Sometimes one must travel a great distance to understand what has been missing.
The small town of Bermeo sits along the Cantabrian coast, just beside Bilbao, no more than an hour and a half from the French border. It is the kind of place where the Atlantic still smells of the real Atlantic ocean. Salt, roughness, something unrelenting. The Basque Country. The boats in the harbour look as though they have been there for centuries. Perhaps they have.
THE HOTEL
You will not find Hotel Nafarrola unless you know where to look. It hides in the green hills above the harbour, between vineyards and oak forests, and those who follow the narrow track uphill and step out of their car find themselves standing in front of a building raised in the thirteenth century. Inside: eight generous rooms only. And a fine-dining restaurant bearing a Michelin distinction. No spa with an infinity pool, no concierge with an iPad. Instead: Josu Goikoetxea, your host.
Josu is one of the two brothers who own the house. He is tall and unhurried, speaks with his hands when he talks about Txakoli (a local wine) and gives the impression of a man who knows precisely where he is and why. His brother Gaizka looks after the kitchen with considerable distinction. Together, they have made something from a ruined family inheritance that has become genuinely rare in hospitality: a wonderfully personal guesthouse.
THE ROOMS
The rooms have fireplaces and terracotta floors and timber beams that bow slightly, as they have done for generations. On the walls hang not prints from a design catalogue but ceramics from the potter’s studio on the neighbouring hill. A whirlpool bath stands beside the window, and when one lies in it at night, the stars above the Atlantic come into view. In several suites, the brothers have cut openings into the roof. Quite nice during the night.
WHAT IS IT LIKE?
Quite wonderful. Really. The night before, you choose your breakfast from a handwritten card. And in the morning, it arrives unhurriedly: fresh eggs from the farm next door, cheese from the dairy in the valley, honey from a beekeeper Josu knows since childhood. Bread that is still warm. One sits on the terrace. Below, barely visible through the canopy, the sea glitters. Utterly magnificent.
The Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve, in which Nafarrola is set, is among the least known landscapes in Spain, which is a minor miracle. The estuary of the Río Oka reaches inland, bordered by reed beds and ancient oak woodland; in spring, migratory birds rest here on their journey northward. Those who paddle a kayak into the stillness of the estuary will understand why Unesco placed this stretch of country under special protection.
The Goikoetxea brothers open doors for their guests that would ordinarily remain shut. Sometimes it is the anchovy factory at Bermeo’s harbour, where women in white coats still work by traditional methods handed down through the generations. Sometimes it is the potter’s studio, whose cups and plates appear on the restaurant tables each evening. Sometimes it is simply a picnic at a spot no walking guide has ever marked, with a glass of Txakoli that Josu has pressed himself.
THE KITCHEN
One could devote an entire paragraph to the Txakoli alone – and perhaps one should. This lightly effervescent, a creative, limited wine from the province of Bizkaia is the opposite of accommodating. It tastes of the Atlantic and of limestone and of that peculiar Basque defiance one finds equally in the architecture, the language, and the food. Dozens of labels from the region lie in the cellars of the house. Josu opens them with the ease of a man who knows that good wine requires no lengthy explanation.
At the restaurant Rola, which by day smells of farmhouse cooking and by evening of something altogether more serious, Gaizka serves a menu he calls the “Ecosystems of Urdaibai.” It is meant literally: each course speaks of a different habitat – the sea, the estuary, the kitchen garden, the forest. The ingredients come from people Gaizka addresses by their first names. The distances are short. The flavours are not.
On the final evening, one lingers on the terrace. The hills grow dark, the sea disappears into the fading light, somewhere a dog barks. Josu arrives with a bottle he has not yet opened and speaks of the winter when it all began: how he and Gaizka decided not to leave, but to stay. How they excavated their grandparents’ house, stone by stone. How long it was before the first booking arrived.
One listens, and realises that for two hours one has entirely forgotten to look at one’s phone.
THE BEACHES
Nafarrola lies barely five minutes from the sea. One of the finest nearby beaches, the Playa de Mundaka – with fine surf and waves on one side – is practically on the doorstep, around twelve minutes from the hotel.
Also worth visiting: Playa de Laga. Scenically one of the most beautiful beaches in the Basque Country, likewise set within the Urdaibai nature reserve. Ideal for kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding, with views out to the rocky island of Izaro.
EXCURSIONS
Hotel Nafarrola makes an excellent base from which to explore the Basque Country. The beautiful city of San Sebastián is an hour and a half away – one might book ahead at Mugaritz, one of the finest restaurants in Europe. Bilbao is well worth a visit, the Guggenheim Museum above all, and lies just fifteen minutes from the hotel.
IDEAL FOR
Those with a taste for the perfect combination of architecture, hospitality, and gastronomy.
BEST TIME TO VISIT
Bilbao rewards a visit in any season, though spring and autumn are particularly pleasant – quieter, and well-suited to making the most of the landscape. The summer months can be warm; the water is mild and the beaches lively. Also rather lovely.
RESTAURANT JOLA
Chef Gaizka’s restaurant, Rola, is open Tuesday to Saturday. At lunchtime, outside guests are welcome to dine here as well.
PRICES
Double rooms from approximately €175 per night, including breakfast.
Booking & Contacts
Hotel Nafarrola
Barrio Artike, 45,
48370 Bermeo – Biscay
Spain
