Vineyards of La Rioja Cycling

Overview

This 7 night holiday offers peaceful cycling along quiet country lanes and tracks in La Rioja, home of the famous La Rioja Spanish wine. Cycle through the heart of this celebrated wine region amongst the vineyards and past wineries and wine museums and where a glass of wine waits at every turn.

You start and finish your holiday in Logrono, on the banks of the river Ebro and the capital of La Rioja region, it is famous for its quaint historic city centre and its pinchos bars – Northern Spains equivalent of tapas bars. On your first cycling day you ride along a section of the pilgrims route, ‘El Camino de Santiago’ before reaching the beautiful town of San Millan de la Cogolla famed for its UNESCO World Heritage twin monasteries, Suso and Yuso.

Explore this wonderful wine growing region passing through medieval walled town of Laguardia, mountain village of Ezcaray, past ancient churches and visiting the regions wine capital of Haro, where there are opportunities aplenty to enjoy the regions most famous export.

Key Information

Activity: Cycling
Activity Level: Easy & Moderate
See our Activity Level Guidelines to check if this holiday is right for you.
Trip Code: C07RI
Ways to Travel: Self-Guided Holidays
Countries: Spain
Terrain: Most of the cycling on this trip is on quiet country lanes.

What's Included

7 nights hotel-to-hotel accommodation in a mix of 3 and 4 star
All breakfasts
Management by your local Headwater-appointed agent
Route directions and maps
High quality bikes
Luggage transfers between hotels
Transfer to the start of the cycling route on day 2

Positive Impact

We donate to our Foundation and rewild 100 square metres for every Exodus traveller. Find out more about how our adventures support nature and people to thrive.

Highlights

Cycle through the heart of the famous Rioja wine region alongside vineyards and along quiet country lanes
Visit the UNESCO World Heritage monasteries of Suso and Yuso
Visit the celebrated vineyards of Vivancos with its wine museum and Marques de Riscal

Itinerary

First Destination: Logrono
Next Destination: Logrono

Meals included:None

Distance:38 km / 23.6 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Distance:33 km / 20.5 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Distance:35 km / 21.7 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Distance:30 km / 18.6 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Distance:36 km / 22.4 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Distance:30 km / 18.6 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Meals included:Breakfast

First Destination: Logrono
Next Destination: Logrono

Arrive in Logrono, the capital of la Rioja, a small but vibrant city with a beautiful historic city centre and excellent restaurants and pinchos/tapas bars. Soak in the atmosphere with a fabulous glass of Rioja.

Stay at the Hotel Gran Via Husa in Logroño , B&B

After a short transfer to the start of your cycle route and the handover of bikes you’ll ride along a section of the long distance pilgrim route El Camino de Santiago before reaching the beautiful town of San Millan de la Cogolla where you will stay for the night. Here, you can find the twin monasteries of Yuso and Suso, both registered as UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Stay at the Hostería Monasterio de San Millán in San Millán de Cogolla with B&B

Distance:38 km / 23.6 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Perhaps take another chance to visit the monasteries in the morning before continuing on an easy cycle through rolling countryside to the historic town of Ezcaray, ful of charm and original architecture and set in the foothills of the impressive Sierra de la Demanda mountains.

Stay at the Hotel Palacio Azcárate in Ezcaray, with B&B

Distance:33 km / 20.5 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Gentle cycling today along a dedicated cycle lane, away from any traffic. Coffee stops in Santo Domingo de la Calzada and Casalareina will reveal two rich historic and artistic towns well worth exploring, before arriving in Haro, the capital of wine production in the Rioja region where you will stay for 2 nights.

Stay at the Hotel los Agustinos in Haro, with B&B

Distance:35 km / 21.7 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

There will be chances to visit wineries in Haro in the morning and evening, but today you can ride a delightful loop amongst vineyards to take in the essence of this rich region, Follow the route to reach the beautiful town of Briones where you can visit the Wine Museum of the Vivancos vineyard and then onto Labastia and back to Haro. Alternatively you could use this day to rest from cycling and visit some of the vineyards that Haro is so famous for.

