Ezcaray in the Province of La Rioja

Ezcaray is a tourist spa town situated in the region of La Rioja in northern Spain at the foot of the Sierra de la Demanada mountain range.

Its 1,500 population in the low season increases to more than 15,000 in the summer months. Apart from tourism, the towns other main industries involve the use of wood, with factories here producing furniture, coat hangers and many other wooden items.

The Kings of Navarre founded the town in the tenth century with the intentions of settling in the border areas. The 200m tall rock feature, “Pillory San Torcuat”, at the entrance to the valley is what gave the town its name as it comes from the Basque term “Aitz Garai” meaning high rock.

The best way to illustrate the nature of Ezcaray is to describe it as a modest skiing and hiking village with the ski resort of Valdezcaray is only around 5 km away. It is a popular destination for nature lovers and outdoor sports enthusiasts, whatever the time of year as when the snows have gone, fishing, rafting and hiking take off.

Stone and wooden porticoes surround the town square and the beautiful mountain scenery beyond the village is breathtaking. As it is mainly Spanish and French people who visit the area, this is a place which could be described as ‘real’ Spain and, unlike the Costas, it is not often that you will hear English being spoken.

It is a place where the Pilgrim’s Route to Compostela and the Wine Route meet and it would be only be right to sample some of the creative cuisine and noble wines of this most gastronomic of regions which gave its name to some of the finest wine in the world.

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