| Leg | How | Time | Approx |
|---|---|---|---|
| SFO → Porto | fly 1-stop (via Lisbon) | ~16h | booked |
| Porto → Douro (Pinhão) | train the scenic line (sit right) | ~2h | ~€15 |
| Douro → Porto (return) | train same scenic line, reverse | ~2h | ~€15 |
| Porto → San Sebastián | fly Vueling OPO→BIO, 4:25–6:40pm + bus PESA coach 7:15pm | ~4h15m total | $143 + €13.65 (booked) |
| San Sebastián → Getaria | bus Lurraldebus UK10/11, or taxi | ~45m | ~€3 / ~€45 taxi |
| San Sebastián → Rioja (Laguardia) | driver private, not yet booked | ~1h45m | ~€180–450 est. |
| Rioja → Bilbao | driver private, not yet booked (same booking covers both legs) | ~1h15m | included above |
| Bilbao → Madrid → SFO | fly Iberia, tight connection — ~5am taxi to BIO | ~13h total | booked |
Saily Europe Unlimited — one regional profile covers Portugal and Spain, no change when you cross on Aug 7. $49 / 15 days. Install at home on wifi before you fly (install ≠ activate — the clock starts when it first connects on landing). Keep the Verizon line on for incoming SMS and 2FA, but turn its cellular data OFF so it can't trigger a TravelPass day.
You land Aug 2 and fly out 06:45 on Aug 17 — so 15 days runs out end of Aug 16 and the departure morning is uncovered. Probably fine (4:30am taxi, hotel wifi, then airport wifi), but decide it deliberately. If Saily has a 20- or 30-day tier for ~$10 more, take it. Otherwise top up in-app late in the trip.
Fair-use: 3GB/day at full speed, then throttled until the 24-hour cycle resets. A heavy day here is under 1GB, so you've got ~3× headroom — and the throttle isn't a cutoff, maps and WhatsApp still work. One habit to keep on wifi: full-resolution photo/video backup is the only realistic way to burn 3GB in a day.
It's $12/day in Europe now. Across 16 days that's ~$192 — the most expensive option available, and the one you fall into by doing nothing. Verizon's own International Monthly Plan is $100 flat and they recommend it for trips over 9 days; if you want zero setup, take that and still save ~$92.
Unlimited data doesn't help where there's no signal. Your My Maps layers only render online — Google can't cache custom maps on mobile at all — and the Douro valley is patchy on every network. Download the offline areas in Google Maps for Porto, Pinhão, San Sebastián, Logroño/Haro and Bilbao before you fly. Base map, search and navigation then work regardless.
Label both lines (Verizon / Saily) so you never text off the wrong one. Saily = default for cellular data. Verizon = cellular data off. And turn off Allow Cellular Data Switching — that's the setting that quietly falls back to Verizon when signal dips and lands you a $12 TravelPass day. Your number, iMessage and WhatsApp are all unaffected.
Ask Verizon whether receiving an SMS abroad triggers a TravelPass charge (sending certainly does). If it does, put the line in airplane mode with wifi on and lean on WhatsApp — which is how CVNE, Muga and the restaurants will reach you anyway.
Euro in both countries. Cards (incl. Apple Pay) are widely taken, but carry €40–60 cash for small bars, markets, and cash-only spots like La Venencia. Contactless is everywhere.
Modest and optional — nothing like the US. Round up or leave 5–10% for good sit-down service; at pintxos bars and tascas, just round up or leave small change. Never feel obliged.
English is widely spoken in tourism — more so in Porto than in small Basque/Rioja bars, where a few words earn warmth.
| Meaning | Spanish | Portuguese |
|---|---|---|
| Hello | Hola | Olá |
| Please / thanks | Por favor / gracias | Por favor / obrigado |
| A beer, please | Una caña, por favor | Uma imperial, por favor |
| The bill, please | La cuenta, por favor | A conta, por favor |
| Table for one | Mesa para uno | Mesa para um |
| Cheers! | ¡Salud! | Saúde! |
| Delicious | Está buenísimo | Está delicioso |
In the Basque Country you'll also see Basque (Euskara): kaixo (hello), eskerrik asko (thank you), txotx! (the cider-house call).
Coast (Bilbao, SS) mild, ~24°C, with brief showers — bring a light rain shell. Inland (Madrid, Rioja, Douro) hot, 30s°C — sunscreen, hat, and do outdoor things morning/evening.