Spain Vacations

As an Anglo-Spanish company, we have been inextricably linked to Spain since our beginnings in the 1990s. Two of our three co-founders are from northern Spain, though one of them is resolutely Basque if you ask him. The other was a tour guide through the south and to Madrid for many years. So our roots lie firmly anchored in Spanish soil.

Over the years our Spanish vacations have been widely praised in the media, from the BBC's flagship travel show in the early 2000s to more recent features for The Times, The Telegraph, the FT and Conde Nast Traveller. Recently we were awarded a medal for for "The most eco-friendly tour operator in Spain" by Wanderlust.

In recognition of these achievements and of our love for Spain, in 2023 Pura Aventura had the honour of being handselected by TourSpain - the UK's official Spanish tourist board - to form a partnership based around promoting sustainable travel in the UK.

All of which is a long-winded way of saying that we know what we're doing! You're in good hands here...

The trips you see before you bear the fruits our of 25 years' experience of travelling to or living in Spain, and our simple commitment to sharing the places we love. The results are itineraries you simply cannot find elsewhere. You can put the guidebooks away and instead let us do all the thinking and all the logistics.

Our Spain vacations are private, ideal for couples, or small groups of friends or family. The prices you see here are based on two people travelling together and sharing a room, except the family adventures which are based on four sharing two rooms. The prices will be lower for small private groups of say 4-8 people, but higher for solo travellers.

The trips are built around mainly private tours, unless a shared tour offers a better experience or value for money.

Typically, spring and autumn give you the best chance of good weather, plenty of daylight hours for walking and exploring, many seasonal wildlife and natural highlights, and fewer visitors to share it all with. Anywhere we could take you in Spain will be at its sparkling best either side of the summer.
 

Spain’s sheer size and geographical variations mean that there are a few great opportunities to consider outside of these months though...

For example, during the height of summer it’s simply too hot inland in Andalucía for us to feel good about taking you there. But you could very well have an enjoyable and comfortable trip based on the coast, with activities aplenty far away from the resorts and the crowds.

Up in the north, in the Pyrenees mountains, or along the unspoilt northern coast, temperatures are much more moderate and so summer can absolutely be a great time to be there.
 

Winter – Spain's premier winter walking destination is the Canary Islands, of which La Gomera and Tenerife offer the best climate and scenery. As the olive harvest begins and the cities become quieter, November and December can be a lovely time for a trip to Andalucía, particularly the central regions around Málaga, Granada and Córdoba.

We also love visiting Barcelona in the winter months. You can get consecutive days of blue skies, comfortable temperatures and some lovely late afternoon light at this time of the year. The city draws breath and feels quieter, not exactly quiet but certainly calmer.

In the first instance, you can use the filters above to help narrow down your options from our wide range of Spain vacations. If you want more detail, please look in the FAQs of any particular trip. But if it's easier to chat over the phone or by email, we’ll gladly help with that, of course. Just get in touch and we'll advise.

Although it varies from trip to trip, the hotels you will stay at tend more towards the premium end of the scale. That's not to say they're fancy for the sake of being fancy, but rather we know you'll be very comfortable and very well looked after.

In the countryside, you should expect small rural guesthouses, with a warm welcome, characterful and comfortable rooms and often a delicious homecooked meal made with local ingredients. Whether it's the food, the hosts or the location, there is something memorable at each, all offering a great sense of place. We even throw in the odd swimming pool from time-to-time.

In the cities, the boutique hotels we use are all central, usually within a short walk of a well-connected Metro stop and close to good restaurants. We look for quiet and comfy rooms, good service and a bit of personality. We like some luxury touches, but not necessarily luxury for the sake of luxury.

No, your hosts speak English perfectly well. In busier areas of the main tourist places like San Sebastián, English will be widely spoken. In smaller restaurants and in villages and the countryside, it is spoken infrequently but don't sweat it, you'll get along just fine.

If you do have a bit of Spanish, then our trips offer a great chance to use it. People usually light up when you speak the lingo, even if you trip over a word or two. A simple "buenos días" or "muchas gracias" goes a long way.

Our walking vacations are, by their nature, considered active. But they're not expedition-active. We pride ourselves on making our trips enjoyable for all and take great care to vary the walking difficulty over the week, build in rest days based around cultural discovery or food/wine and giving you options to shorten or even skip out walks where necessary.

