Day 1 – Welcome to Málaga

Start your trip in Mediterranean Málaga, the gleaming city of the Costa del Sol. Your hotel is right in the heart of the city, just steps away from the museums and lively dining options of the old town. For your welcome dinner, head to family-run seafood specialists Hermanos Alba for your first taste of the catch of the local fishing ports. Don’t neglect the wine list, full of Champagne, rare Burgundy and elite wines from around Spain.

Day 2 – Art, History & Seafood in Málaga

Dive into the culture of Málaga. Start with a visit to the hilltop Alcazaba, an 11th-century Moorish castle-palace. Then, discover the works of Málaga’s Picasso Museum, the centerpiece of the waterfront’s vibrant rebirth. Then, head just outside Málaga for a feast at one of Spain’s great seafood restaurants: Los Marinos José. This restaurant sources the finest fish and seafood from markets up and down the Mediterranean coast of Málaga. Sit down in the elegant dining room for a meal of every kind of shelled, clawed and finned delicacy.

In the evening, head into the center of Málaga to discover the vibrant tapas bars lining the streets. Locals dine on seafood and typical Andalusian dishes washed down with ice-cold local beer and wine from the nearby Málaga mountains.

Day 3 – Mountain Wines in Axarquía

Head out of the city today for an in-depth exploration of the mountain wines of the Axarquía. Here, far above sea level, fine wines are being made: the traditional long-aged sweet Moscatel wines as well as ascendant dry whites.

At Bodegas Antonio Muño Cabrebra, you’ll see traditional winemaking in action and taste dry and sweet wines that for many years have aged in barrel. Then it’s on to Bodegas Bentomiz, an acclaimed project specialized in subtle dry and naturally sweet white wines made from Moscatel. See the vineyards and taste wine before a wine-pairing lunch at the estate.

Day 4 – Ronda Wine & Fine Dining

Leave Málaga behind and make your way to Ronda, a historic jewel of a town that has drawn curious travelers for generations. Ronda is home to one of Andalusia’s most vibrant wine scenes, with the hills and valleys around town dotted with wine estates. Pioneering winemakers brought grapes little seen in Spain like Pinot Noir and Petit Verdot to Ronda and found surprising success in the mountain microclimate found there.

Start your wine experience at boutique Kieninger winery, where Austrian founder Martin Kieninger has been making sustainable wines from French grapes as well as the Austrian grape Blaufrankisch.

Then, the grand winery of Cortijo Los Aguilares, an Andalusian country estate surrounded by Mediterranean woodlands. Cortijo Los Aguilares makes fine wines, including a Petit Verdot and a Pinot Noir, that are each considered among the best in Spain.

Lunch will take you up to the town of Ronda, to Benito Gómez’s 2 Michelin star restaurant Bardal. Bardal is one of southern Spain’s benchmark restaurants, serving tasting menus of visionary Andalusian dishes that have helped pave the way for a new Andalusian cuisine. Pair your menu with wines from a cellar full of fine wines from Andalusia and around the world. Stroll the streets of Ronda before retiring to your countryside hotel: Fuente de la Higuera. This whitewashed estate sits just outside Ronda and offers pure tranquility. Dinner will showcase the products from the estate, including their own olive oil.

Day 5 – Olive Oil & Caviar

The road from Ronda to Granada will give you the chance to stop at two world-class food producers. First up. Finca Latorre near the town of Antequera. Here, some of Spain’s best olive oil is produced. The star olive varieties of Andalusia like Hojiblanca, Cornicabra and Picudo shine in organic, biodynamic oils produced on-site here. After your tasting, it’s on to Spain’s premier caviar house in riverside Riofrío. The cold waters of the river have allowed the visionary owners of this organic caviar farm to raise world-class sturgeon and produce a caviar that can rival any from around the world. You’ll taste several caviars paired, of course, with Champagne.

Onwards to Granada, the last bastion of Moorish rule in Spain, a city of history and atmosphere and hidden corners. Your dinner will take you to a well-hidden jewel at Bar FM. This is a seafood temple, where carefully chosen shellfish from the Mediterranean coast becomes transcendental. Bar FM’s wine list includes wines from a number of Spanish wine regions.

Day 6 – Granada’s Alhambra & Cuisine

Time to explore Granada’s Alhambra, the oasis of the Moorish rulers of the city that sits on a hill overlooking the city. The labyrinthine rooms and patios and gardens can’t help but transport any visitor to another time. Lunch will show you the modern creativity of this food and wine-loving city at Faralá, the first restaurant in Granada to earn a Michelin star. Here, precious tasting menus with local products and inspired by the region’s history. Before dinner, have a drink in the hillside Albaycín district with views of the Alhambra before a wine and tapas dinner at Taberna La Tana in the old town. La Tana is a wine temple in southern Spain, with a cellar full of rare bottles and a wide-ranging selection of wines by the glass to pair with the product-focused tapas on offer.

Day 7 – Departure

Private transfer to the Málaga airport for departure.

A relaxing oasis in the countryside outside of Ronda, Fuente de la Higuera occupies a whitewashed rural property surrounded by palm trees and offering views of the hills and valleys of the area. Expect Persian rugs and cozy decor for a relaxing stay. The outdoor terraces are perfect for a dinner in or a sunset drink, while Ronda’s old town is just a few minutes away by car.

This 5-star hotel occupies a former convent right in the heart of Granada. The rooms retain the atmosphere of the historic building, but the galleries and patios of the hotel truly take you back in time. The on-site El Claustro restaurant serves some of the best locally-inspired cuisine in Granada. Walk out the door and you have the best of the city in front of you, from the historic Albaicín and the Alhambra Palace to all the restaurants and shops you could need.