Spain South to North
Fourteen nights across five bases, Inbound Spain's flagship overland arc: Moorish Andalusia through the capital and wine country to the Basque coast. The routing is built as a single continuous line rather than a series of flights, deliberately building in pace and cuisine as it moves north.
The program
The flagship overland arc.
Built for comprehensive Spain travelers and partners offering extended programs. The length creates more potential disruption points than Inbound Spain's shorter routings, and a dedicated tour leader is recommended on group series departures. Every departure is re-sequenced and re-paced around the client brief; the routing below is the proven baseline Inbound Spain contracts against.
Seville
The program opens in Andalusia's largest city, the anchor point for the Moorish architectural line the first two bases trace together. Real Alcázar's Mudéjar palace and the cathedral's Giralda tower set the historical register the itinerary carries north.
Day 1 · Private arrival transfer. Evening tapas walk through Santa Cruz.
Day 2 · Real Alcázar timed guided visit and the cathedral. Free afternoon.
Day 3 · Direct AVE to Granada, about 3 hours.
Where your group stays: central Seville, near Santa Cruz.
Granada
The Alhambra closes the Andalusia leg on the routing's single most tightly allocated site, a hilltop fortress-palace best appreciated slowly, followed by the Albaicín's tangle of whitewashed streets across the ravine.
Day 4 · Alhambra and Generalife timed guided visit.
Day 5 · Albaicín walking tour. Afternoon direct AVE to Madrid, about 3 hours.
Where your group stays: central Granada, near the Albaicín.
Madrid
The capital sits at the program's midpoint, both geographically and in register: a shift from Andalusia's Moorish south to the wine country and Basque north still ahead. Its museums and Retiro Park give the itinerary its one deliberately slower, gallery-paced base.
Day 6 · Arrival transfer. Free evening.
Day 7 · The Prado or the Reina Sofía, partner's choice, followed by a Retiro Park walk.
Day 8 · Royal Palace and a Mercado San Miguel tasting stop. Afternoon Alvia train to Logroño, about 3 to 4 hours.
Where your group stays: central Madrid, walking distance to the Prado and Retiro Park.
La Rioja
Wine country marks the shift from monuments to landscape. Two nights based in Logroño give the program a bodega tasting and a walk through Haro's Barrio de la Estación, the historic wine-district cluster of century-old cellars, before the final push north.
Day 9 · Arrival and a bodega tasting with lunch at the winery.
Day 10 · Haro's Barrio de la Estación. Afternoon private coach to San Sebastián, about 2.5 hours.
Where your group stays: central Logroño or Haro.
San Sebastián
The program closes on the Basque coast, the sharpest register shift on the entire routing: from wine-country landscape to a pintxos-driven food culture and a coastline built for slower final days.
Day 11 · Arrival transfer. Evening pintxos tour through Parte Vieja.
Day 12 · A hike to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe and a working coastal village visit, with lunch.
Day 13 · Market visit and a Basque cooking class. Free evening.
Day 14 · Free day: Monte Igueldo, La Concha beach, or leisure, partner's choice. Closing dinner.
Day 15 · Private transfer to Bilbao Airport, about 1 hour 45 minutes, for departure.
Where your group stays: central San Sebastián, walking distance to La Concha and Parte Vieja.
For advisors
Private to your client and re-paced around them across all five bases. Net markup or gross billing, whichever fits your practice. A dedicated local concierge is available airport to airport for the full 14 nights.
Request an FIT proposal →For operators
NET rates under per-series contracts, up to 6 departures a year given the program's length. A dedicated tour leader is strongly recommended on every series departure to manage logistics across five bases and multiple rail and coach transfers.
Explore a group or series →On the ground
What Inbound Spain handles on this routing.
Operational detail for the partners evaluating this program for a client or a departure calendar.
Ticketing and allocations
The Alhambra caps daily visitor numbers by decree and sells out weeks to months ahead in peak season, the tightest allocation on this routing; Inbound Spain holds the entry as part of standard planning on every departure. Seville's Real Alcázar uses a similar timed-entry system with more available capacity.
Transport, door to door
Private transfers at SVQ and on departure via Bilbao Airport, direct AVE segments linking Seville, Granada, and Madrid, an Alvia train from Madrid to Logroño, and a private coach from La Rioja into San Sebastián. No single transport mode covers the full routing.
Guides and support
Local licensed guides in all five bases, drawn from Inbound Spain's vetted regional network, and a 24/7 local concierge with a shared communication channel across the tour leader, on-the-ground team, and partner office for the full 14 nights. A dedicated tour leader is recommended on group series departures.
The boundary
Inbound Spain contracts hotels, ground transport, guides, listed entries, and listed experiences across all five bases, including the Rioja bodega tasting and the Basque cooking class. The partner carries the transatlantic air, tour leader costs, unlisted meals, insurance, and gratuities policy.
