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Ancient caves, human origins: Northern Spain

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29 August 2023 - 7 days - Sold out

May and August 2024 - Register now at tours@newscientist.com and we will contact you with full tour details later this year.

Discover some of the world's oldest known cave paintings in this idyllic part of Spain. Travel back 40,000 years to explore how our ancestors lived, played and worked. 

Experience the wonders of several renowned caves full of art from before the dawn of civilisation including El Castillo, Las Monedas, La Peña Cave, El Pindal and Tito Bustillo in small groups by torchlight. Plus visit the stunning replica of Altamira, the Museo de Evolución Humana and the Archaeological Museum of Santander.

Accompanied by New Scientist's Emily Wilson and Kate Douglas, who will give insight on the dawn of human culture and civilisation. Plus with local archaeological experts and cave custodians, you’ll enjoy specialist talks and walking seminars along the way.

You will also discover local cuisine and explore the beautiful towns and cities: Santander, Santillana del Mar, Oviedo and Bilbao including a visit to the famous Guggenheim Museum.

In partnership with Intrepid Travel


 

DAY 1: ARRIVAL INTO BILBAO AND MEET THE TOUR LEADERS

After checking in to the Hotel Silken Indautxu in central Bilbao, you will meet the tour leader, accompanying expert and your fellow guests, followed by a tour briefing.

You will then be led on an exploration of the pedestrianised Old Quarter and enjoy a tapas meal with your fellow guests. The Old Quarter is the original city from the year 1300 and contains stunning examples of churches and monuments, as well as containing a lively culinary scene.

DAY 2: MUSEUM OF HUMAN EVOLUTION IN BURGOS AND THE FIRST EVENING TALK

After breakfast, you will travel to Burgos to visit the Museo de Evolución Humana. The museum covers the archaeological and palaeontological history of the surrounding Atapuerca mountains, the many stages of human evolution and the story of Charles Darwin's exploration around the world that led to the theory of evolution. You will enjoy lunch in Burgos and time to wander around this beautiful city before returning to Bilbao.

As well as highly knowledgeable local guides and a dedicated tour leader, between days 1 and 6 of the tour, you will be accompanied by an expert from New Scientist. Editor-in-chief Emily Wilson in June and Features Editor Kate Douglas in August,  who will give presentations and walking briefings on advances in the wider world of archaeology, and what we are learning about the dawn of civilisation and culture. Tonight, you will enjoy the first talk, followed by dinner together.

DAY 3: EL PINDAL AND TITO BUSTILLO CAVES THEN OVIDEO AND A CIDER HOUSE

In the morning, you will visit the caves of El Pindal, containing the first palaeolithic cave paintings discovered in the region. The most notable of which is a woolly mammoth

Some of the smaller caves you will visit are well off the tourist trail, have irregular opening hours and are managed by local custodians without the usual tourist infrastructure. Therefore, there may have to be changes in the itinerary as the tour progresses. Your tour leader will keep you informed and a flexible attitude will help you get the best out of the tour. During some of the visits, the tour leader will be translating on your behalf if the local custodian doesn't speak English.

After lunch in the charming coastal town of Ribadesella you will visit the Tito Bustillo cave. Due to a landslide at the entrance, the cave was sealed thousands of years ago, thus preserving its contents of tools and paintings, the oldest dating back 33,000 years. 

In the late afternoon, you will check into the Hotel Fruel and then have time at leisure to explore the charming town of Oviedo with its historic quarter and gothic cathedral.

The evening dinner will be in a traditional Spanish cider house.

DAY 4: PEÑA DE CANDAMO CAVE AND SANTILLANA DEL MAR

After breakfast, you transfer to Candamos and visit the Peña cave. It is a large cave with rooms leading off it and it contains several different panels of art dating back 18,000 years and covering several species.

You will continue on to Santillana del Mar, where you will visit the old city and check into a traditional style hotel. There is an old saying that Santillana del Mar is The Town of Three Lies, since it is neither a Saint (Santo), nor flat (llana), nor is it by the sea (Mar) as implied by its name. But it does have many historic buildings, which provide a fascinating backdrop to exploring this town. In the evening, there will be a second talk followed by dinner.

DAY 5: LAS MONEDAS AND EL CASTILLO CAVES THEN THE ALTAMIRA CAVE REPLICA

To start the day, you will enjoy a private visit to the caves of Las Monedas and El Castillo to see paintings up close. El Castillo contains one of the oldest known cave paintings, dated as more than 40,000 years old.  Located in Puente Viesgo, it is situated in a limestone hill, which hides an intricate labyrinth of caves frequented by prehistoric humans.

