8 Wonderful Things to Do in La Rioja, Spain

The #1 thing to do in La Rioja is to tour the wineries and taste the amazing wines that are produced here. But there are also small towns to be explored, new foods to try, and a few off the beaten path experiences to add into your itinerary, if you want to do more than taste wine.

The breathtaking landscapes, the wine, the food, and the small towns and villages of La Rioja come together to create a gorgeous region of Spain that is a delight to explore.

Join us as we uncover the must-have experiences that make this region so special.

Table of Contents

Best Things to Do in La Rioja

1. Visit the Wineries & Bodegas

Visiting a winery or two is an essential experience to have in the Rioja wine region.

The wineries, also called bodegas, range from large, historic estates to smaller, family run properties. Some have hilltop settings, offering fabulous views over the rolling hills and vine-covered slopes, while others feature underground tunnels and caves, the perfect environment for aging and storing Rioja wine.

At these wineries, you can take a tour, do a tasting, have lunch or dinner, and at some you can spend the night.

Best Wineries in the Rioja Wine Region

We spent a week touring the wineries in the Rioja wine region and have quite the list of places to visit. For the full list, plus a lot more information about each winery, take a look at our guide to the Best Wineries in the Rioja Wine Region ↓

Rioja Wine Region

15 Wineries to Visit in the Rioja Wine Region of Spain

15 of the best wineries in the Rioja Wine Region and what makes each of them special.

Here are a few of our favorites.

Marqués de Murrieta. Marqués de Murrieta is one of the oldest wineries in Rioja. They produce award-winning wine and their wine bar is recognized as one of the best in Spain. We recommend doing a tasting at the wine bar and adding on some tapas for a gourmet food experience.

Bodegas Lecea. This small, family run winery is the perfect place to learn about traditional Rioja wine making methods and tour underground cellars.

Bodegas Conde de los Andes. This winery is home to the largest network of underground cellars in the Rioja wine region. Walking this maze of tunnels is one of the most unique experiences in Rioja. Plus, you get the chance to walk in the footsteps of Ernest Hemingway, who also visited this winery.

Conde de los Andes Underground Wine Cellar

Bodegas Conde de los Andes

Ysios Winery. With its modern architecture, this is one of the most iconic wineries in the Rioja wine region.

Bodegas Tritium. This is one of the most creative wineries in the Rioja wine region. We loved the tour and wine tasting, plus this winery produces some of our favorite wine in the region.

Bodegas Gómez Cruzado. This is our favorite winery in Haro. We loved the in-depth wine tasting, which took us through a variety of red and white wines, as well as olive oil. Add on a few tapas for the best experience.

2. Go on a Bodega Wine Crawl in Haro

Haro is a small town in the Rioja Alta subdivision of the Rioja wine region. This small historic town is home to some of the biggest and best-known names in Rioja wine. They are all clustered together, literally just steps away from each other, so spending an afternoon (or all day!) hopping from one to the other is one of the best things to do in Rioja.

On this list are Muga, CVNE, Roda, La Rioja Alta, Bodegas Gómez Cruzado, and Viña Tondonia.

The tasting room in Bodegas Gómez Cruzado

La Rioja Alta

Park at Parking Barrio de las Bodegas and you will be on the doorsteps of these wineries. You can also go into town for lunch or dinner, although some of the wineries serve tapas.

Haro makes a very convenient place to stay in Rioja, with its nice list of hotels, restaurants, and it has a train station.

3. Vivanco Museum of Wine Culture and Winery

Vivanco is a vineyard, wine bar, museum, gift shop, and restaurant. A visit here is well worth an hour or two while in Rioja, and with its multiple venues, offers something for everyone.

The museum is very well laid out. On display in its six rooms are exhibits covering 8,000 years of wine history. Highlights for us were seeing works of art by Joan Miró and the massive number of corkscrews on display.

Another highlight is having a glass of wine or a bite to eat on the outdoor terrace, which overlooks the vineyard. No reservation is necessary.

The gift shop is quite extensive. Taste wine at the wine bar and purchase wine related souvenirs and gifts to take home.

Briones (photo taken from the museum parking lot)

Vivanco is located in Briones. Learn more about this museum and winery on the official website.

