Tell us about you and your company.
“España realmente es un país de pueblos,” (“Spain is a country of small towns”) is something that I have heard repeatedly throughout my life. It has become a north star that has guided my professional life, and is the central tenet at the heart of all of the programs that LITA runs.
I founded LITA in 2008, after years of living and working in more rural areas of Spain. This was the same year our daughter, Ayla, was born. Ayla, who we affectionately called “Aylita” when she was an infant, was the inspiration for the name of our program. As most folks know, a word in Spanish that ends with the diminutive “ita or ito” denotes something that is small, personal, and something toward which one feels great affection. This alludes to the philosophical foundation of our program; a smaller, more intimate and personalized travel experience that is both thoughtful and engaging and has been a labor of love for me professionally.
Principally, LITA runs highly immersive and academic language programs for more advanced high school Spanish students from around the US. We operate exclusively in Spain, specifically in off the beaten path locations and smaller communities. As our student programs became more established, we began to offer adult travel experiences as well, initially for our LITA alumni parents and now expanding to a wider audience. We do a handful of high-end adult programs each season, and they are always one of the highlights of my year.
As many experienced travelers know, Spain has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Overtourism has had major implications for the adventurous traveler seeking a more genuine and meaningful experience. Most large and medium-size cities in Spain now have so much structure set up to support an English speaking tourist that finding an immersive experience, whether culturally or linguistically, is more challenging than it has ever been. This has been the guiding philosophy with all of our programs; to provide authentic experiences far removed from the major tourist hubs in Spain.
With all LITA itineraries, you can expect a dynamic experience that goes beneath the surface to challenge you to think differently, experience life in Spain as a participant rather than a visitor, and open your eyes and heart to the richness of history and culture in the regions we visit. LITA programs are designed with an enthusiastic and curious participant in mind, whether they are our student programs or a trip for LITA parents and friends. A LITA trip is designed to keep your mind and body active at every moment. All of these off-the-beaten-path experiences are only made more enjoyable by the exceptional accommodations we have curated from years of exploring the Spanish countryside.
LITA can bring you to Spain with your own group of family and friends for a more personalized, tailored experience (6 to 8 couples is ideal), or you can join us on one of our open LITA adult trips. We have an upcoming program running this September (2026) to the El Matarraña region and Barcelona that still has a few open spots available.
It is an honor to be listed as a Navigator on this platform, as many of the other folks profiled here are leaders in our industry. I see it as our responsibility, as I am sure all of the Navigators do, to provide a thoughtful and engaging travel experience that both challenges clients intellectually and physically, and awakens new passions for a country that has meant so much to us for so many years.
What’s the entry level to talk to you?
Open LITA adult programs tend to be high-end travel experiences, ranging between $1,000-$1,500 per day. With a closed group, the opportunity exists to create itineraries at different price points.
What is the sweet spot of your expertise?
Food and music, certainly. As two personal passions of mine, I believe that music and food are always wonderful ways to learn from the communities we travel to in this diverse and beautiful world.
A few favorite experiences/trips/itineraries you’ve planned that best represent your philosophy…
All of our adult programs are unique designs and our itineraries are built from scratch for each program. We have run programs that have a specific academic focus in Spain (music, art, farming, cooking, the outdoors), or programs that touch on all of these themes.
The folks that we work with in Spain are soulful, wonderful people that have become close friends of ours through years of shared experiences and working together. Their warmth and desire to share their life with the people we travel with is what makes these experiences so rich and memorable. Examples from some of our itineraries include: an afternoon with a winemaker in one of the most underrated wine regions in Spain, a day with a priest in Barcelona, olive oil producers in our favorite rural region that nobody seems to know about, an organic cattle rancher in one of the least populated areas of Spain, exploring tunnels and caves by bike on a remote rail trail, harvesting and cooking with farmers and chefs who are doing incredibly creative things and investing in their rural communities, an afternoon discussing current events in Spain with a Catalan political analyst and TV anchorwoman.
Favorite hotels/lodges/houses you love and go back to again and again…
A few of the places that I have loved recently are an amazing hotel called L’Domaine on a winery called Abadia Retuerta outside of the city of Valladolid. The Ribera del Duero wine region is well-known but not quite as visited as La Rioja just to its north. In southern Spain, there is a wonderful eco boutique hotel called Finca La Donaira that is tasteful and relaxing, located in the Sierra de Grazalema.
The most memorable meal(s) you’ve had while traveling…
There are so many. The food in Spain is incredible. What I think makes the food so fantastic is the “materia prima,” the products themselves. Down-home cooking in Spain does not require all that much. The products are so good and so real and so connected to the communities that they come from. The meat and seafood, the cheeses, the wines and the vegetables…all fantastic! An amazing meal can be had at Bodega Los Tarantos outside of the city of Valladolid. Or La Botica in Matapozuelos in the same region. Of course, Spanish chefs for years have been leading the world in pushing the creative boundaries of modern cooking, and I also love many of the Michelin-starred experiences I have been fortunate enough to share with our friends, but oftentimes, the simple tabernas are the best!
A not-to-be-missed favorite experience(s) in your region(s) of expertise…There are so, so many… In the beautiful town of Úbeda in southern Spain, there is a small 11th-century synagogue that was recently re-discovered under a modern-day hair salon as they were preparing to do renovations. It’s a very interesting story and fascinating to see. Also, the hiking route Carros del Foc in the Aigüestortes National Park in Cataluña is stunningly beautiful and we love exploring in this region. The hut-to-hut hiking trail is top notch.
Underrated location, overrated location, personal favorite, recent discovery?
One of the aspects of Spain that is so magnetic for me is that it is a country of incredible cultural diversity. Each region feels like its own country in some ways. Among the many areas that I love are Las Rías Altas in Galicia, la Sierra de Aracena in the Huelva province, el Valle de Somiedo in Asturias, the entirety of the province of Teruel, and the northern parts of Castilla y León.
What is something you wished we all knew or were better at as travelers?
Asking questions, being inquisitive and actively listening to the perspectives of others
How do you want people to reach out to you?
Our IG is LITA_Spain, Email is jordan@experiencelita.com, cell is 802 922-1325
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