Departure calendar
April through June and September through November. Andalusia's summer heat is the limiting factor at the southern end; La Rioja's September harvest weeks bring the highest bodega demand within the fall window. Series contracting works best at 12 months given the program's length; FIT at 5 to 7.
Regions on this routing
Read the ground the program covers: the Andalusia guide, the Madrid guide, and the Basque Country guide carry client-fit and planning detail for each region. La Rioja is covered at the program level here; it does not yet have a standalone destination guide.
Frequently asked questions
What partners ask about Spain South to North.
Can Spain South to North be re-sequenced or shortened?
Yes. The 3/2/3/2/4 split is the proven baseline, not a fixed product. Partners can drop the Rioja leg for a tighter 12-night program, extend San Sebastián for clients who want more Basque coast time, or split the itinerary into two shorter programs, Andalusia-to-Madrid and Rioja-to-Basque Country, for clients who cannot commit to 14 nights.
How does ticketing work for the Alhambra and this program's other marquee sites?
The Alhambra sells timed entries that sell out weeks to months ahead in peak season and caps daily visitor numbers by decree, the tightest allocation constraint on this entire routing, and Inbound Spain holds the allocation as part of standard planning on every departure. Seville's Real Alcázar uses a similar timed-entry system with more available capacity. No other stop on the program requires advance ticketing.
Which dates should partners avoid or price differently on this routing?
Seville and Granada's summer heat rules out July and August for the Andalusia leg, the same constraint behind Inbound Spain's other southern Spain programs, which is why the operating window runs April to June and September to November. La Rioja's September harvest weeks bring the highest bodega demand within the fall window, and San Sebastián's mid-August Semana Grande, which falls outside this program's operating window, would tighten hotel and restaurant inventory if a departure ever extended into it.
How are properties selected across five bases on this program?
Properties are proposed in central Seville, central Granada near the Albaicín, central Madrid, a Logroño or Haro base in La Rioja, and central San Sebastián, and reviewed with the partner before contracting. Category and specific properties are confirmed per booking based on the partner's brand and the client or group profile, consistent across all five stops.
What does moderate pace mean across a 14-night, five-city program?
Two to three hours on foot on a typical touring day within each base, with rail or road transfer days built in as lower-activity days rather than added on top of a full sightseeing schedule. The program's length is the main pacing consideration: Inbound Spain recommends a dedicated tour leader on group series departures to manage the cumulative logistics of five bases and multiple transfer methods over two weeks.
What lead time does this program need for FIT and for series?
Private FIT departures should confirm at 5 to 7 months given the program's length and the number of properties and guides involved. Group series contracting works best at 12 months out, longer than Inbound Spain's standard 10 to 12 month window, since Alhambra allocation and hotel block space across five cities both need earlier confirmation at this scale. A first itinerary draft and pricing follow within five days of a client brief.
Does Spain South to North cost more as a private FIT departure than as a group series?
Per-person cost is generally higher for a private FIT departure than for a full group series, since fixed costs, including private guides and private transport across five bases, are shared across fewer travelers, and this gap compounds over 14 nights more than it does on Inbound Spain's shorter programs. Spain South to North runs privately for 2 to 7 travelers or as a series for 8 to 24. Exact per-person pricing depends on season, hotel category, and group size and is confirmed at quoting.
Is Spain South to North suitable for travelers with mobility limitations?
The Alhambra's Nasrid Palaces and Granada's Albaicín involve stepped, uneven terrain, and San Sebastián's coastal stretches add some elevation change. Seville, Madrid, and Logroño are comparatively flat and walkable. Partners should flag mobility limitations at the brief stage; Inbound Spain can add private transport between points across all five bases, though the Alhambra's palace interiors and some Basque coastal paths cannot be substituted with level-access alternatives.
What happens if weather disrupts a day on this program?
The program's spring and fall operating windows avoid the harshest summer heat in Andalusia and the wettest stretches typical of the Basque coast in deep winter. Within the season, Inbound Spain's local team monitors forecasts city by city and can resequence an outdoor day, such as a Rioja vineyard walk or a San Sebastián coastal excursion, against an indoor alternative such as a bodega cellar tour or a covered market visit. There is no separate weather-cancellation policy outside the program's standard terms.
Why does the routing move through Madrid and La Rioja rather than flying directly from Andalusia to the Basque Country?
The program is built as a single overland arc rather than a series of flights, deliberately building in pace and cuisine as it moves north: Moorish Andalusia, the capital, wine country, and the Basque coast each earn their own days rather than being compressed into a connecting stop. Madrid's AVE connections from both Granada and toward La Rioja make it a natural midpoint, and the Rioja-to-San Sebastián leg runs by private coach, the same routing logic behind Inbound Spain's Basque + Rioja program.