In the afternoon, you will transfer to the replica of the Cave of Altamira. During the 1970s, the original cave paintings were damaged by a large number of visitors. A replica cave and museum opened in 2001, reproducing the cave and its art to excellent effect. Aside from the quality of the art found here, it was one of the first European cave paintings found that suggested prehistoric origin.

Afterward, you will return to Santillana del Mar for a third talk and group dinner.

DAY 6: ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF SANTANDER AND THE GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM

After breakfast, you will travel east to Santander to visit the Archaeological Museum, which houses an array of artifacts, interactive guides and vivid interpretations of stone age life. 

You will then journey back along the coast to Bilbao, stopping for lunch on the way. On arrival, you will visit the world-famous Guggenheim Museum to view modern and contemporary art in this stunning Frank-Gehry-designed building, an awe-inspiring monument to design modernism. 

After checking back into the Hotel Silken Indautxu, there will be a farewell evening meal together.

DAY 7: DEPART BILBAO

After breakfast, there will be a group transfer to the airport or we can arrange for you to stay on for a few more nights to enjoy Bilbao.

 

NO FLY OPTION

If you would prefer not to fly from the UK, we suggest you look at taking the overnight ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao.

Register now and we will contact you soon with full tour details

Register

Register now and we will contact you soon with full tour details

Register

Highlights

  • Visit historically import caves including Las Monedas, El Castillo, El Pindal, Tito Bustillo and Peña.
  • Explore the Museo de Altamira and its exact replication of the nearby Altamira caves
  • Talks and walking seminar’s from accompanying experts.
  • Tapas in Bilbao's Old Quarter and also a traditional cider house.
  • The Guggenheim Museum
  • Museo de Evolución Humana
  • Archaeological Museum of Santander

Meet the expert

New Scientist Default Image13 June - Emily Wilson is the Editor-in-Chief of New Scientist magazine. She lives in Cerne Abbas, and in her spare time, she explores the Dorset countryside hunting for prehistoric stone tools. Her first novel, set in ancient Sumer, the world’s first known civilisation, will be published in August 2023.

New Scientist Default Image

29 August - Kate Douglas has been a feature editor at New Scientist for three decades. Before that, she worked at the Turkish Times in Istanbul and at the Royal Society, London, where she helped launch a popular science magazine called Science and Public Affairs. In 2006, she was rapporteur for the European Commission expert group exploring “What it means to be human”. She has edited and written numerous articles on human evolution, including a book chapter called “The art of survival: evolution and the reasons for art”, published in 2021.

WHAT’S INCLUDED

  • Entry to all sites & attractions
  • English-speaking tour leader throughout
  • Talks and walking seminars from accompanying experts.
  • All accommodation and internal transport
  • All breakfasts and dinners plus 2 lunches
  • 24-hour support
  • Group transfers to/from Bilbao airport

WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED

  • International arrival/departure flights
  • Travel insurance
  • Tips
  • Single supplement £390 (£425 in August)

PACE & PHYSICALITY

While this isn’t a hiking expedition, this tour is not suitable for guests with mobility challenges.  Because of the remote location and nature of some the caves, we would strongly recommend sturdy footwear and that you also consider walking poles. There will be walking off-road and on cobbled streets. You need to be comfortable ascending and descending on trails. One of the caves has over 300 steps and can be slippy whilst in another you will be walking 250 meters on uneven flooring.

Accommodation

Hotel Silken Indautxu, Bilbao (June)

A 4-star hotel in the heart of Bilbao and only 14-minutes walk from the Guggenheim museum and the river. It has a restaurant based on traditional Basque cuisine made from local ingredients, a tapas restaurant and live music pub.

Hotel Hotel Sercotel Coliseo, Bilbao (August)

A four-star hotel that occupies Bilbao's formera opera house in the heart of the city and close the the Guggenheim Museum.

Hotel Colonial de Santillana

A recently renovated historic building that is now a family-run hotel with just 15 rooms and lots of character. Located in the middle of the historic quarter of the medieval town of Santillana del Mar, which has been declared a national monument and is only open to pedestrians. 

Hotel Fruela, Oviedo

A relatively small and simple hotel with modern décor based in the heart of the charming old town of Oviedo, the capital city of the ancient kingdom of Asturias.