Arrive in the village of Ábalos, where you'll spend the first three nights. Your host is a wine-maker and oenologist, whose first commercial wine won the prestigious Bacchus de Oro in 2006. If you arrive early there are a couple of way-marked walks nearby. The hotel serves a creative set menu for dinner, accompanied by estate-produced wines.

Meals:  D

The first cycle tour of the program takes you east of Ábalos, into the Basque section of Rioja wine country. Every square inch of fertile soil across this rolling landscape is covered in grapevines and medieval villages sit on hilltops throughout. You'll see historic Laguardia and the wine-making village of Elciego, with architect Frank Gehry's intriguing winery and avant-garde hotel designed for the vintners at the Marques de Riscal Estate. On your way back to Ábalos, the trail is on quiet country lanes through vineyards near Navaridas and Eskuernaga, with the limestone peaks of the Sierra de Cantabria in the distance. Cycling: 35km/21.7mi, ascent/descent 580m/1902ft Villages along the way: Laguardia, Elciego, Navaridas, Eskuernaga

Meals:  B

This morning you pedal south toward the Ebro river and follow its course as it winds to Haro. En route there are lovely spots such as San Vicente de la Sonsierra, with its beautiful Medieval bridge and impressively situated Gothic church. Option to visit the private collection at Vivanco winery: a display of almost everything related to wine-making, of interest to wine enthusiasts and art-lovers alike, with gardens home to over 200 varieties of grapevines. Cycling: 38-45km/23-27.5mi, ascent/descent 285m/935ft Villages along the way: San Vicente, Briones

Meals:  B

Leaving Abalos behind, you cross the Ebro and cycle south through gently rolling terrain with vineyards, fields of grain and orchards. By way of Alesanco and Badarán, you reach the monasteries of Yuso and Suso, set in an open valley at the foot of the Sierra de Demanda. Your accommodation is either a Baroque monastery beautifully renovated into a hotel, situated on the village square in San Millan de la Cogolla (subject to availability, or a characterful 3 star hotel in Badaran). Cycling: 32 or 39km/20 or 24.3mi, ascent 420m/1378ft, descent 300m/984ft Villages along the way: Alesanco, Badarán, Yuso, Suso

Meals:  B,D

The cycle begins with a short stretch back to Badarán then ride along winding country roads toward Santo Domingo de la Calzada, a town on the Camino de Santiago. Leaving the vineyards behind, you cycle into the grain-producing area of the region. A converted railway used to transport coal in the 19th century is now a surfaced cycling path which leads directly to Ezcaray. Here you'll spend the next three nights at a welcoming family-run hotel in the historical town centre. There is aa wide selection of restaurants, bodegas and tapas bars in which to sample the local food and wines. Cycling: 32 or 39km/19.8 or 24mi, ascent 400m/1312ft, descent 325m/1066ft Villages along the way: Santo Domingo de la Calzada

Meals:  B

If a break from the saddle is appealing, there's an optional walk for today, a return route along the Río Oja. If you prefer to stick with wheels, you can cycle into the foothills of the sierra to remote villages which have just a few resident farmers. The stone houses, tinkling cowbells, quiet woodlands and rushing streams come together to create a completely different landscape from the wine country you visited earlier in the week. It's a bumpy track along the left bank of the river and a tarmac road on the way back. Cycle: 20km/12.5mi, ascent/descent 160m/524.8ft or Walk: 20km/12.5mi on foot, ascent 330m/1083ft Villages along the cycle way: Sierra de Demanda, Posada, Zaldierna, Urdante

Meals:  B

Your last day of cycling offers a circular route through waving fields of grain, first through the nearly flat Oja River Valley then up into the hills. Orchards, sunflowers and shady woodlands along the way. Optional visit to Santo Domingo de la Calzada. Return route by way of the Via Verde to Ezcaray. Cycling: 48km/30mi, ascent/descent 300m/984ft Villages along the way: Valle de Oja, Santo Domingo

Meals:  B

Trip concludes after breakfast with a transfer to Santo Domingo bus station to continue your onward travels. Optional transfer available from Ezcaray to Bilbao available - supplement applies, please ask our consultants.

Meals:  B