A Taste of Iberia

10 days

Porto, Santiago de Compostela, Oviedo, Bilbao

Program description: This program focuses on delving deep into Iberia’s regional diversity and vibrant culinary landscape. Learn about how centuries worth of history, migration and language influenced the preparation and significance of certain foods to these cultures. Experience unique landmarks while authentically engaging with local communities and engaging firsthand in their evolving and innovative food scenes.

Cultural highlight: Whether it’s referred to as “marmelada” in Portuguese or “marmelo” in Galician dialect, dulce de membrillo or quince fruit paste is an iconic Iberian ingredient to seek out, sample and take home.

🔹 Curated experiences: Every program is intentionally designed to feature guided learning, cultural engagement, and independent exploration experiences to drive global competency development, denoted on each itinerary with a blue diamond. Learn more about these experiences.

Image displaying map describing the itinerary of the A Taste of Iberia tour

Day 1: Fly overnight to Portugal

Day 2: Porto

Meet your Field Director at the airport

Take a walking tour of Porto, a coastal city known for its famous Port wine, with your Field Director

Enjoy dinner in Porto

Day 3: Porto

🔹 Guided learning: Tour Porto with an expert local guide

Visit Torre dos Clérigos, a cathedral located in the center of Porto and one of its most recognizable symbols

🔹 Independent exploration: Spend time exploring Porto on your own

Add this in-depth excursion:

Douro River Cruise & Wine Cellar

Take a cruise on the Douro River, roughly translating to River of Gold—and you'll see why when the light catches the river at just the right angle. After your cruise, visit a wine cellar to learn about the process of wine making and what makes these varieties from Porto so special.

Day 4: Porto • Santiago de Compostela

Travel via Horreos de Combarro to Santiago de Compostela

🔹 Cultural engagement: Take a boat excursion to a mussel farm and learn about one of the region's most popular ingredients

Take a walking tour of Horreos de Combarro with your Field Director and discover a center of culinary history, both past and present

Tonight, enjoy a traditional Galician dinner, which is known for it’s fresh seafood, octopus, and hearty stews

Day 5: Santiago de Compostela

Take an excursion to Finisterre, or "the end of the world," at one of the most western points on the Iberian Peninsula

With a local guide, visit the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, the last stop on the 30-day Way of St. James pilgrimage route still taken by adventurous hikers

Day 6: Santiago de Compostela • Oviedo

Take a walking tour of Oviedo with your Field Director

Visit the Oviedo Cathedral, a great example of hybrid architectural styles dating back to 781 AD

Tonight, enjoy Asturian cuisine with Cachopo: deep fried veal cutlets topped with ham, cheese, and vegetables

Day 7: Oviedo • Bilbao

Travel to Bilbao

🔹 Cultural engagement: Visit a local cheese farm in Bilbao and learn what makes the northern region of Spain's cheese unique

Enjoy lunch at a local sidreria, or ciderhouse, where food is accompanied with cider self-served straight from the barrel it was brewed in

Day 8: Bilbao

Take an excursion to San Sebastian, a lively city located along the coastline boasting renowned restaurants and pintxo bars serving regional specialties

Free time in San Sebastián

Day 9: Bilbao

🔹 Guided learning: Tour Bilbao, one of the largest cities in northern Spain, with an expert local guide

Spend time exploring the Guggenheim Museum of modern and contemporary art

Enjoy free time in Bilbao

Participate in a Pintxos cooking class, the Basque version of Spanish tapas served on skewers, and enjoy it for dinner

Day 10: Depart for home