Stay at the Hotel los Agustinos in Haro, with B&B

Distance:30 km / 18.6 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Today you cycle along the river Ebro amongst the vineyards, to reach the beautiful hilltop town of San Vicente de la Sonsierra, which was built as a 10th century fortress overlooking the Ebro. Then enjoy the quiet country roads taking you through colourful landscapes until you reach the beautifully preserved medieval walled town of Laguardia which is perched on a hill top with commanding views below. Take the opportunity to explore the ancient churches with their baroque paintings.

Stay at the Hotel Posada Real de Migueloa in Laguardia, with B&B

Distance:36 km / 22.4 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Soon after leaving Laguardia, you come to the town of El Ciego, famous for its Marques de Riscal vineyard and its spectacular building designed by architect Frank Gehry. You rejoin the river Ebro on winding country roads which take you back to Logroño.

Stay at the Hotel Gran Via Husa in Logroño , with B&B

Distance:30 km / 18.6 miles
Meals included:Breakfast

Depart Logrono after breakfast or why not treat yourself to an extra night or two to enjoy Logrono or to visit Bilbao and the Guggenheim Museum?

Meals included:Breakfast

Dates & Prices

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Accommodation

C07RI

You stay at carefully picked hotels throughout your Rioja cycling trip. They range from and 18th Century town mansion hotel, to an elegant 4 star historic hotel housed within the Yuso Monastery, a UNESCO World Heratage Site. For your evening meals you can choose to sample the hotel’s specialities or select one of the many fine local restaurants (all payable locally).

Essential Information

As this is a self-guided holiday there is no group and no leader. There may be others on the same departure date as you, but you will not be organised together. The route notes contain a 24-hour emergency assistance telephone number should you need it and in emergencies, our local agent is normally able to dispatch a taxi or pick you up themselves. They may wish to charge for this service.

For those wanting to travel on their own there is a single supplement for the accommodation and where there is only one “solo” traveller on a particular departure there is also a solo traveller supplement.

Your trip starts at the first hotel on the afternoon of day 1.

Our standard flights are as follows – please contact us if you would like to book these.

British Airways Heathrow to Madrid 07:20/10:50 then rail Madrid to Logrono (times TBC) and taxi to hotel, bookable and payable locally, approx 5 mins. Return: Taxi to station, bookable and payable locally, approx 5 mins then rail Logrono to Madrid (times TBC) then British Airways Madrid to Heathrow 18:15/19:40.

Business/club/first class seats are available on request.

Spain

Travellers from the UK, US and EU normally do not need a visa to enter Spain. Please note, visa requirements often change and it is your responsibility to obtain any required visas for this trip. Therefore, we recommend that you check with the nearest embassy or consulate of your chosen destination(s), including any countries you may be transiting or transferring through.

Some local governments provide guidance on what visas their citizens need. To help, we’ve gathered a selection of useful links below.

• Australia: www.smartraveller.gov.au/destinations/europe/spain
• Canada: www.travel.gc.ca/destinations/spain
• United Kingdom: www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/spain/entry-requirements
• USA:  www.travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Spain.html

All breakfasts are included.

There is a good choice of restaurants in the local area for Dinner options.

Half board options available – ask for details when booking.

In April and October expect temperatures in the 5-15°C with high chance of rain showers though it could also be simply partly cloudy and more temperate. Temperatures in May, June and September tend to be about 5°C warmer than April and October. Expect a combination of sun, showers and clouds. July and August are typically sunny and warm (15-25°C). Occasionally in summer there can be hot days so it is always important to make sure you have enough water.

As a certified B Corp, we’re on a mission to improve our social and environmental impact across all our adventures.

We do this through our innovative Thriving Nature, Thriving People plan.

This ‘nature positive’ approach is designed to help nature and communities thrive in harmony through practical solutions, such as reducing carbon and waste on our trips, supporting conservation projects through the Exodus Adventure Travels Foundation, and rewilding 100 square metres for every Exodus traveller.