Navarre
5
Day Itinerary •
Spain
Navarre is one of Spain's most diverse and compact kingdoms. From Pyrenean peaks to desert badlands in under 200km, via ancient pilgrimage cities, medieval walled castles, beech forests the size of a small country and wine villages producing some of the finest roses and reds in Spain. Five days lets you explore every corner of Navarre. Pamplona's extraordinary hidden architecture, the alien Bardenas desert, the Roncal Pyrenean cheese valley, the vast Selva de Irati beech forest, the fairytale castle of Olite, the Camino de Santiago's finest villages, and the Rioja Navarra wine country where exceptional reds and Spain's greatest roses are produced.
Best Time To Visit
April to October (Pyrenees best June to September)
Getting There
Fly into Pamplona (PNA) or Bilbao (BIO)
Getting Around
Rental car essential throughout
Budget Per Day
Approx 70 to 110 euros per person per day
Difficulity
Easy, walking and driving
DAY 1
PAMPLONA
MORNING
PAMPLONA BEYOND SAN FERMIN
Most visitors know Pamplona only for the Running of the Bulls in July. But the medieval old town is one of the finest in northern Spain, intact within its original walls. The 16th-century citadel is a masterpiece of Renaissance military architecture, still surrounded by its original star-shaped moat, now a beautiful park almost entirely visited only by locals. Free to enter. Drive: 10 min walk to Cathedral
MIDDAY
PAMPLONA CATHEDRAL AND THE WORLD'S FINEST GOTHIC CLOISTER
The cathedral cloister is considered the most beautiful Gothic cloister in the world by many architectural historians, with extraordinarily delicate tracery from the 14th century. The Diocesan Museum contains the finest collection of medieval religious art in Navarre. Entry approx 7 euros and almost never crowded. Drive: 15 min drive to Camino villages
AFTERNOON
THE CAMINO FRANCES VILLAGES
Puente la Reina has a magnificent 11th-century pilgrim bridge. Cirauqui above it is a perfectly preserved hilltop walled village. Estella has an extraordinary 12th-century royal palace facade. All free and largely unvisited outside Camino season.
💎 HIDDEN GEM
The Museo de Navarra in Pamplona is housed in a 16th-century hospital and contains one of the most important collections of Romanesque art in Spain. Entry approx 2 euros and almost never visited despite being one of the finest regional museums in the country.
🍽 WHERE TO EAT
Breakfast: Cafe Iruna, Pamplona Hemingway's favourite cafe on the Plaza del Castillo since 1888. Essential first morning stop. | Lunch: Bar Gaucho, Pamplona Most celebrated pintxos bar in Pamplona. The foie gras pintxos are extraordinary. Arrive at 1pm sharp. | Dinner: Rodero Restaurante One Michelin star. Outstanding modern Navarran cuisine. Book well ahead.
DAY 2
BARDENAS REALES AND RONCAL
MORNING
BARDENAS REALES, SPAIN'S DESERT BADLANDS
A UNESCO Biosphere Reserve of eroded clay, sandstone towers and flat-topped mesas that looks more like the American Southwest than Europe. The Cabezo de Castildetierra pinnacle is the most photographed landscape in Navarre. Drive the marked 14km route through the park and walk the short trails to the viewpoints. Free entry. Drive: 1.5 hour drive to Roncal
MIDDAY
VALLE DE RONCAL, THE HIDDEN PYRENEAN KINGDOM
Eight villages of traditional stone houses stretch up to the French border. The village of Roncal produces the only cheese in Spain with a Protected Designation of Origin controlled by a single valley. Visit the museum of the celebrated tenor Julian Gayarre and buy the finest cheese in Navarre directly from the producers. Drive: 30 min drive to Ochagavia
AFTERNOON
OCHAGAVIA, THE MOST BEAUTIFUL VILLAGE IN NAVARRE
A perfectly preserved medieval settlement on both banks of the Anduña river, connected by an ancient stone bridge, with traditional stone houses and a backdrop of beech forests rising to Pyrenean peaks. Almost no tourists visit despite being extraordinary.
