Rioja.
Key information
- Trip type: Self-guided
- Lodging: Point to Point
- Terrain: 99% cyclable
- Starts in: Logroño
- Ends in: Logroño
- Total Distance: 187 - 282 kilometers / 116 - 175 miles
Highlights
- Self-guided cycling tour to the Spanish region of La Rioja
- Printed map sketch and route in gpx format for mobile phones or GPS devices
- Telephone assistance for incidents or consultations
- 7 nights accommodation
- Daily breakfast and dinners
- Delightful gastronomic experience in La Rioja
Accommodation
Logroño
The accommodation in Logroño is in the Hotel Gran Vía, the best choice in town if you need to blend lodge and bike. It is a 4-star establishment well sited in the center of the town and strongly involved in a large part of the sports and gastronomic activities linked to Logroño.
Elciego
One of the most relevant lodges of La Rioja punto bike in any of the wine areas is without any doubt the stay at the "the city of wine," that is the hotel / winery of Marques de Riscal in Elciego.
A stunning 21st-century chateau, the only hotel designed by internationally renowned architect Frank Gehry, a true masterpiece where each of the unique 61 guestrooms promises to enchant with exceptional designer touches and enviable views of the countryside, medieval town of Elciego or the striking architecture of the building itself.
This 5-star hotel is La Rioja Punto Bike-selected lodge for Journey to the Center of the Rioja Tour, truly an experience of a lifetime.
Haro
The base in Haro is set in the Eurostars los Agustinos, a hotel bursting with history in the center of the city. Located in a building that was once a convent, military barracks, prison, and hospital, it is the ideal choice to blend lux, lodge, and BIKE.
It is a 4-star establishment perfectly located in the center of the capital of Rioja from which you will have within easy reach of the "tapas" places in the old part of the town and from where in a short walk of 10 minutes you will reach the essential "Barrio de la Estación", one of the largest accumulations of century-old cellars in the world.
Samaniego
Pirineos PUNTO BIKE has not had much doubt in deciding that Palacio de Samaniego is the base in Samaniego. The boutique dreamed by Ariane de Rothschild for the first Edmond de Rothschild heritage hotel abroad is as they point out: the luxury of a hotel in a family home.
This is one of those cases in which the "stars" do not express everything. The exclusivity in a building of these characteristics gives the stay a plus that makes it clearly compete with theoretically higher quality accommodation.
Pirineos PUNTO BIKE won't go on too long talking about the details of the place, since they are sure that it is the appropriate choice. If you have any doubts, just browse for a while on their website.
Program
Journey to the Center of the Rioja full trip schedule for the 6 stages option:
Day 1
- Arrival at Logroño
- Lodge at Hotel Gran Vía (4-star)
- Gastronomic experience at La Galería
Day 2
- Circular route: Iregua Valley - different bike levels and styles
- Lodge at Hotel Gran Vía (4-star)
- Gastronomic experience at Tondeluna
Day 3
- Stage: Logroño - Elciego - different bike levels and styles
- Lodge at Hotel Marqués de Riscal (5-star)
- Gastronomic experience and rest at Marqués De Riscal (1 Michelin star)
Day 4
- Stage: Elciego - Haro - different bike levels and styles
- Lodge at Hotel Los Agustinos 4*
- Gastronomic experience - Experiencia Nublo (1 Michelin Star) or Terete Journey to the Center of the Rioja Experience
Day 5
- Stage: Haro - Samaniego - different bike levels and styles
- Lodge at Hotel Samaniego Luxury Resort (4-star)
- Gastronomic experience Edmond - TIERRA y VINO
Day 6
- Circular route: Rioja Alavesa - different bike levels and styles
- Lodge at Hotel Samaniego Luxury Resort (4-star)
- Gastronomic experience Benjamin - TIERRA y VINO
Day 7
- Stage: Samaniego - Logroño different bike levels and styles
- Lodge at Hotel Gran Vía (4-star)
- Gastronomic Experience La Cocina de Ramón
Day 8
- After breakfast, this is the end of La Rioja Punto Bike services
- Transfer to the airport or any other transport station (if hired)
Standard option 6 stages
- Distance: 282 km
- Unevenness: 3.795 m
Slow option 6 stages
- Distance: 187 km
- Unevenness: 2.315 m
And if you need more kilometers, don't worry, the tour will give you more kilometers.
