Help with Spain Trip
 

I need help with our trip. My wife and I want to go to Spain for 10 days end of August. For sure we want to fly in to Barcelona and spend a few days there. That is all I know so far. We are in our early 30's, love sightseeing, beaches and good food. I thought of San Sebastian, but that is all I have come up with!! Please help. Where else can we go that is close or a fair distance from Barcelona. I know south of Spain is probably going to be a different trip. Thanks for your feedback.

No suggestions on where to go, but I am going to Spain next week and have found some very good fares (10 euros plus tax) on flights between cities in Spain on www.vueling.com. That could make it a little easier for you to visit areas that might not be so close together, as we are doing.

Not only San Sebastian but the whole northern coast of Spain as far west as Santiago de Compostela is worth exploring - but remember that this area is not well established as a tourist destination and you will have to be a bit self-reliant in terms of finding food and board.

Having said that, ten days is hardly enough to do it justice and you might be advised to confine your trip to San Sebastian and Pamplona and the area in between there and the French border.

How are you getting across to SS from Barcelona?

Harzer

Not sure about how to get to San Sebastian from Barcelona yet, any ideas? Is there a train?

You can either drive to San Sebastian (expensive!) or you can check out flights, but you will proabably have to connect through Madrid.

But:

Catalonia is filled with marvels! If you don't want to rent a car, you can still visit places like Girona and Vic by public transportation. And there are beautiful fishing villages with five-star food.

If you do rent a car, Catalonia (or points west of Barcelona) are your oyster!

You need to be mindful of heat during that time of year. Another possibility is to head for the Pyrenees mountaintops.

Would you consdier renting a car?

Just back from a month in San Sebastian. Truly one of the most civilized places I have found. [Bermuda is 1]. Clean, great food, cool, and very cosmopolitan. 39E flight from Barcelona. Easy day trips by bus to Bilbao, Pamplona, coastal towns like, Lekeitio, Hondarribias, and on to Biarritz. You might consider a flight from B one way and a drive the other way. The Basque Country is superb. Many don't know that it is second only to BCE in prosperity.

Let me know if you want more

One other thought - August in most parts of Spain is very hot but not on the north coast.

If the flight from Barcelona to San Sebastian is non-stop and only 39 euros -- go for it!

If you want to split your 10 days between Barcelona/Catalunya and Sanse, then you will want to use your time well. If you are flying in and out of Barcelona then I recommend doing all you want there before heading to Sanse (there are trains that connect through Zaragoza. . . see renfe.es), spending a few days there, going to Bilbao for a day, then heading back to BCN the way you came, spending the night so you are there for your flight.

August train tickets sell out fast, so you will need to decide and get those done quick. Also, both cities are main destinations for August tourists (Sanse much more than Barcelona if you want a per capita analysis), so you need to get on those reservations.

As nessundorma said, renting a car is a great idea. It will be expensive to go between the two regions, but you could always choose the one you want to explore the most and rent there, using the train or airplane to move between.

From your post, I think that you think that Sanse is closer to Barcelona than it really is. As ness suggests, exploring Catalunya could be extremely rewarding for you both, and will cut down on the travel time.

I really enjoyed driving around Catalonia - looping up through the Pyrenees and then down the coast back to Barcelona.

Also adored San Sabastian and the Basque coast, Cantabria and Asturias.

If you decide to do the NOrthern coast, you can fly directly on Iberia from Barcelona to San Sabastian or Bilboa for as little as 150 Euros return:
http://www.iberia.com/OneToOne/v3/obsmenu.do

Note: make sure you are on the SPANISH site, not the US version where fares are much higher.

Also check out Spanair.com.

Thank you all for the helpful replies. There were many places mentioned, so now I have to decide where to go!! For Sure fly in and out of Barcelona, possibly fly to San Sebastian and then maybe rent a car and hit some towns around the Basque and Pyrenees and back down to Barcelona. Any advice on Hotels in those areas and is my plan on the right track?? Which towns are the must sees between Barcelona and San Sebastian in the North.
Thanks

http://www.parapromotions-spain.com/

Re places to stay: check out the paradors.

I have stayed in two in Catalonia (La Seu D'Urgell and Aiguablava) and two in Northern Spain (Santillana Gill Blas and Fuent de). Its a wonderful way to make your path across Spain.

Which airline did you find which flies between Barcelona and San Sebastian? We will be flying the same route and the best I could find was on Iberia (Barcelona to Bilbao.

Iberia - there appears to be two direct flights a day (1hr 20min)

I noticed that Iberia offers one non stop flight between Barcelona and Bilao which is 19E at 10:35 am. It's almost worth the one hour drive to San Sebastian to obtain that great fare. The fares into San Sebastian are so much higher.

Are there buses or taxis from Bilbao airport to San Sebastian and how much is it??

Taxis: obviously, yes. Expect around 80-90 euros.

Bus: from Termibus at Bilbao centre, 8 euros, it runs hourly (or every half hour at peak time)

How long of a ride is it by bus??

seven 77:

Check out vueling airliens as well:

www.vueling.com

Also, check out the Bilbao airport website. I think they show fares from that airport to San Sebastian.

From Bilbao centre to San Sebastian centre it is 70 minutes by bus. I don't know how long the ride from the Bilbao airport to the bus terminal is. Depending on where you stay in San Sebastian, you will probably have to take a 5-10 minute taxi ride from the bus depot.

If you get the 19E fare from Iberia (BCN to Bilbao), I think a taxi from Bilbao to SS might actually be worth it, once you tote up the cost of tickets for two from Bilbao airport, plus two bus tickets to SS (I think they are 14e each) and another 8 euro taxi ride to your SS hotel.

By the way, after leaving San Sebastian, I drove down through France to the Mediterranean and then drove back through to Spain, after spending the night in a few towns in the French pyrenees, my favorite being Cauterets. I rather regret that I didn't go up above Aix-en-Thermes and through Andorra to get back to Spain, because I hear the some (not all, but some) of the scenery is fantastic. But that might take longer than you have.

Going to Barcelona and seeing its beauties can be a destination by itself. Barcelona has beautiful beaches, nice people, a tempting nightlife... If you need a guide for what to see in Barcelona and where to go, where to spend a lovely evening and where to dine, then you could try www.infobarcelona.org. You can also practise your Spanish...

But if you want to see another beautiful part of Spain, then I suggest Salamanca. I was there and it was a very pleasant time, especially because the day finishes on the streets at late hours. I saw crowded places with nice people at 3 a.m. And the best part is that Salamanca is a city full of history and young people, from all over the world.