San Sebastian day trips
 

We will be in San Sebastian for several days - one day we plan to go to Honrabbia (something like that). We were thinking about St. Jean de Luz but after doing a bit of investigation, it does not seem to be very convenient due to some gaps in the train schedules. Is St. Jean quite similar to San Sebastian? We do not plan to go to Bilbao.

I found an old post here that had some other suggestions but if anyone has some new ones, that would be appreciated. Also is there a portion of El Camino that is very close to San Sebastain that we could walk on for a bit?

Also I have read that it can be a bit rainy in SanSebastian - we will be there near the end of May. Any rainy day suggestions? THANKS

If you have a car, a nice day trip is to Guernica with a return along the coast.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...57623190654780 and the next two pictures in the set.

I am interested in the same info (except we'll be staying in Bilbao due to easier logistics). We are planning to spend 1 day each in Bilbao, SS and Vitoria. Still have another day to spare.

I encourage you to go to St-Jean de Luz and then drive up into the Pays Basque villages which are charming.
Hondarribia has a lot to offer, medieval quarter, fisherman's quarter.You can a little ferry across the river from Hondarribia to Hendaye,France if you wish.

Oh I should have mentioned we do not have a car - will be using public transportation.

Maribel's Guides to the País Vasco and Pays Basque (www.maribelsguides.com) will give you some ideas for day trips, but no, St. Jean-de-Luz and San Sebastian-Donostia are quite different in many ways including the minor differences like language and dining hours. St. jean is an active fishing port with one of the best farmers markets around (www.saint-jean-de-luz.com/).

And yes, you can expect some rain in May. It's what keeps the land green. Do what the locals do, carry an umbrella and enjoy the day. It will eventually quit raining and the sun will come back out.

The French route (of the Camino de Santiago) goes from St. Jean-Pied-de-Port over the pass at Roncesvalles and down through Pamplona to Logroño.

There is a new coastal route (Ruta de la Costa or Los Caminos del Norte) that crosses into the País Vasco at Irún and takes you through San Sebastián-Donostia, Bilbao, Castro Urdiales, Santander, Ribadesella, Gijón, Avilés, Luarca, Ribadeo, Mondoñedo, and Sobrado dos Monxes, joining the Camino Francés at Arzua.

I have done Guernica from Bilbao as a simple day trip. I took a bus from San Mames bus station in Bilbao to Guernica and took a Eusko train from Guernica to Atxuri station. I somehow thought the bus was more frequent, but train was more frequent than the bus from San Mames. San Memes is a big place and took me a while to find the right bus. I would use Eusko train exclusively if I were to do it next time. I was getting car sick from curves the bus took over the mountains to get to Guernica. Both the bus and the train arrive at practically the same location in Guernica. One note, the Eusko trains are completely different from the Renfe trains. It operates like a commuter train, you cannot buy tickets beforehand. In fact, whether buying from a window or from a machine, the ticket is only good for 2 hrs. The ticket machine takes bills and gives changes. All the destination names are in Basque, however.

From Bilbao to San Sebastian, the Eusko train ticket buying was more of a challenge. I had to do it all by ticket machine. Since San Sebastian was not a usual commuter destination, it was not on the first screen. It turned out I had to know the Basque region name, Gipuzkoa, first, then select Donostia as the destination on a following screen.

Pamplona is an easy 1 hour trip by bus.

BOOKMARK

Hi Sue,
I was in SanSe last May without car. We took a really nice day trip to Hondarabbia, which was an easy busy ride and one of our favorite days of a great trip. On another day, we took the bus to Bayonne to see the Basque Museum, and then the train from there to St Jean de Luz. Both were very enjoyable days, and it was easy to get around. I'd suggest that you stop in a the tourist office in SS. They gave us very good instructions and were very helpful.

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-sebastian.cfm

This year, we're returning in May, and have day trips planned to Pamplona and, if the weather is nice, we hope to take the bus to Getaria to see the new Balenciaga Museum, and then walk along the coast to Zarautz for a wander before heading back to San Se.

Have fun!

