Did you know I used to be a tour guide in the Basque Country, Reader?

Back in the early days of my travel career, I worked for Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door and led groups on their Spain itineraries, particularly the Basque Country tour.

So I’ve spent a LOT of time in the area, and a lot of time learning about its unique and fascinating local culture.

But apart from frequent trips to Pamplona to visit my in-laws, it had been several years since I explored the region.

So when Iñigo and I were brainstorming ideas for a summer vacation, I said, “How about the Basque Country? We can use Pamplona as a base for part of it, borrow your parents’ car for a few days, and get up-to-date on some favorite spots we haven’t been to in a while.”

So, armed with a vague plan (the benefit of knowing a place well) and a hotel reservation in Bilbao for our first night, we headed off.

I have to admit, I think this is the first time I’ve explored this area in summer, and it was so much fun. Busier, to be sure—and I certainly heard plenty of American english—but not as overrun (yet) as Barcelona or Italy.

One of the great things about the Basque Country is that most places are only about an hour away from each other, and there's incredible variety within that small area. The Basque cultural region spans four Spanish provinces and three French ones, so you get mountains, coastlines, wine country, modern cities, tiny villages, three languages, and more, all packed into an area slightly smaller than New Jersey.

And we covered a lot of it.

In the interest of keeping this newsletter brief, here are some highlights:

• Aste Nagusia (Semana Grande) festivities in Bilbao, the city’s biggest fiesta of the year
• Running into Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen looking for a good pintxo (tapas) bar in Pamplona (the one we all wanted to go to was closed, so we all ended up wandering around the historic center while deciding on a plan B!)

• Outdoor charcoal grills fired up in Getaria, my favorite fishing village, for an excellent seafood lunch
• Gorgeous weather and busy beaches on the last weekend of summer

• A morning walk on the seaside promenade around Monte Urgull followed by a sunny bike ride along La Concha beach to the Wind Comb in San Sebastian
• Sharing pintxos and getting insider recommendations from the former mayor of San Sebastian (credit to Iñigo for that one—I would have had no idea who he was!)
• A fascinating tour and tasting at Bai Gorri winery, followed by lunch and a wander in Laguardia, one of my favorite hilltowns, and a gorgeous drive home through wine country

• A casual grilled seafood dinner at the old port and the FABULOUS food market in Biarritz
• Comparing the French approach to Basque culture in Bayonne and Saint-Jean-de-Luz

When we got back to Pamplona, my in-laws were amazed by how much we’d seen in just a few days. But the funny thing is, the trip felt super leisurely to us, and we didn’t even do everything we had planned.

Our original idea was to return to Pamplona from Biarritz via some of the French mountain villages like Espelette, but we decided to take it slow on the coast instead (which worked out great since the weather on our last day was, let’s just say, very Basque, and would have been terrible for mountain driving).

I guess that’s the beauty of returning to a place you know well. When you’ve been before and you know you’ll go again, you don’t have the pressure of feeling like you have to see “everything” (which we all do, even though we all know it’s impossible anyway).

The whole trip reminded me why I fell in love with this region in the first place—and why having that local knowledge makes such a difference.

Because sometimes the best travel experiences come from knowing when to plan ... and when to just go with the flow.

P.S. Need help striking that planning vs. spontaneity balance for your next dream trip? That's exactly what I do! Book a Destination Discovery Call and let's chat.

• I've had the Flash Invaders app on my phone for a while, but finally opened it and started playing in Bayonne, and it's so much fun. French street artist Invader has works around the world, and this app helps you find and tag them with a fun, arcade-game interface. Now that we're back home, it's making our afternoon walks in Paris more interactive too.
• Have you played Pips yet? I've been enjoying this new NY Times game since it was released a few weeks ago, and it was perfect for airport time, backs of cabs, and those other "dead" minutes on this trip.
• If you're interested in a deeper dive into Basque culture, a book I love and always recommend is The Basque History of the World. I've talked about it for so many years that Iñigo started reading my old copy, and was chuckling at all my notes and underlines. I'm excited to reread it when he's done!

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