Logistics for Bulls 2007
 

A Friend of my are planning a trip to Spain that will include the Running of the Bulls for her husband's 40th Birthday. There may be as many as 20 relatives/friends joining them on this trip and have a few questions.

She is thinking about staying somewhere maybe along the coast and driving the hour or so into the Pamplona for the day of the run?

*Any suggestions for a nice coastal area for a weeks stay that would be enjoyed by many? Suggestions for accommondations in that area?

*What would make sense as far as viewing the actual run? Should she rent balcony space? Buy Arena Tickets for everyone? Watch it on the big screen?

Thank you for your advice!!

San Sebastian is a beautiful place and not entirely far from Pamplona (revelers often stay there and commute in due to no vacancy), but if there are maybe 23 of you, you might want to rent an entire house or try to get a group rate for some smaller place. We stayed in Zarautz at a family youth hostel in the late 90s and it was very nice and clean and we had a room all to ourselves, though it slept 8 I think. It was a bring your own sheets place, though.

Check out turismopaisvasco.com for more locations.

I ran with the bulls a few years ago, and the run starts very early, so you would need to depart very early to drop him off and have him walk to the starting area.

I also watched from a balcony, mostly to take photos -- I arranged it while I was there, but then again, I was not with 20 other people. You may need to rent a couple of balconies (I don't think they can hold 20 people).

The arena is a madhouse, and I remember running in and then jumping over the fence. The bulls and cows run right through the arena and into a pen, after which calves are released. You won't see the actual "running of the bulls" if you sit in the bull ring.

I did drive to San Sebastian for lunch at Arzak, and I think it was more than an hour from San Sebastian to Pamplona.

There are a number of great places to stay along the Basque coast from Biarritz to Bilbao, but it may be difficult finding accommodations in a single house for up to 20 people unless you go through a service. Remember, July is a very popular month in the Basque Country and most of the houses are booked well in advance.

Driving in from San Sebastian-Donostia generally only takes about an hour, depending on the traffic, which is fairly heavy at times during the fiesta and everything else that's going on at that time. The main problem with driving in (with 20 people?) is that you will have to depart SS very early in the morning in order to reach Pamplona in time for the encierro, which is at 08:00. You would have to be in the city no later than 06:30 since the police close off the route by 07:00.

Are you planning on hiring a small bus to take you back and forth, or are you going to be driving 5 or 6 cars? Parking is a major headache most of the time, but can be a real pain during the fiesta, especially when trying to find a place to park a bus. The police tend to ticket and tow illegally parked cars during the fiesta.

You need a private balcony to really enjoy the run. What public areas are available are usually packed by 06:30 and only accommodate a few people. If you arrive early enough you can try to hold a place on the outer barricades, but be prepared to sit there for 2 hours or more, sometimes in an early morning rain, waiting for things to happen.

You can get into the Plaza de Toros for 5 or 6 euros each, where you will see the "chicken runners" entering the bullring a couple of minutes before the bulls arrive, followed by a stream of runners, bulls and steers two to three minutes later. You will not be able to see what else transpires along the route.

You can watch the encierro from the big screen in the Plaza del Castillo, but I'd rather sleep in and watch it from the comfort of my bed on the TV in my room if I’m not going to be on a balcony or down on the street.

Thanks Robert - I noticed you are on both my favorite forums!!

Hi-

I was there this year for a friend's 30th birthday. I hope your friends have a great time! Please tell them to check out www.sanfermin.com because, as many have stated here, it will be very difficult to get into town before the run, much less find a place to watch, unless you want to stay up all night like my friends and I did!

Since they're planning so far in advance, they should have no problems finding a balcony to rent for run-watching and a nice place to stay for a night or two in Pamplona (because there is more to San Fermin than just the morning encieros!). Pamplona could probably be a stop between San Sebastian and Bilbao, for example.
Best of luck!
Julia