Spain & Portugal Accommodation Guide
- Alex Johnson
- Jun 8, 2024
- 9 min read
Updated: Dec 6, 2024
Special places to stay for a wine loving motorcyclist
After motorcycle touring in Spain & Portugal for 3 weeks in June 2024, these are the standout places I stayed on my trip. A highlight of travelling for me is staying in interesting places, it makes for a far more memorable trip than staying in just any old place. I usually try to pick a place with safe parking and a bar/restaurant so I can just park up and not move for the rest of the evening. I mostly use Booking.com and try and try to keep the cost to £100/€120 per night max. Often there are good discounts if you book within 24 hours of arrival.
Accommodation Recommendations Map - Hotels Pinned in Red
Spain
Hotel Boutique Real Posada De Liena
Location: Riglos area, Huesca
How Much? I paid €90 for a superior room with views of the Riglos (Breakfast is an extra €12)
Fate decided that I would stay in this lovely hotel when high winds forced me further south than planned. Riding south to the hotel on the A132 you're treated to insane views of the somewhat phallic looking Mallos de Riglos rock formations. Myself and two other bikers staying at the hotel had a bit of fun riding up and down tiny little streets in the hillside town trying to find the hotel as Google maps has it in the wrong location. There's no secure parking but I wouldn't worry here and we parked outside the front of the hotel. The hotel seems to be run almost entirely by the 2 owners, the lovely gravelly voiced hostess runs the front of house and used to live in Ireland so she has decent English. It's a charming little hotel and my room had amazing views of the Riglos and there's also a communal balcony where you can sit out to admire them.
The hotel has a fantastic restaurant that looks out on the Riglos and the host is the chef. I was warned that the food portions are generous so I went for an Octopus starter (amazing and enough on its own) and a half portion of chicken with orange and I couldn't come close to finishing it. All the wines in the restaurant come from a great local winery Edra which is 10 minutes away and is available to visit on request. Continental breakfast is served in the restaurant also.
I loved my stay here and I'll definitely be back. There are loads of bikers in the area and for good reason, the roads are great and the TransEuroTrail passes nearby with some long easy going trails heading up round the back of the Riglos to the ruins of Castillo de Marcuello with its epic views.
Last visited: July 2024
Hospedería Santa Fe
Location: 45 minutes east of Pamplona, Navarre
How Much? I paid €110 including breakfast
As luck would have it, I'd just unloaded the bike and a massive thunderstorm started once I'd settled in with a beer. This hotel is a former monastery in what feels like the middle of nowhere. You get the full monastery feel as the rooms are basic and the only thing in the way of toiletries was a small bar of soap. It is however a beautiful place and it was lovely sitting outside watching the storm unfold through the courtyard. I appeared to be the only guest so I ate from the limited bar menu (patatas bravas and local sausage) but they have a restaurant with a more extensive menu. By chance a lively football match between Spain and Germany in the Euros was on so I watched a bit with the barman while I had some guildas and wine at the bar.
There's no secure parking, but bikes should be perfectly safe in the car park out front as it's in a very rural location.
The monastery is well located to visit the nearby gorges of Foz de Arbayún (see photo, you can ride right up to the viewpoint) and Foz de Lumbier (requires a bit of a hike).
An alternative place to stay near enough to here if you want to stay in a monastery is the Monasterio de Leyre which is a lot grander and offers amazing views. I stopped here for lunch the following day and will try and stay there next time I'm in the area,
Last visited: July 2024
Posada Real Castillo del Buen Amor
Location: 15 minutes north of Salamanca
How Much? I paid €105 including breakfast
An incredible 15th-century castle with vineyards, just north of Salamanca. This place is insane, it's a proper castle and it's the first time I've been handed a map at reception to find my way around. I stayed here while travelling from The Douro in Portugal to the Burgos area and there happened to be a wedding in full swing when I arrived. It was considerably cheaper than trying to stay in Salamanca itself on a Saturday night and there weren't many good options available in Portugal at the time. There are a few options for eating - the bar, the terrace and the main restaurant in the basement which is where I went. The restaurant had an excellent menu and a good wine list - I went with a stew followed by octopus. They make their own wine and I had a glass of their red and white with dinner. I got a Jerez brandy from the bar post dinner and sat in the amazing courtyard. There is no secure parking but it is located in a very rural location a few kilometres up a small road so bike security shouldn't be a problem.
Last visited: May 2024
Teatrisso Hotel Palacio
Location: Tirgo, La Rioja Region (15 mins from Haro)
How Much? I paid €150 per night for a deluxe room including breakfast (cheaper options are available), fixed dinner with wine was €36pp
A small 16th century baroque palace that was formerly a theatre, cinema and a barracks. It was painstakingly restored and turned into a boutique hotel. I stayed in a western film themed room, which was funny as I'd literally just ridden from a 5 day "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly" themed motorcycle orienteering event (The VINCE) and there was a poster of the film on the wall of my room. Parking isn't permitted in the old town, but they have a terrace so the hosts may allow you to park your bike in there. I had just swapped my bike for a car as my wife joined me for a few days so I parked in the new part of the town. I stayed 2 nights and a very good fixed menu dinner was available on the Saturday night (€36pp for multiple courses with lots of wine from local producers and a pre dinner drink in the cellar). The Sunday night we had to fend for ourselves, pickings are slim in the village (it has 2 bars which don't seem to do food on Sundays) but the hotel has an honesty bar where you can help yourself to a bottle of wine and some snacks. It is very well located for exploring La Rioja wine region or as as a last night before heading to Bilbao/Santander for the ferry.
