Posada de Urreci: An Idyllic Escape in Rioja's Countryside

This lovely inn was our most-treasured discovery in Spain!

Have you ever had the experience of discovering an absolutely charming country inn quite by chance?

One that is hidden away in a gorgeous rural landscape, far from the noise and stress of city streets where tourist crowds jostle with each other and travel influencers snap pictures of themselves in front of one monument after another?

One where you can eat delicious vine-ripened fruits and vegetables plucked out of the garden just before a meal is prepared? Where you can watch a myriad of stars twinkling in the night sky, hike along ancient trails, and simply breathe deeply?

That is what happened to Gerhard and me the first time we visited Spain in September 2023.

Our plan was to take the ferry from Rosslare, Ireland, to Bilbao, Spain, and then spend three weeks exploring Spain’s Pyrenees Mountains, the Mediterranean coastline of France, and Lake Garda in Italy. We wanted to be able to come and go when and where we felt like in the moment, so we only booked a room for the first night on the day that we arrived in Spain.

Although our overall goal was to head to the Pyrenees as soon as possible, I suggested that we first explore the province of Rioja, which is just south of Bilbao, because both Gerhard and I love Riojan wine. So I researched places to stay on Booking.com and came up with something called the Posada de Urreci, which is located in the hamlet of Aldeanueva de Camaros in the southern part of the province.

Unfortunately, due to the ferry schedule, we arrived on a Sunday and quickly discovered that most wineries are closed that day! So after a not very eventful stop at a wine bar in Haro, we just drove on to Posada de Urreci.

The Posada

The final part of the journey to the posada entailed a narrow, winding, rural road that was fairly far from any major-sized community.

Upon our arrival, we saw that the village consisted of just a few ancient stone houses and a church. Our host, Luis, later told us that the village has a year-round population of just three people! These include Luis and his wife, Margarita, as well as Aniceto, who was a cattle farmer before becoming a civil guard and is now retired. Most of the families who own the other houses live and work elsewhere and only return on holidays.

We also discovered that cars park on the edge of the hamlet and that visitors need to carry their luggage over fairly rough ground about 200 yards to the inn.

But it was all worth it.

Entrance to the village

Entrance to the Posada de Urreci

As we entered the heart of the village with our luggage, Luis waved at us from the upstairs bedroom of his nearby house, then came downstairs to greet us. We learned that he could speak Spanish and French, plus a little English. Thankfully, he welcomed my attempts to dredge up some Spanish from deep within my memory banks!

Luis explained that he serves dinner every night to his guests—which sounded wonderful to us because it would have been a long slog to drive somewhere else to find a restaurant—especially one that was open on a Sunday night. After discussing the dinner options (we could choose from three mains), he showed us to our room.

Our bedroom

Our bedroom was on the second floor (first floor if you are from Europe), with thick stone walls, a low ceiling with dark wooden beams, wooden floors, and a comfortable bed. The bathroom also had a similarly rustic feeling, along with a lovely pink hollyhock flower on a wooden bench near the window.

After getting settled in our bedroom, Gerhard and I began to explore the house, surrounding gardens, and the village itself. The house had two comfortable living spaces, with games, books and videos available for guests.

The garden

Just outside the house was a peaceful small garden with a seating area. To Gerhard’s delight, it also had a friendly cat who happily took up residence on his lap.

Just beyond this garden was an amazing vegetable garden, filled with all kinds of delicious fruits and vegetables.

The village

Ancieto, who was the only other person whom we encountered in the village, liked to sit in front of his house in the sun. (You can just see his knees in the doorway.) His house was separated from the posada by a beautiful stone bridge over a small stream.

Dining

The dining room was bright and cheerful. I loved the thick stone walls underneath the window next to our dining table.

Breakfast

Breakfasts were delicious. They consisted of homemade pastries; bread from a wood oven; cheese, ham, sausages and butter from local vendors; eggs made to order; and fresh fruit, orange juice and coffee.

Dinner

Luis and Margareta decided on the menu each day depending on what was available in the garden, the mountains, the river, and the local market and producers. They gave us a dinner menu at breakfast that always had three options for starters and mains, plus a desert. We made the decision in the morning and were served the tasty results in the evening.

Luis also had several delicious varieties of wine from which to choose, so we achieved our goal of tasting Riojan wines after all!

We liked Posada de Urreci so much that we arranged to spend another night there. This gave us a whole day to explore the surrounding area—especially the awe-inspiring Parque Natural Sierra de Cebollera, which I will write about soon.

In the end, the Posada turned out to be one of the highlights of our entire trip, and it is one of the places we will return to when we visit Spain again.