Riojatrek is a Destination Marketing Company (DMC) based in Logroño (La Rioja), specializing in bespoke wine tourism packages. The company was founded in 2008 by Marina Grijalba, a dynamic Riojan with an ideal resumé and a unique understanding for creating exciting experiences for her clients. Riojatrek is a 2025 Best Of Wine Tourism award winner for Wine Tourism Services.
Grijalba has Rioja wine culture in her DNA. She comes from a family of grape growers who own a winery with a 16th century underground cellar in Fuenmayor, one of Rioja’s historic wine villages. She speaks fluent English and German. Her knowledge of wine tourists was forged by eight years in the wine tourism department of Bodegas Muga, one of Rioja’s best-known wineries.
To complement her practical experience, Grijalba is thoroughly grounded in theory. The Rioja Regulatory Board has certified her as an Official Rioja Wine Educator, the highest level of wine education courses offered by the Rioja Wine Academy. This select group of over 180 wine professionals is tasked with transmitting knowledge about Rioja to importers, distributors, sommeliers and other wine specialists in their home countries.
An idea that developed into a full-fledged agency
The idea that developed into Riojatrek earned Grijalba the first prize for the best project sponsored by the Entrepreneurial Department of the University of La Rioja and the Chamber of Commerce of La Rioja in 2008.
The project was ‘Winegrower for a Day’. Tourists visit a vineyard where they learn about all aspects of grape growing. Depending on the time of year, they participate in activities such as pruning, removing excess shoots from vines, and picking grapes. Following a snack in the vineyard, tourists then go to the Grijalba family winery in Fuenmayor where they learn about the winemaking process, including experiments that show how fermentation works. At the end of the experience, they receive a bottle of wine with a personalized label.
Sixteen years later, “Winegrower for a Day” is still an important part of the Riojatrek arsenal, although the company’s activities have increased exponentially.
Each client is unique
Riojatrek specializes in made-to-order experiences. Each potential client sends a brief describing what they want to do during their trip to Rioja: visit wineries, sample Rioja’s artistic and cultural treasures, eat at tapas bars or Michelin-starred restaurants, take a wine tasting course or even organize an engagement party. Or a mix of all the above! Grijalba says that no two groups are the same.
High-value tourists are targets
Riojatrek works with destination marketing companies all over the world to channel affluent tourists to the Rioja region. These visitors are interested in our luxury lodging, cultural, culinary and wine tasting experiences. Word of mouth and recommendations about these experiences elevate the image of Rioja as a premium wine tourism destination.
Rioja wineries themselves use Riojatrek’s services to educate and entertain their importer and distributor sales forces about Rioja.
The company provides consulting services to local and regional organizations that promote wine tourism through the organization of cultural events.
Sharing knowledge
Marina Grijalba is a member of a group of tourism professionals and academics who lecture at the University of La Rioja’s recently created Master’s degree program in Wine Tourism.
In the sixteen years since the award-winning wine tourism project, Riojatrek has blossomed into Rioja’s best-known destination marketing company, and Marina Grijalba into one of Rioja’s foremost experts in wine tourism.
Riojatrek
Francisco de Quevedo 12, 6º D
26006 Logroño
La Rioja, SPAIN
E-mail
+34 941 587 354
+34 679 010 804
Text by Tom Perry, Inside Rioja
Photos: Riojatrek
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