Stage A: Circular Logroño Iregua Valley
- Distance 53 / 39 km - Unevenness 740 / 280 m
Stage B: Logroño - Elciego
- Distance 35 / 25 km - Unevenness 325 / 260 m
Stage C: Elciego - Haro
- Distance 53 / 32 km - Unevenness 440 / 390 m
Stage D: Haro - Samaniego
- Distance 39 / 25 km - Unevenness 445 / 350 m
Stage E: Circular Samaniego Rioja Alavesa
- Distance 52 / 33 km - Unevenness 1.050 / 630 m
Stage F: Samaniego - Logroño
- Distance 50 / 33 km - Unevenness 795 / 405 m
Cyclability
The route is 99,9% cyclable. With this precision what the tour wants to convey is that at some very specific point, it will be necessary to get off the bike and carry it for a few meters in your hand.
Philosophy
The tour is designed so that the stages can be completed and you still have a large part of the day to enjoy the place where you are. However, if you want more hardness, the tour will give you MORE.
The best time to go
The route can be done any time of the year, as long as there is no snow, something unusual in La Rioja. Spring and Autumn are usually the most pleasant seasons; In summer it can be hot and it is advisable to get up early. Anyway, at the end of autumn, the days are short, but more than enough for the purpose. The vineyards of La Rioja "burn" red in those days, and the experience of immersing yourself in that sea of red vineyards becomes something almost. So if you can afford to choose those dates, there is no question. This is the "star" moment to visit La Rioja.
Orientation
The route must be followed with a GPS device or with the mobile phone app that you are used to using for the same purpose. It is not advisable to try to learn how to use an app on the fly. Pirineos PUNTO BIKE does not provide apps or GPS user manuals. It is up to the users to have this knowledge.
There is no on-site signage.
Provisioning
La Rioja is not a desert. You will find towns with water and other services without too many difficulties.
ALERT!
If you are looking for typical routes in the style of the Camino de Santiago or other similar popular routes, perhaps you are not on the right page. If you insist a lot, maybe we could ... but by default, in La Rioja the tour avoids the BUSY AND WELL-KNOWN PATHS.
Pirineos PUNTO BIKE's specialty is "THE ROUTE" and what that means is that the tracks will take you through secluded and carefully selected places so that the experience is truly "SINGULAR" and "EXCLUSIVE". If you send an inquiry to Pirineos PUNTO BIKE, you'll know what they are talking about.
If you have any doubts, do not hesitate, and send an inquiry to Pirineos PUNTO BIKE.
Location
Food
The package includes 7 breakfasts and 7 dinners in the form of gastronomic experiences.
Gastronomic experiences
Logroño - Tondeluna - La Galería
For the arrival to Logroño, the tour has proposed two different options of "encounter" with the Riojan gastronomy. One of them by Luisa Barrachina and the well-known Riojan chef Francis Paniego (3 Michelin stars) in the TONDELUNA Restaurant, and another one by the chef José Félix Rodríguez in the innovative LA GALERÍA.
TONDELUNA is a modern, informal, and fun place that has prepared a FUENTES del VINO menu to introduce cyclists of the route to some of the secrets of modern Riojan cuisine.
LA GALERÍA is a space with minimalist architecture whose walls periodically house traveling exhibitions of painting artists, filling the space with art and color.
The menu FUENTES del VINO menu consists of a tasting always adapted to the season in which we visit the city, and we leave it in the hands of José Félix Rodríguez, a cook who trained at the Santo Domingo School and then continued to cultivate and develop his art in houses like Arzak, Martín Berasategui, Koldo Royo, Aitor Basabe and Ferrán Adriá.
Elciego - Marqués De Riscal
One of the most relevant gastronomic experiences of all the stages of La Rioja Punto Bike is without any doubt the afternoon / night that you spend in the "The City of Wine," the winery of MARQUES de RISCAL in Elciego.
Punto Bike could talk about the spectacularity of this building built in the purest Guggenheim style, but it would not be fair since there is much more.
The complex encompasses the oldest winery in Rioja alongside the spectacular building designed by internationally renowned architect Frank O. Gehry and 3 different restaurants. We have chosen the one awarded with the prestigious Michelin Guide award with 1 Star and 2 Suns by the Repsol Guide.
That is, Punto Bike has decided that for the gastronomic experiences you PUT YOURSELF IN EXPERT's HANDS and do not think too much.
ife at Marqués de Riscal turns around food and wine. From its inception in 2006, the hotel´s gastronomic personality has been dominated by chef Francis Paniego, whose admired restaurant "El Portal del Echaurren" in nearby Ezcaray has long been a leading light in the culinary world of La Rioja.