4. Laguardia

Laguardia is a beautiful town that is located in Rioja Alavesa in the Basque region of Spain. This hilltop town is a delight to explore. In Laguardia, stroll the narrow, picturesque streets, photograph the fortified walls and gates that surround the town, visit the Church of Santa María de los Reyes, see the clock in Plaza Mayor, and see the Abacial Tower.

Plaza Mayor

Mayor de Migueloa

One of the most interesting things to do in Laguardia is to visit its underground cellars. A maze of underground cellars connects many wineries together. Bodegas Carlos San Pedro Perez de Viñaspre offers wine tours plus a visit to their underground cellar. We had a wonderful lunch at Mayor de Migueloa, which also has an underground cellar to visit.

Eguren Ugarte, Bodegas Ysios, and Bodegas Solar de Samaniego are all located near Laguardia.

5. Tapas Crawl in Logroño

Logroño is the capital city of La Rioja. This city feels rather large and sprawling compared to the towns of Laguardia, Haro, and Eltziego, but Logroño has a small, historic city center that is well worth the visit.

Calle del Laurel is Logroño’s most famous street. This short, narrow street is lined with tapas restaurants, and doing a tapas crawl here is one of the top things to do in Rioja. The neighboring streets, such as Calle San Juan, are also worth a quick visit.

6. Visit Marqués de Riscal

Herederos del Marqués de Riscal is one of the oldest wineries in Rioja. In 2006, a hotel was added to the property. Designed by Frank O. Gehry, who also designed the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbão and the Dancing House in Prague, this unique hotel features colorful metal sails, and it is a sight to see.

It is worth the visit to see this iconic hotel. On a visit here, you can do a wine tasting in the tasting room, take a tour of the cellars, have dinner at one of several restaurants in the City of Wine, and stay at the hotel.

This is where we stayed on our visit to the Rioja wine region. From our room, we had a breathtaking view of the tiny town of Eltziego. This hotel has a great central location in Rioja, and from here it was a relatively short drive to Haro and Logroño.

The view from our room

7. Visit a Monastery

There are two monasteries located near one another, in San Millán de la Cogolla. Both are on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The Monastery of San Millán de Yuso dates back to the 11^th century. The Monastery of San Millán de Suso dates back to the 6^th century.

To get here and visit both monasteries, plan on spending about half of day. The visit to the Suso Monastery needs to be arranged in advance by phone. Learn more on the official website.

8. See Birds of Prey at Tierra Rapaz

This makes it onto a lot of things to do in Rioja lists. Tierra Rapaz is a nature park that cares for birds of prey that have been injured. Visitors can watch birds of prey demonstrations and learn more about the animals being cared for at the park.

Tierra Rapaz is located in Calahorra, in the far eastern section of the Rioja wine region, about a 45-minute drive from Logroño and an hour and 10-minute drive from Haro.

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The Rioja Wine Region: On a Map

How to Use This Map: Click the tab in the top left corner of the map to see a list of the points of interest and to turn layers on/off. Click the icons on the map to get more information about each point of interest.

To take this map with you, click the star next to the title of the map which adds it to your Google account. Next, within your Google Maps app, select ‘Saved’ and then select ‘Maps’. This map title will now appear in your list.

Visit More Wine Regions Around the World

FRANCE: Spend 3 days on the Alsace Wine Route, visiting small towns like Colmar, Eguisheim, and Ribeauville.
FRANCE: Spend 10 days in the French Riviera and Provence.
ITALY: Go wine tasting in the hill towns of Tuscany – get the full list of things to do in our Tuscany Bucket List. In Sicily, visit the vineyards on the slopes of Mount Etna in the Etna Wine Region.
PORTUGAL: Visit the best wineries in the Douro Valley and plan your Douro Valley day trip from Porto.
AUSTRALIA: Go wine tasting in Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale.
NEW ZEALAND: Visit New Zealand’s largest wine region, the Marlborough Wine Region on the South Island.
CHILE: Visit the wine regions around Santiago, Chile.
ARGENTINA: Explore the wine regions in Mendoza, Argentina.

If you have any questions about the best things to do in Rioja, Spain, let us know in the comment section below.

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