tostaky

Hi !
What would you do/see with those requirements:

1) Arrival/Departure in Porto (less expensive flights and car rental) Whitout the need to go around Portugul which we have seen for 2 weeks 6 years ago

2) 2 Adults and 2 teens

3) Not 3 weeks of intense heat (we can manage it for 4-5 days)

4) We are foodies, craft beer lovers, history fans. Beach ? Meh.

Thanks !

Maribel

Did you change your plans to Porto because of the price of flights?

I assumed you were going to make one of these trips on these, your other planning threads:

''northern'' Spain...questions !

Southern France in July.....

''Southern'' France + Spain

and this one, starting in Paris?
''european'' family trip in july

Michael

A tour of northwestern Spain from Galicia to Basque country sounds like your ticket. I don't know about the beer, but cider is a very common drink in this area.

Here are the photo albums from that area. Where the picture is of a restaurant, it means we enjoyed it.

https://flic.kr/s/aHskGvBjfL

https://flic.kr/s/aHsjoT7v7R

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmophxJ6

tostaky

Maribel: I know we have done some other plans, but It was a very strange year for us and things have change many times for many reasons. This is our last chance to do something for this summer. I guess we are kind of a too late for the lodging game.

KarenWoo

Michael, I love your photos! We aren't planning a return to Spain in the near future, but perhaps in 4-5 years, we can return, and I will consider some of your suggestions. They all look so interesting!

Maribel

tostaky,
Have you purchased your airfare?
Is this Porto-Porto itinerary now "set in stone"?
Have you made any lodging reservations for what is going to be an extremely busy season on the Cantabrian coast and in the Asturian and Cantabrian Picos de Europa, where everyone from Madrid and the south will be looking for places in the north to "cool off"?

tostaky

Maribel: nothing is bought or reserved. Like i.ve said it's that or nothing for summer. What your are telling me is that we are too late. We would have a car so we could go in smaller places, we dont feel the need to be at a walking distance of a beach or such.

Maribel

No, I'm not saying that you're too late, but you may need to go to less popular locations away from the most frequently visited summer coastal communities (Llanes, Ribadesella, Cudillero in Asturias, San Vicente de la Barquera in Cantabria, Getaria & San Sebastián in the Basque Country etc.) and go inland to find more affordable lodging for 4. Some coastal locations in summer have a 2-night or more minimum in high season, so kept that in mind.

Interior Galicia will be more affordable than coastal Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque Country, ime.

Porto lodging this summer is extremely expensive. So you may want to fly in and immediately go north to a smaller location in the Minho.

tostaky

Is it worth to go ? I mean are those inlands places have interest ?

ekscrunchy

I just lost many paragraphs about the inland areas of the north. 2o minutes writing----poof..gone!!
Briefly, we stayed inland when we spent two weeks in Asturias, in an area that is thick with very well-respected restaurants. Lodgings are inland but easy drives to the coast. Have you looked at the myriad eating options in that region??

We took an overnight to Astorga, in Leon, where Gaudi designed an
episcopal palace that is glorious and attracts few visitors. Astorga also has it very own niche cuisine based on the historic kitchens of the Marageta people. (This is a topic that I would like to pursue.....since had only one night in Astora to eat steak, we missed the more local dishes..
Our main goal was to eat steak in an unusual restaurant I a cave just outside Astorga, that had found its way onto many lots of the "best steak in the world." I mention this due to your interest in food.

But I've diverted here......I imagine you would have to spend some time looking at places to stay but even so late, you surly could put together a fantastic itinerary......

Sorry I cannot see your post as I write, but how long would you spend in Spain? Do you have to backtrack to Porto due to your flights? (Too bad)
Have you been to Galicia before? Asturias?

What is nightly budget for entire group in euro, please?

You are interested in food. Does that interest expend to wanting to visit the top tier restaurants, or do you mix one or two of those With everyday spots focused on food, not decor.....(we like to interchange between small and local and the starred names but the latter, only a few times in a few weeks if that..). Interest in food...what does that really mean??? Visiting a farm and watching the owners make cheese? Visiting local markets?
Taking a "food tour" for a day????

Hope I did go far off track here. I never remember to ask to see the prior post above my response......

Maribel

Yes, what is your nightly lodging budget for 4 adults (yes your kids are considered adults in Spain hotels).

And what is your dining budget for 4? Galician, Asturian, Cantabrian, Basque restaurants are highly regarded but can be very expensive at the higher end. (I just returned from a repeat visit to the Basque Country, where a menu of the day at the Boliño Viejo in Gernika costs 15 euros and a meal at Extebarri costs 240----there are fine options in the north all over the spectrum.)

I assume that you didn't do the Portugal trip that you planned several years ago in a planning thread here? Is northern Portugal new to you as well?
Have you been in the Minho (Guimarães, Braga, Viana do Castelo, etc)? It will be less expensive the further north you go from Porto this summer.

On your thread on another travel forum, a poster mentioned the Paradors, which are lovely. and many are historic ...but they will cost in high season at least 180 euros/night per room. We recently stayed at two Paradors in April at a rate of 177 in a standard room as members of the Amigos program, since we receive a slight discount.
Will you need two rooms?

"Is it worth to go ? I mean are those inland places have interest ?"

I would advise you to go to your local library and see if you can find the excellent DK Eyewitness Guide to Northern Spain, which is up to date and will give you an idea of what exactly there is to see and do between Santiago de Compostela and San Sebastián/Donostia (or inland Galicia-Asturias-Cantabria), if you attempt to get that far east to the Basque Country.

And also try to get hold of the Michelin maps for Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque Country to be more aware of driving distances in the north.

tostaky

ekscrunchy: Thanks for the answer, ans sorry about the deleted one...I would have like to read it !

About the flight, yes we do have to come back to Portot. Other options (Madride or Barcelona) cost more and would mean to drop the car in another country or rent two cars.

Food? Well it can be to eat in good restaurants that serves local speciality, make food in our airbnb with local produces, go to a public market, go to local brewery or wineries...the list is long but who doesn't like that ?

We'be never been to Galicia or Asturias. The only part we have done in Spain is 2 weeks in Catalonia.

Nightly budget...well we would like to keep to less than 180 euros. We can have some nights that cost more, but we dont want to do 21 nights at 300 euros each. We usually go in Airbnb beacause it mean more space than an hotel room and we can cook some meals if we wanted and do some laundry.

Maribel

To keep dining costs down, you may want to visit the local markets and prepare your meals in your airbnb or take advantage of the "mom and pop", family-run restaurants that have a fixed price menu of the day at lunch (3 courses, including wine, such as Gernika's Bolina Viejo, 15 euros per person).

For less than 180 euro per night for your family, you'll need airbnb lodging or some sort of apartment rentals.

The public indoor markets in the cities in Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria are your best bets. They are both wonderful sites to tour, and you'll be amazed by the bounty of the produce, meats and fish. There are craft breweries all over Spain (in the north, it's not just the land of cider or txakolí), and there are wineries galore on route from Galicia to the Basque Country. .