gmtravels

My husband and I are planning a trip to Spain and France next June and need a little help to sort out our itinerary. Any help would be invaluable. We love to walk but with nothing really strenuous and we love good food and of course wine and cheese. Our plan is to fly from UK to Bilboa (our flights are booked so we have 15 nights) and spend 2 nights there then hire a car and drive to Logrono for 2 nights in the Rioja area. We will then drive through Pamplona and the Roncesvalles pass to Saint Jean de Pied Port and stay either there or close by for 1 night. Next we plan to drive to Cauterets and have 2 nights there to enable us to have a walk or two then 1 night in Gavarnie followed by 1 night in Vielha and 2 nights in Andorra before driving down to Barcelona for 4 nights before flying home.
Does this sound like a feasible trip with not too much driving on any one day. Are we picking the best places to stay or have we missed anywhere really worth seeing?
Any advice will be much very much appreciated.

Robert2016

Everything looks fine. Routes are easy, nothing too long. If you want to experience the Navarran Pyrenees, then you might consider spending one night, or maybe two, in Burguete-Auritz, or better yet, Ochagavía, a picture perfect village in the Pyrenees. Don't forget to stop in Pamplona for pintxos and possibly lunch.

There's a great little restaurant north of Pamplona on the N-135, El Molino de Urdániz (elmolinourdaniz.com) if you want something with a Michelin star and don't want to have lunch in the city. Reservations required.

I would go through Oloron-Sainte-Marie when driving from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Cauterets, avoiding the A-64 (boring drive). The driving time from Ochagavía to Cauterets, through Oloron-Sainte-Marie, is about the same.

You'll want to plan your route through Arreau when driving from Gavarnie to Vielha. And I would skip Andorra and head to Berga, through Sort, instead, a much more interesting area.

Take a look at the Rural Pyrenees guide for a little more information (www.rural-pyrenees-guide.com) and enjoy the experience.

gmtravels

Robert2016 Thank you so much for the information. It really helps. We will definitely have a look at your suggestions and try to incorporate them into our itinerary. We were wondering about Andorra because we've read conflicting views about whether or not to visit. Thanks again

Michael

Instead of Cauterets, I would overnight in Laruns or Eaux-bonnes to take the Lac d'Artouste train to the pic du Midi d'Ossau. At the end of the train ride you can walk as much or as little as you want within the time allowed to take the train back.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petit_train_d%27Artouste

kja

I visited some, not all, of the places you are considering. In the Pyrenees, I loved Taüll, at least in part because of my interest in Romanesque architecture and frescos. If you haven’t already seen it, you might find some useful information in my trip report.
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-catalunya.cfm

kerouac

I highly recommend the gorges of Kakuetta, even though the walk can be a tiny bit challenging.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...f-kakuetta.cfm