Last visited: June 2024
Portugal
Micro Cabana Rotativa, Cepo Verde Campsite
Location: 15 mins west of Braganca on the edge of the Montesinho National Park
How Much? I paid €45 per night (no breakfast included)
In the Cepo Verde campsite they have a single wood cabin facing some woods on the edge of the campsite with your own private bathroom/shower in a nearby building. It's cosy with all your bike gear but very comfortable and a fun novelty. There's power and a radiator in the cabin if you're cold (which it was at the time). The campsite is run by a lovely chap called Telmo, who is an avid biker and there was a lot of bike chat on arrival. There is a bar/restaurant and you can buy bottles of decent wine from the office too. The restaurant has a number of traditional dishes (I went with a hearty boar stew) and the wine by the glass is box wine I suspect so you might be better off buying a bottle. You can get breakfast from the restaurant but they were only starting to open up around 9am so I left without. I stayed here the night before starting the Adventure Country Tracks Portugal route which begins in nearby Braganca.
Last visited: May 2024
Quinta das Aveleiras
Location: Torre de Moncorvo, Douro
How Much? I paid €81 per night (includes basic breakfast hamper)
Quinta das Aveleiras is a winery in the eastern Douro and they have various types of accommodation located above their steep vineyards. I stayed in their chalet 'Pombal", a small private cottage with fireplace high above the top of the vineyards with a fantastic view. It's a steep ride up a small cobbled road with numerous hairpins so it might be a bit scary 2-up on a big heavy bike (I was on a trail bike and it was tricky enough). They leave you a small hamper of bread, tea/coffee, fruit and nuts but it would be best to get some wine and other food from the small supermarket in the town before you head up there (I needed to go down to the shops again which was annoying at the end of a long day). I never got to try their wine as the shop/reception closes at 5pm so it would have been nice to buy a bottle of their wine for the evening. There's a small kitchen if you wanted to cook something simple but I opted for ham/cheese/bread and a bottle of wine while sitting outside and enjoying the view. I did find it very cold in the cottage as it was abnormally cool in Portugal at the time and decided not to bother making a fire.
Last visited: May 2024
Casa Visconde de Chanceleiros
Location: 15 mins from Pinhão, Douro
How Much? I paid €160 per night for a superior room including breakfast, fixed dinner with wine was €50pp
This guesthouse seems to feature in every guidebook and wine tourism guide and with good reason, it's stunning and feels special. This was my biggest splurge of the trip at €160 for a superior room (which was enormous and the cheapest one available) and I needed to book it month's in advance by emailing them. One night definitely didn't feel like enough here and it's the sort of place that would be great to take your partner for a special occasion. It's an 18th century manor house with views across the the vineyards of the Douro valley. There's a pool, jacuzzi and a tennis court which are nestled amongst a stepped rose garden. There's a cute little bar room but that was unnecessary as my room came with a decanter of complimentary Port. I booked ahead for dinner which is a set all inclusive meal including plenty of Douro wine/Port and all guests eat at the same time. The guesthouse is in an excellent location close to some famous wineries including Quinta de la Rosa a few minutes away where I visited the next day. There's no secure parking but it's on a quiet road and I parked next to another bike right outside the front door.
Last visited: May 2024
Quinta da Casa Cimeira
Location: 15mins from Pinhão, Douro
How Much? I paid €90 per night including breakfast, fixed dinner with wine was €35
This is a charming family run guesthouse in a winery in a hilltop village on the south bank opposite Pinhão in the Douro. Staying here was a highlight of my trip and a great spot to spend a rest day so you can sit by the pool and relax (alas I had to go fix my bike during the day instead). Miguel is a wonderful host and a fellow biker. What's great about this place is that all the guests have dinner together at a large table in the evening and drink the wine produced at the winery. It's fantastic if you're a solo traveller or a couple. When I was there there were 3 other Portuguese bikers staying so we all ended up drinking the wine and port from the winery until well after midnight. A fixed multi course dinner with essentially all the wine/port you can drink was just €35. Miguel will open the gates and allow you to park your bike in the courtyard in the middle of the property, I just parked mine in the general car park.
Last visited: May 2024
Casa Das Obras
Location: Manteigas, Serra da Estrela
How Much? I paid €79 per night including breakfast
A stunning villa in a mountain town in the heart of the Serra da Estrela mountain range. This place is gorgeous and full of character with a billiards room, sitting room with original oven in it and lots of other interesting rooms. Breakfast is great and is taken upstairs in an ornate dining room. There are a few restaurants in town for dinner (only a few minutes walk away, I recommend A Cascata). I parked my bike in the street right outside the front door (I got a little paranoid about that when my alarm went off in the night) but I'm sure they'd happily let you put it somewhere safer if you wish. The hostess is a lovely lady with excellent English.
Last visited: May 2024
