Key Tour Information

* The Key Tour Information specifies what you should expect from the tour, no matter how far ahead you book.
As additional information is published on the website, it will be advised to clients who have reserved a place. The daily itinerary will be finalised in the weeks leading up to the Start Date.

Pricing

• £1,249 per person based on 2 people sharing a double/twin room.
• £125 supplement for single occupancy of a double room,
• £100 discount for bookings made before 1st January 2023, and paid for 10 weeks before departure.

Price includes

• Transport from the Meeting Point at Bilbao Airport to the hotel on Day 1, and to the Departure Point at Bilbao Airport on Day 5.
• 5 days (including arrival and departure days)/4 nights bed and breakfast in good quality hotel in Logroño.
• Coach for all activities in the itinerary.
• Three full days of visits and tastings.
• Six visits/tastings, including wineries in key wine producing areas of Rioja Alavesa, Rioja Alta and Rioja Oriental, focussing on the most important grape varieties and wine styles.
• Four lunches/dinners with local wines.
• All local taxes and service charges.
• The services of Tim Syrad as your Wine Tour Manager and Wine Guide.

It is a condition of my accepting a booking that you will take out appropriate travel insurance – please see our Terms and Conditions Section 8.

Terms and Conditions are available here or on request.

Please note flights are not included in the price. Many of my clients prefer to extend their holiday before or after my tours, so I let people make their own flight arrangements.

* End of Key Tour Information

Flight Transfers

Our Meeting and Departure Point is Bilbao Airport.  I will arrange transfers to coincide with the following flights.

Tour 1
Outbound (Wednesday 10th May 2023)
British Airways from London Gatwick to Bilbao Airport.  Flight VUELING VY6304 departs LGW 0830 arrives  BIO at 1130.
Return (Sunday 14th May 2023)
British Airways from Bilbao Airport to London Gatwick.  Flight VUELING VY6307 departs BIO 1350 arrives LGW 1440.

Tour 2
Outbound (Wednesday 24th May 2023)
British Airways from London Gatwick to Bilbao Airport.  Flight VUELING VY6304 departs LGW 0830 arrives BIO at 1130.
Return (Sunday 28th May 2023)
British Airways from Bilbao Airport to London Gatwick (LGW).  Flight VUELING VY6307 departs BIO 1350 arrives LGW 1440.

There are relatively few flight itineraries into Bilbao.  Please contact me if you would like to discuss travel options, for example flying to or from a different airport/with a different carrier, or making the journey by rail or driving.  I cannot arrange travel for you, but I can advise on what might work best.

How to Book this Tour

Please contact me by phone or email, or use the enquiry form on the Contact page on the website to check availability.  When I confirm a place is available, please complete the booking form to reserve your place.

Once I have confirmed a tour is proceeding I advise clients to arrange flights and confirm travel arrangements to me. Please do not arrange flights before I have confirmed your place and that the tour is proceeding.

Full payment must be made 10 weeks before the tour starts, invoices will be sent out 12 weeks before the tour starts.  At this point you will need to provide your insurance details (name of insurer, policy number, 24 hour emergency telephone numbers), outbound/inbound travel arrangements and any dietary requirements.

 

More About my Rioja Wine Tour

We first visited Rioja in 2005 and then again in 2017. Despite this wine region being extremely well known and much loved, as well as being the powerhouse of the Spanish wine economy, it doesn’t rest on its laurels and continues to develop in quality and reputation. For most people, the Rioja style has been all about the oak. Gran Reserva, Reserva and Crianza styles are the mainstay of the industry. However, there is continuing evolution of what defines Rioja and the ‘Modernist’ producers are creating more fruit driven styles that contrast with the Traditionalists, giving the consumer ever more choice. The Rioja authorities are progressing as witnessed by the introduction of denominacions for regional, village and single vineyard wines, an expansion of permitted grape varieties and the emergence of both sparkling and sweet styles.

We can’t do justice to the whole of Rioja in just one tour, but we will focus on the key areas of Rioja Alta, Alavesa and Oriental to illustrate the area differences. As always, on one of my tours there will be a broad mix of producers ranging from small family estates to some of the bigger names. Where possible, we will combine tastings with lunches at estates to enhance our understanding of Spanish food and wine pairing.

We are staying in Logroño, one of the principal towns of the Rioja region. It has developed significantly since our first visit in 2005. The highlight of course is the famous Calle Laurel: an amazing street packed full of tapas bars with a myriad of both traditional and ultra modern cuisine. I have no doubt that our free evenings will be spent exploring this aspect of the town.

More About Tim Syrad Wine Tours

Since 1997 I have escorted over 110 groups of people on wine tours, visiting more than 30 wine regions in Europe and the New World. My clients keep coming back year after year because in addition to tastings and visits we really do meet the people who make the wine and tend the vines.

I pride myself in offering tours that are informative, imaginative and enjoyable. I keep group sizes manageable so that we spend our time appreciating our visits, not getting on and off the bus or queuing for the loos! I personally escort all of my tours, and I ensure as much as possible of the money my clients pay is spent on great food and wine, and good hotels. I believe you can combine appreciating fabulous wine with relaxation and laughter, which is why so many of my clients come on tour with me every year. More than 70 people have come on at least 10 of my tours.

There is a friendly and welcoming atmosphere on every tour from the start, and I am proud that many friendships have been made between the people who come on tour with me.

For more information about me, my next tours, and previous tours I have run, and to find out what my clients say (some of whom have been coming on tour with me since 2001) please explore the website.

For more information about this tour, or to book a place, please contact me
By phone (020 7060 4529)
Or email (tim@timsyradwinetours.com)
Or use the online enquiry form on the Contact page