Don Quixote blends the quintessence of Golden Age Spain, blurring poetry and fantasy into a surrealist adventure you can experience on your 8-day Spain tour. Specially handcrafted to celebrate the 400-year anniversary of author Miguel de Cervantes' death, this journey reveals what from history and legend remains unchanged. You'll live out a knightly story, paying tribute by immersing yourself in the tales of La Mancha.
Customizable Itinerary
Day 1
Madrid – Don Quixote and Sancho Panza Watching You Walk By
Miguel de Cervantes is remembered in the heart of Madrid. A towering statue of Don Quixote and his squire Sancho Panza stand on the Plaza de España. There's an air of mischief and indomitability to Quixote's pose, the fictional hero cast in the compelling bronze of fairytale. Seated above the pair is Cervantes, the legendary storyteller offering a gaze of contemplation. He's master of his realm, able to blur the distinctions that mark the lines of fantasy. To one side sits a peasant woman, Aldonza Lorenzo, while to the other sits the idealized and beautiful Dulcinea del Toboso. Together, they form the surreal image of Don Quixote's true love, representing both the knightly reward for reviving chivalry as well as the connection with La Mancha's village roots.
You'll be greeted at the airport and transferred to a five-star, boutique hotel set in the heart of old-world Madrid. After time to freshen up, you'll spend two hours visiting the city's most important landmarks, culminating in the monument to Cervantes and his immortal characters. An expert Cervantes guide conducts the tour, helping to unravel the complexities of both his stories and his life. Tradition comes alive as the bronze Quixote watches you walk by, your guide starting to open the chapters of one of the most influential writers in world history. 400 years from his death, Cervantes continues to remain as important today as he was in the early 17th century. At the time, many authors expertly moved readers to another place; Shakespeare, who died on the same day as Cervantes, is a prime example. But this great Spanish author began to take readers into another realm.
What's Included:
Day 2
Madrid to Alcala de Henares to Madrid – Miguel de Cervantes's Hometown and a Literary Tapas Tour
Day 3
Esquivias to Consuegra to Almagro – A Quixotic Journey to Windmills and Paradors
Day 4
Almagro – Live Don Quixote Performance in a 17th-Century Theater
Day 5
Calzada de Calatrava to Valdepeñas to Torrenueva – Wine and Castles in La Mancha
Day 6
Torrenueva – Deep Inside Cervantes' La Mancha
Day 7
Tomelloso to Madrid – A Unique Brandy Cellar and a Private Cooking Classes
Day 8
Madrid – Departing Don Quixote's Surreal World
Trip Highlights
- Discover the Spain of Miguel de Cervantes' imagination, taking a surrealist journey through the sights that inspired Don Quixote
- Private visit to a 16th-century Windmill, where travelers can enter it and witness how it operates and grinds flour (that they can then take home as souvenirs)
- Enjoy a Cervantes-inspired tapas tour through Huerta in Madrid, mixing traditional food with the tales of Spain's Golden Age writers
- Explore Cervantes' hometown and his noble upbringing at the fabulous UNESCO World Heritage City, Alcalá de Henares
- Relive Don Quixote's adventures with a live performance at an early 17th-century open-air theater
- Journey through the heart of La Mancha, admiring medieval landscapes that blur into the fictional; picture olive plantations, cobbled villages, lost castles, and the scent of musky brandy cellars
- Immerse yourself in the Golden Age with premier five-star accommodations, including two nights in a delightful 16th-century Parador castle
- Commemorate the 400th anniversary of Cervantes' death by visiting his final resting place along with the various locations he has lived and worked at
- Connect with the sublime tastes of traditional Spain, including a private cooking class and visits to boutique bodegas (wineries)
- Travel with an expert Cervantes guide and discover the inspiration behind the famous first line: “Somewhere in la Mancha, in a place whose name I do not care to remember”
Detailed Description
Don Quixote is a literary masterpiece of surrealism, immersing the reader in a blur of myth and poetry. 2016 marks the 400-year anniversary of author Miguel de Cervantes's death, yet the Spain of his imagination remains very much alive. Immerse yourself in his home region of La Mancha, and you will discover that quaint traditions and quixotic tales continue to dominate the landscape. You'll find a version of old-world Spain from the fables, one of the giant windmills, boutique bodegas, majestic paradors (luxury hotels in converted historic buildings), and streets of intriguing cobblestone. As you explore Cervantes' life and times, you capture the untamed spirit of Quixote's idealistic fairytale. By settling into the rhythm of La Mancha, the destinations feel absolutely fictional. And that's the great tribute to both Miguel de Cervantes and the Spanish Golden Age; the hypnotic ability to transport you into another realm.
This luxury Spain tour has been uniquely crafted as a tribute to Miguel de Cervantes on the 400-year anniversary of his death. An expert literary guide leads you from Madrid to La Mancha and the glory of Spain's Golden Age. You'll recreate the knightly tales by traveling through rural landscapes, as well as exploring significant places from Cervantes' life. Five-star accommodations continue your immersion in a medieval era, including two nights in a wonderful parador castle. Much like Quixote and Cervantes, food and drink play an important part. Think tapas trails, ancient brandy cellars, and culinary feasts delivered to al fresco terraces. Transfers are in a luxury saloon vehicle, and the pace is relaxed, yet compelling enough to spur a turn of the page.
Recreate the swashbuckling adventure in Madrid, where Quixote and Sancho Panza gaze down in immense sculptured form. On a day trip to the World Heritage Site Alcala de Henares, you receive an intimate perspective into the author's hometown. The following evening, traditional tapas dishes blend with literary history as you wander through Huerta, an area made famous by many Golden Age writers. Then, you come face to face with the windmills Quixote mistook for giants, along with the cute village where Cervantes penned much of his masterpiece. As you move through the region, you explore castles, homemade cuisines, vast untamed landscapes, and ancient open-air theaters that still perform Don Quixote productions. From Almagro to Valdepenas to Torrenueva, you journey into the heartbeat of La Mancha, each seductive stop another chapter detailing famous knightly acts of chivalry.
The following nights are spent deep within this landscape, with unique vineyards and paradors offering space to reflect on how mystery blurs into fantasy. While Cervantes writes about the “place whose name I do not care to remember,” you're seduced by the fairytale image of old-world Spain, one that continues to persist in the memory. Landscapes come straight from the author's narrative, revealing the subtleties and charms of La Mancha's deepest soul. Cervantes' greatest ability was to make an idealistic world seem real; so on the 400-year anniversary of his death, this tribute tour offers a journey into a surrealistic realm within Spain's ancient world.
Starting Price
$7,100 per person (excluding international flights)
What's Included
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