Our Signature Drive trips are based on active discovery. In reality, they can be as active, relaxed or cultural as you like. Usually a mix of all three is what most people aim at. We include some guided experiences and then provide notes for self-guided walks, sightseeing ideas and dining tips for you to make the trips your own. So really it's down to you how much, or little, you want to do.

Wherever we include a day of guided hiking, you simply discuss your options with your guide before setting off. There are usually ways to dial things up or down, depending on how you are feeling.

In the cities, you could very well spend all day walking and exploring. We've easily racked up 30,000 steps in a day in somewhere like Barcelona. But again, the idea is to pitch things at your own level. You can be active one day, and chilled the next. You can go for a walk in the morning, then sit yourself down in a shady plaza for a couple of hours in the afternoon. There are lots of ways you can set the course using our guidance and information.

We’d recommend at least a week for any trip to Spain, using that time to focus on one region to really immerse yourself in its culture, landscapes and cuisines. At the other end of the scale, there’s plenty to pack out a month-long driving vacation, or even longer if you have time on your side.

One-week Spain itinerary ideas

Most of our walking trips, city breaks and Signature Drives fit perfectly here. By focusing your time in one area and by going at a slower pace, you can truly embed yourself into the rural landscapes, local communities and historic richness of a place, even on a relatively short trip.

Two-week Spain itinerary ideas
 

With more time to play with, you could expand your horizons to explore a particular region or two more deeply, usually with the aid of a hire vehicle.

Andalucía, Catalonia, the Basque Country and the Spanish Pyrenees are all ideal - their size, variety and cultural richness make for wonderful road trips. It's also enough time to cross between southern Spain and Portugal on a relaxed road trip.

If you're looking for a longer walking-based trip, keep in mind that all of our walking vacations can also be extended with time to explore further by car, or even combined into one two-week walking vacation. 

Three-week Spain itinerary ideas
 

Now we’re really talking. Many of our longer driving vacations hit the three-week mark squarely on the nose. 

 

Andalucía can be thoroughly explored, walked, tasted and soaked up on this Signature Drive trip. The entire Pyrenees range can be traversed on a truly epic driving trip from the Basque Country to Catalonia, one of Spain’s great drives in our opinion. Or you can take a road even less followed and make your way west from fishing village to pilgrim path, bustling market to sunny vineyard, on a wonderfully textured drive along Spain’s unspoilt northern coast.

Again, lots of options. Please do give us a call if you have questions or just want to chat through the sorts of things you love doing and would hope to enjoy on a trip through Spain. Putting that into a bespoke journey with you is what we do best.

Four-week Spain itinerary ideas

Given everything we know and love about Spain, there are endless ways we could tie together the bits that most excite you into a trip of a month or more. You can take two weeks from Andalucía and pair them with the best of Catalonia. You could cross the Pyrenees and extend your travels across northern Spain. You could, if you have the time, fill up to three months or more with a once-in-a-lifetime adventure around Spain. The best thing to do is simply get in touch with your 'demands' and we'll see what we can do with them. We'd love to host you in our beloved Spain.

Spain is a great place to take the children, and we’re not talking Costas and all-inclusives here. We’re talking about brilliantly immersive activities you can all do together, laughing and giggling and getting your feet wet. We’re talking about picnics on a mountaintop, looking out over rolling pastures, the gentle clang of a cowbell drifting in and out of earshot. We’re talking about lovely family-run guesthouses and inns where you can practice a few words of Spanish with your hosts and try the local homecooked food on a terrace with a view.
 

If that sounds like your sort of trip, and it really is only the briefest of sketches, then we’d recommend taking a look at some of our trips. For us, the absolute best places for a family vacation are in the north – the Pyrenees mountains and the Basque Coast.

That’s not to say that you couldn’t have a great time down on the Andalucían coast even in the height of summer, but for the balance of good weather, great activities and beautiful landscapes, the north is ideal. Explore our Spain family vacations.

You can either use our enquiry form, or e-mail us at [email protected].
 

If you'd rather chat through the best options for your trip, simply call on +44 1273 676712.

One of our Spain specialists will help to create your perfect vacation.

Our itineraries have all been carefully selected, lovingly planned, and personally tested by our team to ensure that everything is just right.

However, you may have a few extra days to play with and particular places you want to spend some time, so we're able to tweak and tailor things to suit your dates, durations, and specific needs.

Contact us and one of our experts will be happy to help plan your vacation.

We're only an email away on [email protected] if you have any queries.

Or call us on +44 1273 676712 if you'd prefer to chat through.