The chef brings to the hotel both his peerless command of traditional riojano cooking and the contemporary flair that has won him two Michelin stars in Ezcaray and one star here at Elciego.
So this is what awaits you after the visit to the winery, which you will do in the last tour of visits, the one before dinner.
Haro - Terete and / or Casa Nublo
The two "gastronomic sanctuaries" that Punto Bike has chosen in the capital of Rioja are the centenary and traditional Restaurant-Cave Terete and the maximum exponent of modern gastronomy in the city, Casa Nublo.
If your trip includes just one night in Haro, you must decide which of the two gastronomic experiences you want to enjoy.
In 1877 Alberto Andrés Alonso inaugurated Casa Terete; a roasting oven, restaurant, butcher shop, and wine shop. Currently, a century and a half later, the fifth and sixth generations of the Terete keep the roots of the family alive while preserving the same art and dedication.
Your trip to Casa Terete begins by immersing ourselves in its cave-winery-grote called Calao - among other things, this will let you know that you are in the Grotes Quarter.
The winery, founded at the end of the 19th century next to the lamb roaster, is the ideal complement for this high-level Gastronomy Experience.
The underground cellars where the winery is located make them the perfect place to age the wine in optimum conditions.
The wine pairing for the tour is in the hands of the Casa Terete's staff. They will adapt their choice of the glasses to the one you make for your dishes.
The suckling lamb from La Rioja roasted slowly in the old wood-fired oven, with no other secret than good young and tender meat, is without a doubt the specialty of the house, but the experience goes further since you are in one of the "Sanctuaries" of Riojan gastronomy.
Haro - Casa Nublo
It is a project located in a palatial house from the 16th century and led by chefs Miguel Caño, Llorenç Sagarra, Caio Barcellos, and Dani Lasa. A culinary proposal in which the fire, the grill, the oven, and the firewood are the protagonists. Ancestral cuisine with today's techniques.
The following meals are included:
- Breakfast
- Dinner
The following dietary requirement(s) are served and/or catered for:
- Regular (typically includes meat and fish)
What's included
- 7 nights accommodation with breakfast
- 7 dinners in the format of a gastronomic experience
- Transport of luggage between hotels (1 bag or package per person)
- Travel and sport insurance
- Tracks of the route in gpx format for mobile phones or gps devices (one per stage, let Pirineos PUNTO BIKE know if you prefer them in another format)
- Explanatory printed map-sketch of the different route options for each stage
- Telephone assistance for incidents or consultations during the days of the contracted activity
- Presentation of the route and delivery of information in hand on the day of the arrival of the group to the hotel or the morning of the next day
What's not included
- Beers or other consumptions outside the proposed menus in the dinners or during the stay in hotels
- Meals in restaurants at the time of noon, unless it has been agreed previously to replace dinner with meals
- Any kind of sports material, helmets, shoes, etc.
- Mechanical assistance during the activity for self-guided pack (if possible, Pirineos PUNTO BIKE will try to help you in case of a breakdown, but in many situations, this help can be very limited due to lack of specific spare parts or other circumstances. The cost of the service if it can be done is 18 EUR per hour + 0.40 EUR per kilometer)
- Anything not expressly indicated in the offer
- Airport / station pick-up (Pirineos PUNTO BIKE will put you in contact with the transfer companies that provide these services. They do not include its cost in the proposal)
- Bicycle rental (Pirineos PUNTO BIKE will put you in touch with a rental service in the nearest place to the route start point)
- Airfare
How to get there
Recommended Airports
Bilbao Airport
100 km
Transfer not provided
Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport
240 km
Transfer not provided
Vitoria Airport
51 km
Transfer not provided
Zaragoza Airport
145 km
Transfer not provided
Logroño–Agoncillo Airport
10 km
Transfer not provided
Arrival by airplane
The nearest airport is Logroño–Agoncillo Airport (RJL). However, only a few flights fly here from Europe. The most frequented flights arrive at Bilbao Airport (BIO). Other options include Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD), Vitoria Airport (VIT), and Zaragoza Airport (ZAZ). For more information on how to reach the first accommodation from the airport, ask Pirineos PUNTO BIKE. They can provide airport transfer service at an extra cost.
Cancellation Policy
- A reservation requires a deposit of 20% of the total price.
- The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
- The rest of the payment should be paid 30 days before arrival.
For this organizer you can guarantee your booking through Tripaneer.com. All major credit cards supported.