Highlights of the Basque Country

Meeting the Tour Manager at London St Pancras early this morning, your holiday begins as we board the Eurostar to Paris. From the French capital, we continue by rail to Hendaye in the far southwest of the country. We are then transferred by coach, just across the estuary and the Spanish border, to our base - the attractive coastal town of Hondarribia.

With historic plazas and traditional houses sporting brightly painted wooden shutters and flowerboxes, Hondarribia epitomises the charm and vibrancy of the Basque Country. After checking in to our central hotel for seven nights, we have dinner together this evening.

• Dinner

After breakfast at the hotel, today is free to discover Hondarribia at your own pace. Considered one of the most beautiful spots in the Basque Country, this characterful fishing village has plenty to offer.

Our hotel is in La Marina neighbourhood, close to the port and a few minutes from the beach. The medieval old town (signposted 'Casco Antiguo') can be reached by following the preserved medieval walls up to the castle at the highest point of the village. The 16th-century castle has been restored as a hotel and faces the main square, Plaza de Armas, with the church of Santa María de la Asunción just behind it.

At lunchtime, many places offer a menú del día which is usually a great value way to sample what's in season. Hondarribia has several inviting eateries in the pedestrianised La Marina area. Lined with trees, the district features wooden fishermen's houses, restaurants and bars serving pintxos (a type of tapas unique to the Basque Country). With dinner at leisure tonight, you could search for other specialities including fish soup, tuna and hake.

• Breakfast

This morning, we travel by coach to the beautiful city of San Sebastián for a guided walking tour of the historic sights, followed by free time to explore independently. Enroute, we stop briefly to see striking Jaizkibel, a coastal mountain considered to be the westernmost peak of the Pyrenees.

Known as Spain's culinary capital, San Sebastián is world famous for its cuisine and boasts a glamorous past as a seaside resort nestled around La Concha Bay. After our tour, the afternoon is at leisure, and you could experience San Sebastián's gastronomy for lunch. With the beach easily accessible on foot, you could have a refreshing dip in the sea, or maybe take a boat trip out to the nearby island of Santa Clara. To find out more about local culture, San Telmo Museum in the Old Town is dedicated to Basque culture and history. Despite its modern façade, the original building is a 16th-century Dominican convent, and the oldest museum in the Basque Country.

Later, we return by coach to our hotel with time to relax before dinner.

• Breakfast, Dinner

Today you're at leisure to discover more of Hondarribia or the surrounding area. Set along the estuary of the Bidasoa River which links Spain with France, the sea here is the calmest in the Basque region. If you haven't already discovered it, there's a wide and sandy beach, popular with both locals and tourists. There's a lifeguard, bathrooms, showers and changing rooms, and the beach also has a choice of bars and restaurants.

This evening you could follow local tradition by visiting a number of small bars to sample a variety of pintxo. Although much smaller than San Sebastián, Hondarribia has a burgeoning reputation for great cuisine and the town attracts upcoming chefs who gain valued experience in the town's restaurants. As a result, Hondarribia has a wide variety of restaurants where you can indulge in typical Basque fare.

• Breakfast

Today, we cross the French border by coach to the coastal town of St Jean de la Luz. This lively fishing port in France's southwestern Aquitaine province is known for its beautiful beach and excellent seafood. There is time to look around here and you might like to try the catch of the day for lunch.

This afternoon is a trip on the authentic 1920s rack railway, the Petit Train de la Rhune, to the summit of La Rhune. We join the railway at Col de St Ignace, a few miles from St Jean de la Luz. Travelling in vintage carriages, we rise above forests, ravines and peat bogs on our ascent to the top. From this incredible vantage point, we experience fantastic views of the Pyrenees, across to the Atlantic Ocean and along the Basque coast, from San Sebastián to Biarritz. We may also be able to spot a pottok - a small but hardy pony that lives in this mountainous area.

At the end of the afternoon, we transfer back to our hotel for a three-course dinner.

• Breakfast, Dinner

With another chance to explore at leisure today, you could enjoy a walk along the Hondarribia seafront promenade. From the marina, follow the Butrón Boardwalk along the waterside for wonderful views of the ocean, the estuary and across to Hendaye, on the opposite bank of the Bidasoa River. The Bay Path, or Camino de la Bahia, is a trail of around eight miles that spans the waterfront between the eastern end of Hendaye's beach and Hondarribia's lighthouse.

If you'd like to explore further, there's a bus service to Hendaye, which has a train station with direct connections to French Basque towns such as St Jean de Luz and Biarritz. There's also a ferry service between Hondarribia and Hendaye which takes around 10 minutes.

• Breakfast

This morning, we are taken by coach to visit Bilbao, a modern city with a charming Old Quarter.

Entry is included to the amazing Guggenheim Museum. With its curvy, titanium-clad exterior designed by Frank Gehry, it has become one of the world's most recognisable buildings. Inside, the contemporary gallery features the work of artists including Jeff Koons and Louise Bourgeois and you are free to admire the exhibits at leisure. After viewing the renowned artworks, there is free time to explore Bilbao, which offers plenty of tempting Basque tapas or seafood for lunch. You could wander around the Old Town to uncover its history dating back more than 700 years. Alternatively, visit the Doña Casilda Iturrizar Park which has beautiful gardens, architecture and fountains.

After a coach transfer back to Hondarribia, we gather for our final three-course dinner at the hotel this evening.

• Breakfast, Dinner

This week in the Basque Country has revealed a unique and vibrant side of northern Spain and southwestern France, with a good balance of excursions and time to explore independently. From our base in Hondarribia, we have visited the cultural cities of San Sebastián and Bilbao, ascended La Rhune mountain by nostalgic train, and had the opportunity to embrace the Basque lifestyle in our own way.

After our final breakfast at our hotel, we are taken by coach to Hendaye then travel by rail to Paris. Changing trains in the French capital, we join the Eurostar service to London St Pancras where our journey ends.

• Breakfast