Hotel Marqués de Riscal

The Marqués de Riscal hotel occupies the titanium building that Frank O. Gehry built over the Elciego winery, founded in 1858, about 7 km from Laguardia. It is Rioja Alavesa's luxury stay: a night inside the building that can be seen from all over the region, with the winery beneath and the vineyards all around.

Titanium over a winery from 1858

The hotel opened on 10 October 2006 in Marqués de Riscal's City of Wine. Gehry, the architect of the Guggenheim in Bilbao, designed the building, with sheets of coloured titanium and steel, and also the interior decor. It belongs to Marriott's The Luxury Collection and has the Green Key environmental certification.

Sixty-one rooms and a walkway

There are 61 rooms, ten of them suites, spread across two buildings joined by a cantilevered walkway. At the top, a lounge for guests serves as a viewpoint: on one side, La Rioja; on the other, the Basque Country. The winery's website does not publish sizes, types or prices: they are shown when you book on the hotel's page at Marriott.

Francis Paniego's table and the Caudalie spa

There is no need to leave to eat. There are three places: the gastronomic restaurant, with Francis Paniego as culinary adviser; 1860 Tradición; and the Vinoteca & Bistró. The Caudalie Vinothérapie spa works with grape extracts, brown sugar, honey and essential oils, in massages and treatments. The hotel also has a 100-seat auditorium and ten event spaces.

Visiting the winery as a guest

The winery visit is the same one any visitor takes, with a three-wine tasting from €30, but guests do not buy it on the website: it is requested from the reservations department, on 945 180 888 or at [email protected]. The €45 and €60 ones are only for over-18s. The winery opens every day from 10:00 to 19:00.

How it fits into the trip

Elciego is about ten minutes by car from Laguardia; the Alavabus bus does not go there, so you need a car or taxi. The plan Sunday in Laguardia leaves the winery for the afternoon, after the old town. If you prefer a smaller hotel among the wineries, the Hotel Viura, in Villabuena de Álava, is about 6 km away.

Breakfast, parking and children, not published

The winery's website does not publish check-in and check-out times, breakfast, parking or conditions for children. On animals, the winery says they are not allowed on its premises except guide dogs; confirm with the hotel if you are travelling with a dog. Hotel telephone: 945 606 000.