💎 HIDDEN GEM
The Bosque de Irati above Ochagavia is the second largest beech forest in Europe. A 45-minute drive leads to the Embalse de Irabia reservoir deep in the forest, surrounded by ancient beeches and completely free of tourists. One of the finest forest landscapes in Spain.
🍽 WHERE TO EAT
Breakfast: Bar in Arguedas near Bardenas Coffee before entering the desert park. | Lunch: Venta del Queso, Roncal Famous for the valley cheese served with local cured meats and txakoli. Unmissable. | Dinner: Restaurante Ochagavia Traditional Navarran restaurant. Local lamb, river trout and Roncal cheese.
DAY 3
SELVA DE IRATI AND RONCESVALLES
MORNING
SELVA DE IRATI, THE ANCIENT BEECH FOREST
The Selva de Irati is the largest continuous beech and fir forest in Western Europe, 17,000 hectares of ancient woodland in the Navarran Pyrenees. The forest roads wind through cathedral-like beech tunnels that turn gold and copper in autumn and electric green in spring. The Embalse de Irabia at the heart of the forest is perfectly still and reflects the surrounding trees. Walk the marked forest trails for up to 3 hours. Drive: 45 min drive to Roncesvalles
MIDDAY
RONCESVALLES, THE GATEWAY OF THE CAMINO
Roncesvalles is where the Camino de Santiago enters Spain from France, the most important and most walked stretch of the entire pilgrim route. The 12th-century collegiate church and monastery have welcomed pilgrims for 900 years. The museum contains one of the finest collections of Camino religious art in Spain. Walk the first kilometre of the Camino into the beech forest for the most moving beginning of a journey in all of Spain. Drive: 15 min drive to Burguete
AFTERNOON
BURGUETE, HEMINGWAY'S HIDDEN PYRENEAN VILLAGE
Burguete is a beautifully preserved Navarran village in the Pyrenean foothills where Ernest Hemingway stayed every summer to fish for trout in the Rio Urrobi. The inn where he lodged, described in The Sun Also Rises, still stands. Walk the village, fish the river if you have a permit, and end with a bottle of local wine in the bar where Hemingway drank. One of the most literary landscapes in Spain.
💎 HIDDEN GEM
The pass of Puerto de Ibañeta at 1,057 metres above Roncesvalles has been the entry point for Camino pilgrims since the Middle Ages. A small chapel marks the spot where the Chanson de Roland was set. On clear days the views back over France and forward into Spain are extraordinary. Free to visit, usually completely alone.
🍽 WHERE TO EAT
Breakfast: Bar in Ochagavia Breakfast in the beautiful village before driving into the forest. | Lunch: Restaurante Roncesvalles The pilgrim restaurant at the monastery has served walkers for centuries. Simple, generous Navarran food. | Dinner: Hotel Burguete restaurant The inn where Hemingway stayed still serves dinner. Traditional Navarran cuisine in extraordinary historic surroundings.
DAY 4
OLITE AND SOUTHERN NAVARRE
MORNING
OLITE, THE FAIRYTALE CASTLE OF NAVARRE
The Palacio Real of Olite is one of the most extraordinary medieval royal palaces in Europe, bristling with towers, turrets and hanging gardens in a Gothic fantasy. The Navarran court was one of the most sophisticated in medieval Europe and the palace reflects this entirely. Entry approx 4.50 euros and includes the castle walls and towers. Drive: 30 min drive to Ujue
MIDDAY
UJUE, THE FORTRESS VILLAGE ABOVE THE PLAINS
A fortified hilltop settlement above the southern plains with extraordinary views over the Ebro valley and on clear days to the Pyrenees. The Romanesque church fortified like a castle contains a revered 14th-century silver statue of the Virgin. The village is largely unchanged since the medieval period. Drive: 40 min drive to Estella
AFTERNOON
ESTELLA AND THE FREE WINE FOUNTAIN
Estella has a 12th-century royal palace with the finest Romanesque facade in Navarre. The Monastery of Irache 2km away has a tap dispensing free Navarran red wine 24 hours a day that has provided free wine to Camino pilgrims since the 11th century. Free, always open, and one of the most joyful discoveries in all of Spain.
