Hi all,

I am looking for some advice on what would be the nicest route (most scenic and with some attractions and good food/wine in between) from around Bordeaux in France, to Spain (somewhere around Barcelona or south)?

My benchmark would be Bavaria in Germany, as I had a GREAT time driving from Munich to Frankfurt in about one week two years ago. Views were amazing and everything was just so memorable and picturesque.

Thank you!

Daniel.

Use http://www.viamichelin.co.uk/, plug in your itinerary and specify the scenic route. If you like mountain driving, you can always go through the central part of the Pyrenees.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57623717915043

You must put aside your Bavarian dream. The topography, culture, language, food, history, art, architecture, temperament of the people, etc, are very different and if you do not accept it and appreciate it on its terms you will be missing a wonderful time.

Was Germany the first European country you visited?

From Bordeaux, go just south and into the Spanish Basque region, the culinary hot-spot of Spain if not all of Europe. Beautiful landscapes along the coast between Belle epoque San Sebastián and vibrant Bilbao with the spectacular Guggenheim museum.

San Sebastián:
"Is San Sebastián the best place to eat in Europe?"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandsty...rink.shopping2

Bilbao: http://www.guggenheim.org/bilbao

The wonderful Basque coast: http://tourism.euskadi.net/basque-coast/

Aduchamp1, no.. it was not my first European country, but I meant to say that I liked driving through small villages and getting to lovely and beautiful destinations.

I'm definitely open to different culture, topography, food, etc.

I should just add that we are on a 6 day vacation, so will driving from Bordeaux through San Sebastian -> Bilbao -> Pamplona -> Barcelona be too much?

Thanks for all the comments.

For a six day journey I would do Bordeaux, San Sebastián, Bilbao. Spend at least two-three nights in plain fantastic San Sebastián. Nice article in New York Times recently :
http://travel.nytimes.com/2011/08/07...tin-spain.html

Here are some hotels in the middle of everything (the beach, city center and the famous Parte vieja/Old town). In different price categories from luxcurt to basic/budget:

María Cristina: http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/mari...westin.en.html
Londres: http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/lond...aterra.en.html
Alemana: http://www.hostalalemana.com/ingles/index.html
Bahía: http://www.hostalbahia.com/
Urkia: http://www.pensionurkia.com/en/index.html

Even I love San Sebastian and Barcelona, I would chose just one for a six day trip. And considering your starting point I too would suggest San Sebastian.

Driving via San Sebastian is not too much, but if you figure the time--one day to San Sebastian, a couple days in the Basque country, and one day to Barcelona--you will not have too much time for the little village or the scenery; San Sebastian to Barcelona will probably turn out to be driving on the super highway. You'll have to choose between that and choosing a route that is less obviously culinary.

If you only have 6 days vacation then I'd choose either the Basque Cointry OR Barcelona. Are you flying home via Barcelona? If so I'd probably focus on Bordeaux and Barcelona saving the Basque Country for another trip.

First off, are you planning to pick up a rental car in Bordeaux and drive it to Spain and drop it off there? If so, first mistake - you'll pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $500+ to drop the car off in a different country from the one you pick it up in.

Second, The drive south from Bordeaux to Spain is pretty much terminally boring, at least for the first few hours. And if you're using Bavaria as your benchmark, you'll be appalled. The Gironde south of Bordeaux has little appeal compared to almost any other corner of France. Les Landes, while amusingly different for 15 minutes or so, quickly becomes a vast landscape of sand and pine trees that seemingly never ends. If you take the coastal route, you're subjected to myriad tacky beach towns until you get to Bayonne and Biarritz and St-Jean-de-Luz. If you go straight south, you'll eventually, and thankfully, hit the Pyrénées.

Why are you starting at Bordeaux anyway? The way I see your plan is - you've got a sparse 6 days and plan to use them to traverse some of the least attractive landscape in Europe just to get somewhere attractive. Why don't you just fly to Barcelona? Of course you could land in Bordeaux and just haul a** to Spain, but what would be the point? Not sure I understand what your goal is here.

Thanks everyone. So I figured I'd rent a car and drive from Bordeaux to the Pyrenees (saw some photos that were just amazing) and then continue west to Biarritz and San Sebastian + Bilbao. My only question now is: Driving from Bordeaux, where should be my first overnight stop, considering I want to drive through the Pyrenees and it might be too much for one day? (about 300km).

So you're going to do a huge loop from Bordeaux into the Pyrénées and then back west to Biarritz? Do you have a map? Why aren't you flying into Toulouse?

StCirq - Interesting points there. Starting at Bordeaux (or alternatively the other way around in Spain), we wanted to visit some vineyards and Bordeaux was supposed to be a good place to visit? If we just skip Bordeaux then, or avoid the loop from Bordeaux -> Pyrenees -> Biarritz, what should we choose as our destinations? We want good scenery, some nice (uncrowded) cities with small cosy streets and eventually, end in a larger city where we will fly off to London.

Hi, Daniel.

How about flying into Toulouse and out of Bordeaux? Then you could swing through the best parts of the Pyrénées, dip down to the coast, then zoom back through the boring parts and spend the last day in/around Bordeaux visiting vineyards or doing wine tastings or whatever.

Thanks for the quick reply. Hmm, never thought of Toulouse as an option. Or, if I just forget about vineyards, I can fly into Bilbao, drive east through San Sebastian and continue through the Pyrénées until I reach the area of Costa Brava and further down to Barcelona?

That way I don't have to drive back and forth and do some crazy loops? I just wonder if driving through the Pyrénées from west to east does not get repetitive at some point...

Driving from Bordeaux to the Pyrenees can be nice if you go through the Gers rather than the coast and the Landes; although we enjoyed the Arcachon area and the next day found ourselves in Basque country. You might want to read my trip report from last summer; click on my name to find it.

The French Pyrenees have a very different geography according to their location. The west is green and not as severe as the center which is very alpine and also green, whereas the eastern part is dry.

And you do need to heed the advice that renting a car in one country and leaving it in another will cost you a small fortune.

Bordeaux wines are justifiably famous, but it's not as though there isn't wine all OVER the place in France! Kind of depends on whether you want to spend days down in cellars with suited-up experts filling special-shaped glasses, swirling and spitting and explaining the special climatic conditions in August of 2005...or whether you want to drop by a few dégustations and try out a few wines. Your call.

Missing Bordeaux does not in any way mean missing wine.

So dropping Bordeaux and simply starting in Bilbao. Is the horizontal drive through the Pyrenees exciting and worth taking? Where should I do my overnight stop then?