Beasain, Spain + Add a trip

Automobiles

Unless you remain city-bound, hiring a car is ideal for village-hopping through the Basque countryside and motoring through the mountains. Avis (www.avis.com) and Europcar (www.europcar.com) and Hertz (wew.hertz.com) cover the area comprehensively.

Planes

Seven miles outside the city centre, Bilbao's architecturally impressive Sondika airport is the largest in the region, with direct flights to a number of European hubs, including London Stansted via EasyJet. A half-hourly bus takes travellers into the city; taxis cost around €20. There are smaller airports at San Sebastián and Vitoria, and, on the French side of the border, Biarritz airport has connections to London Gatwick and other UK cities.

Trains

Vitoria is on the daily Paris-Madrid sleeper line and Bilbao's Estación de Abando is connected with larger towns throughout Spain by the Renfe network. The Basque Country is criss-crossed with smaller, more scenic railways, linking Bilbao, San Sebastián, Guernica, and Hendaye on the French side of the border with smaller towns along the coast.

Dialing

For Spain: +34; France: +33.

Reads

Paddy Woodworth's The Basque Country - A Cultural History and The Basque History of the World by Mark Kurlansky are both essential tomes for amateur anthropologists, whereas gastronomes should pick up a copy of Kurlansky's companion volume Cod: A Biography of the Fish That Changed the World which, as well as explaining how the Basques discovered America, is also the most interesting meditation on fish ever written.

Do go / Don't Go

The Basque Country owes its greenery to the fact it's one of Spain's damper regions - the Atlantic fronts bring wind and drizzle throughout the year. July and August are driest, hottest and busiest, so aim for May or September - but still pack an umbrella.

Cuisine

Basques are among the most passionate diners in Spain - and no wonder, when the food here is among the finest on the peninsula. The Atlantic coast means fresh fish are abundant, and salted cod (bacalao) has been a local speciality for centuries. Other regional treats include idiazábal sheep's cheese from Navarra, black cherries from Itxassou, slightly sparkling txakoli wine, and, between January and April, sagardotegi - Basque cider. Every evening at around 7.30pm, locals begin the chatty hour-long txikiteo that sees them meander from bar to bar to sup txikitos (tots of red wine) and nibble on pintxos - the astonishingly varied selection of tapas-sized plates that serve as appetisers for dinner later on.

Taxis

In San Sebastián, Bilbao, Biarritz and other large cities, cabs are easy to flag in the streets or pick up at taxi ranks. In smaller towns, you're best booking ahead. Try Teletaxi Vallina (+34 94 340 4040) or Taxi Donosti (+34 94 346 4646; www.taxidonosti.com) in and around San Sebastián.

Tipping

Tips are not expected, especially for set lunches or tapas, but small change is always welcomed. Service charges are rarely added to restaurant bills, and 10 per cent is considered generous - most locals stick to five.

Currency

Euro (€).

Packing

Stash your surfboard if you plan on riding the waves around the Biscay coast, or your staunchest hiking boots if you want to yomp the Pyrenees. A Basque (Euskara) phrase book will earn you brownie points for extra effort.

Arts

Gehry's Guggenheim in Bilbao is an absolute drop-everything must-see, even if just from the outside (www.guggenheim.org/bilbao). Guarded by Jeff Koon's colossal flower puppy, this sprawling silver swirl of titanium on the riverbank is a staggering architectural achievement, and contains impressive modern artworks. The city of Bayonne brought chocolate to France, using cocoa beans Columbus swiped from the Americas - Biarritz's Musée du Chocolat gives you the full story, as well as ample tasting opportunities (www.planetmuseeduchocolat.com).

And...

Once woven to protect cattle from the sun, characteristically stripy and colourful Basque fabrics are renowned (possibly explaining why Cristóbal Balenciaga chose to make his home in Getaria). The Jean-Vier Basque fabric eco-museum in St Jean de Luz takes you on a tour of textile traditions, with stop-offs in Basque culinary and festival heritage (www.jean-vier.com).

Shopping

Except for a handful of boutiques in Bilbao, the Basque Country isn't likely to worry Milan for the title of fashion paradise any time soon, but if you're on the hunt for gourmet goodies, you're in luck. Most towns have a market specialising in regional foodstuffs, the best are the three-floor, 400-stall Ribera in Bilbao, the Bretxa in San Sebastian, the Almendra in Vitoria and an excellent one held in St Jean de Luz every Tuesday and Friday.

Viewpoint

In San Sebastián, catch the cable car from the end of Ondaretta, which takes you to the top of Mount Igueldo for a bird's-eye view of the city and the half-moon bay of Plaza La Concha by day, or the starlit seascape by night. In France, take the cog railway from the Col St Ignace to the top of La Rhune (www.rhune.com) for spectacular Pyrenees panoramas.

Something

Join in a game of pelota - the locals will welcome your attempts and will happily teach you the rules.

January The people of Oyon celebrate their patron saints Vicente and Anastasio with El revolcon del Katxi, whereby a man in traditional costume rolls through the town, opening two days of music, food, bonfires and general silliness. February Carnaval kicks off throughout the region a week before Ash Wednesday, but Bilbao, San Sebastián and Vitoria party the hardest. March/April Most Basque towns hold Easter celebrations but nowehere throws itself into the occasion like Balmaseda, where the town's inhabitants renact the Stations of the Cross, and the lucky chap playing Jesus has to practise his crucifixion moves for three years before he can don the loincloth. May The streets of Oñati are filled with people marking Corpus Christi with traditional Basque dances, including the lethal-looking sword dance. 24 June The feast of San Juan begins the night before, when bonfires are lit throughout the region. July The three-week International Jazz Festival is hosted by a different town each week, usually Getxo, San Sebastián and Vitoria. August The height of the Basque festival season sees celebrations in one town or another almost every day, including fireworks in San Sebastián and sports, bullfights and heavy drinking in Bilbao, to mark Aste Nagusia. September brings the International Film Festival to San Sebastián, the International Folk Festival to Getxo, and some downright oddness to Lekeitio, when inhabitants mark San Antoliín's feast day by spending a week competing to decapitate a dead goose in record time. (No, really.)