💎 HIDDEN GEM
The village of Artajona, 15km from Olite, is a perfectly preserved 13th-century walled village known as El Cerco, with intact medieval walls, towers and churches almost entirely unknown to tourists. The walls were built by the Knights Hospitaller and are among the finest surviving medieval fortifications in Navarre. Free entry.
🍽 WHERE TO EAT
Breakfast: Cafe in Olite village Charming cafes within the shadow of the castle before it opens at 10am. | Lunch: Restaurante Merindad de Olite Outstanding restaurant. Local lamb, asparagus in season and excellent Navarra wines. | Dinner: Casa Marchena, Estella Traditional Navarran restaurant. The menu del dia is the best value introduction to local cuisine.
DAY 5
RIOJA NAVARRA WINE COUNTRY
MORNING
OLITE WINE ROUTE, THE FINEST ROSES IN SPAIN
The Denominacion de Origen Navarra produces wines that are largely unknown internationally yet include some of the finest roses in the world and exceptional reds from garnacha and tempranillo grapes. The wine villages around Olite, Cintruenigo and Corella sit in a beautiful landscape of vineyards and medieval villages. Bodegas Chivite, one of Spain's oldest family wineries, offers tours and tastings from approx 15 euros. Drive: 30 min drive to Cintruenigo
MIDDAY
CINTRUENIGO AND THE SOUTHERN WINE VILLAGES
Cintruenigo is the capital of the Ribera del Queiles wine district, producing intense reds from old vine garnacha at the extreme southern tip of Navarre. The town has a beautiful old quarter and one of the finest wine bars in the region. The Bodega Inurrieta is a striking modern winery in the vineyards offering excellent tastings at honest prices. Drive: 25 min drive to Tudela
AFTERNOON
TUDELA, THE GARDEN CITY OF NAVARRE
Tudela is Navarre's second city and one of the most undervisited in the country. The medieval old town is extraordinary, built on a high bluff above the Ebro river with a stunning 12th-century Romanesque cathedral. Tudela is the capital of Navarre's vegetable growing region and the white asparagus, cardoons and artichokes grown here are considered the finest in Spain. The Tuesday and Saturday market is one of the best food markets in northern Spain.
💎 HIDDEN GEM
The Friday asparagus market in Tudela runs from April to June and is one of the most extraordinary food experiences in Spain. Local farmers sell the morning-cut white asparagus directly from the field in bundles of 20, for a fraction of the price charged in the city. The asparagus from the Ebro valley is officially the finest in Spain and celebrated throughout the country.
🍽 WHERE TO EAT
Breakfast: Cafe near Olite castle Start the wine day with a strong coffee and local pastry before driving south. | Lunch: Bodegas Chivite restaurant Outstanding winery restaurant serving the finest Navarran produce paired with their own wines. Book ahead. | Dinner: Restaurante 33, Tudela The most celebrated restaurant in Tudela. The house vegetable tasting menu is one of the finest in Spain. Book ahead.
Where To Stay
Pamplona, Night 1 Hotel Palacio Guendulain, a stunning 18th-century palace in the old town. Approx 130 to 200 euros per night. Roncal or Irati area, Nights 2 to 3 Rural casa rural in the Pyrenean valleys. Approx 55 to 90 euros per night. Olite or Tudela, Nights 4 to 5 Parador de Olite inside the medieval castle. Approx 100 to 160 euros per night.
Top Tips
1. If visiting in July, book Pamplona accommodation a full year ahead for San Fermin week.
2. Bardenas Reales is best at sunrise or sunset when the light turns the badlands golden.
3. Pamplona Cathedral cloister entry requires a ticket. Buy online to avoid queuing.
4. Navarre white asparagus from the Ebro valley is the finest in Spain. Order it April to June.
5. The free wine fountain at Monastery of Irache near Estella is open 24 hours. Bring a cup.
6. Olite castle entry includes the rooftop towers. Climb all of them for panoramic views.
Total Budget
75 to 120 euros/day