Planning a 22 day European trip June 2011 starting and returning from Frankfurt (Vancouver home). After 3 days in the Rhine, drive to Paris and stay 4 nights then train to Bordeaux, we will be staying with friends outside Bordeaux for a week. We then have about 4 or 5 days before catching the train from Bordeaux to Frankfurt. Appreciate any recommendations re visiting Biarritz\San Sebastian for the end of the trip. We are young seniors (60's), will hire a car and would like a place to make HQ for 4 days and visit surrounding areas. Don't have to be in city, budgeting under $200 a night, coastal spot would be nice but country OK too. Like character, romance, cleanliness, smaller rather than large and the inevitable good food, wine and some shopping for the princess.
Give me your favourite ideas please!!.

David

First of all a question, your drive between “somewhere” in Germany and Paris. Is it by hire car? If so have you thought about repatriation fees for that car?
Where to go does depend on your tastes if you want beaches then just head westward and relax after what seems a buys trip.

I think your trip sounds great. The Basque country of Spain has some of the greatest food in Europe. If you keep the car, finding a place to park it San Sebastian will require planning, but I would stay in San Sebastian to enjoy the evening eating and evening scene. However, if doing an evening pintxos crawl is not the priority, the coast just beyond San Sebastian continues to be spectacular.

Depending on what you wife likes to buy, St Jean de Luz is a tourist shopping magnet. You might want to stop there instead of Biarritz on your way to Spain.

San Sebastián meets "character, romance, cleanliness, smaller rather than large and the inevitable good food, wine and some shopping for the princess" almost perfectly.

We've enjoyed very much staying several times in charming and quiet Hotel Chomín 50m from the Ondarreta beach. A great restaurant run by the same family on the ground floor. It's in a more quiet and "local" area of San Sebastián (Antiguo/Ondarreta). Some 20 mins walking along the beautiful La Concha promenade to the city center and the vibrant Parte vieja/Old town.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/san-...chomin.en.html

Hostal Alemana is a great value option close to the center, the old town and the La Concha beach: http://www.hostalalemana.com/ingles/index.html

The article "A different kind of Spain" gives you a good idea of the city and the region: http://marshlands.blogstream.com/

You should also prepare yourself for the world famous pintxos, this is food heaven!
http://www.todopintxos.com/home/home.php?lang=en

Yes we will hire a car and drive to Paris then take the train to Bordeaux. Our friends have a converted farmhouse in a village outside Bordeaux and we will spend a week with them. Our last 4 or 5 days we would prefer to spend in one location and use the car to see the surrounding area. We enjoy the freedom of having our own transportation. San Sebastian area appears to fit our needs and will be my first visit to this coast of Spain. Any suggestions on hotels , must see sites etc welcome.

Thanks for your interest

David

When in San Sebastián:

The most outstanding hotels are Maria Cristina and Londres.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/san-...westin.en.html
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/san-...aterra.en.html

Barceló Costa Vasca and Hotel Parma are also good options: http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/san-...tavaca.en.html
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/san-.../parma.en.html

For something very special, you should take a look at Villa Soro, close to one of the world's top ten restaurants for the past twenty years, Arzak:
http://www.booking.com/hotel/es/san-...lasoro.en.html

You should go to Bilbao, an hour away by car, and see the extraordinary Guggenheim museum: http://www.guggenheim.org/bilbao

Go less than half an hour in either direction along the coast for yet another fabulous lunch. Donibane (San Juan) has got several excellent waterfront restaurants, some of them with great value lunch menus.
http://www.euroresidentes.com/eurore...s/san-juan.htm

I also strongly recommend the nearby fishing village of Getaria for an extraordinary fish and seafood lunch. Had the meal of my life here in 1996. Elkano and Kaia Kaipe are the most famous restaurants, but all of the places in the harbour area are excellent (and quite expensive).
http://thepauperedchef.com/2007/12/elkano-in-getar.html

(Go out of San Sebastián just for the variation. The world's most famous chef Ferran Adrià of El Bulli has said that San Sebastián is the best place to eat in the world "in terms of the average quality of the food, in terms of what you can get at any place you happen to walk into".) A personal favourite of mine for more than twenty years is Restaurante Urola. Traditional with an inventive touch and more low-key than the many Michelin-restaurants: http://www.restauranteurola.com/english/index.html

Just inland is Hernani with the museum of Eduardo Chillida, the most famous Basque sculptor.
http://www.museochillidaleku.com/index.php?L=3

But San Sebastián is so fantastic in itself, it's just about being there and taking in the atmosphere. Take a walk up on Monte Urgull behind the Parte vieja/Old town. Awesome views of the sea and the city, a fortress, a military history museum and a couple of cafés. 15-20 min relatively easy walk up to the top. Have a pintxo and a glass of wine when down in the Parte vieja again, and you should be completely sold...

David if you are hiring a car from Germany again I will repeat my question: Have you seen the repatriation fees?

Hi ribeirasacra
Sorry I am late replying - yes I am aware of the repatriation fees but enjoy the flexibility of a car.
Hi kimhe
Many thanks for the extensive list of recommendations. Haven't had a chance to follow them all up yet but your comments are "mouth watering" and confirm the choice to spend our last days in San Sebastion area.

Again thanks to all for your interest and replies.
David