Examples of organised trips in the Basque Country in 2002-2019
4-days tour for a Swizz travel agency.
- Day 1: Saint Jean de Luz – Bayonne – Biarritz (evening).
- Day 2: La Rhune – Arcangues.
- Day 3: Saint Jean Pied de Port – Espelette.
- Day 4: Saint Sebastian – Jaizkibel.
Half-day excursion for a Holiday centre – Special feature: end-of-year celebrations.
- Guided tour of Bayonne, the historic chocolate capital. Architecture, cloister, cathedral, chocolate.
- Guided panoramic visit of Biarritz with a stop at the lighthouse and the rock of the Virgin Mary.
- Biarritz in light, sound and Christmas lights show.
2-DAY VISIT BY PUBLIC TRANSPORT – THEME: GASTRONOMY.
It was the organization of a program for 3 people on December 21 and 22, individually and without a car.
- Day 1 – morning: Tasting visit to the market in the city centre and the market in the Biarritz halls.
- Day 1 – afternoon: walk on the waterfront, from the lighthouse to the rock of the Virgin Mary, with discovery of the old private mansions and the Russian Orthodox Church.
- Day 1 – evening: Biarritz en lumière, free sound and Christmas lights show. Night in Biarritz.
- Day 2 – morning: Departure by bus to Saint Jean de Luz. Visit of the port, Place Louis XIV, waterfront, church where Louis XIV was married. Eventually, visit the church of Ciboure. Lunch of local specialities: chipirons (squid) à la Luzienne, ttoro (a kind of fish soup). Purchase of macaroons from Maison Adam, a specialty made for the wedding of Louis XIV, Place Louis XIV (recipe kept partly secret since 1660).
- Day 2 – afternoon: Departure by bus to Bayonne, the historic chocolate capital – Grand Bayonne, Petit Bayonne, Cathedral, cloister, free tasting visit to the ham salting workshop in Bayonne Ibaïalde.
3-day school trip – theme: Similarities between the Northern and Southern Basque Country.
For this school trip for 60 French children in a 3rd grade Spanish class, I had to adapt to a precise theme and a tight timing. The group made its trip on the 1st day and the return on the 3rd day. So we had a full day and two half-days.
- Day 1 – Arrival 2:45 pm: Division of the group into 2. Group 1: visit of the chocolate workshop. Group 2: Guided tour of Bayonne. Then inversion. Main theme: products from South America, religious diversity in Bayonne.
- Day 2: Guided tour of Saint Jean Pied de Port, Espelette and the pepper workshop, the factory of Makhila of Larressore. Main themes: the Basque language, the 7 Basque provinces, Compostela Route and the Reconquista.
- Day 3: Panoramic of Biarritz with a focus on the development of the city under Napoleon III and Eugénie de Montijo. Stop at the Biarritz lighthouse. Stop at the Rocher de la Vierge and free time.
4-day tour – discovery of the main sites of the Basque Country
For this organized trip to the Basque Country, the group stayed at the Vacanciel in Guéthary. Note: 4 days is very – too – short, especially since the program was not optimized.
- Day 1: La Rhune.
- Day 2 morning : Arcangues (Luis Mariano, Arcangues Marquis) – Biarritz : panoramic, lighthouse and rock of the Virgin (preferable in the afternoon). Afternoon: Bayonne, chocolate, cathedral, ham process.
- Day 3 morning : Saint Jean Pied de Port. Afternoon: Espelette and chilli pepper process. In addition to Compostela theme: the Basque climate, the 7 Basque provinces, the Basque language, Irouléguy wine, etc. Lunch of local products
- Day 4 morning: Arnaga, the house of Edmond Rostand and the Basque house theme (architecture, transmission). Saint Jean de Luz, whaling and Louis XIV’s wedding (preferable in the morning to see the market).
Javier and Navarre during Javierada.
Javierada is a Basque traditional festival.
- Day 1: Discovery of Javier’s castle, its basilica, the parish church and the new village of Javier.
- Day 2: Monastery of Leyre and Yesa Lake. Javierada Pilgrimage. Return with a stop at the Arbayun Canyon viewpoint.
Olite medieval market (Navarre) – 2 days.
Accommodation in a large house in San Martin de Unx, a small medieval village just a stone’s throw from Olite.
Discover Olite, visit its castle and its medieval market.
Visit of the monastery of Leyre, hike in the Foz de Lumbier, panoramic visit of the Foz d’Arbayun.
La Verna cave (Soule) – 2 days – speleology and hiking.
Weekend in Saint Engrace with speleology in la Verna cave, accommodation in a rural cottage, hiking in the canyons of Saint Engrâce.