Getaria is a nice litte fishing village just west of San Sebastián, hometown of the famous sailor and explorer Juan Sebastián Elcano, allegedly the first man to successfully complete a round-the-world naval voyage.

Bus from San Sebastián in some 30 mins. Fabulous fish and seafood in the restaurants down in the little harbour. Had the meal of my life here long ago, and they're still dead serious about their food. Was something like this: http://thepauperedchef.com/2007/12/elkano-in-getar.html

I also use to take first time vistors to the area to a lunch in pictoresque Donibane/San Juan some 5 km east of San Sebastián. Excellent seafood restaurants at the waterfront with great value three course lunch menus with wine included for some 15-20€. The local fish soup is to die for. The bus leaves from Plaza de Guipúzcoa in Central San Sebastián about once an hour and takes some 30 mins. You can also walk there along the stunningly beautiful coast in a couple of hours: http://www.euroresidentes.com/eurore...s/san-juan.htm

Restaurante Txulotxo: http://www.restaurantetxulotxo.com/index.html

All six restaurants in Donibane: http://www.etxekar.net/donigastronomia.html#

bookmark

Buses run from SS to Biarritz - worth a trip.

ter2000 - FREQUENT (like maybe hourly?) buses to Biarritz?

Thanks to all for the many great suggestions! I have some other info too and will go to the tourist office first day as well. Keeping my fingers crossed for nice weather - would love to do some of the walks in pleasant weather!

You can check PESAnet for bus times from Donostia-San Sebastian to anywhere they travel: http://www.pesa.net/pesa/horariosBD/ctrl_horarios.php

I checked from SS to Biarritz (for my July trip) and looks like only 2 buses run per day - 9am or 2:30pm.

St Jean de Luz is nothing like San Sebastián, 15 times smaller and a much more easy pace. Nothing like the evening/night socializing vibe as in the Parte vieja/Old town of San Sebastián. But it's a beautiful coast all the way from Biarritz through the Spanish Basque Country. I prefer Spanish Basque Country ten times over the French, but I particularly like people being all over and out in restaurants and bars until late.

True, it rains a lot in San Sebastián, but there are seldom such a thing as "a rainy day" in spring. The typical day with rain would be some hard showers every now and then (often into the evening) and several hours sun and shifting weather. The statistics for the past fifteen years tells of rain every second day and an average of six hours sun pr. day in the two last weeks of May.

San Sebastián is wonderful in rain, especially if it's hard and comes almost out of the blue. People flock into the bars and under the arcades, and the Belle Epoque city nver looks prettier.

On a really rainy day, I would sit in one of the cafés under the arcades in beautiful Plaza de Guipúzcoa. In the center, but off the hustle and bustle of the shopping district or the Parte vieja/Old town.

Or visit the newly renovated Museo San Telmo from 1902, a "Museum of Basque Society and Citizenship" through the ages. On the outskirts of the old town: http://www.santelmomuseoa.com/index.php?lang=en

Visit the Aquarium out in the little port: http://www.aquariumss.com/

The Naval Museum, also in the port: http://www.untzimuseoa.net/

Visit the Kursaal conference centre, home to the famous San Sebastián film festival. Just across the bridge over the city river Urumea and on the beach in the local feel Gros district. A fabulous restaurant in here (Ni Neu) and yearly more than 300 events, expositions etc. http://www.kursaal.com.es/English.asp

If it's really bad weather, a stroll along the Paseo Nuevo can be spectacular with the waves, the wind and everything (often lots of people out here then): http://www.google.no/search?q=Paseo+...=1600&bih=1019

Not much beats a walk along the beautiful La Concha beach promenade in rain: http://0.tqn.com/d/gospain/1/0/p/A/-/-/xseafront.jpg

Wow Kimhe! You've convinced me that I must go back. Those pictures of Paseo Nuevo are spectacular.

Some more nice San Sebastián pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chalo84...7622613220894/

great info, as always @Kimhe!

(bookmarking)

I was there in late May last year and had fabulous weather--of course you can never predict, but I always like to be optimistic. It did rain when we were in a different town for hiking, so we returned to San Se that day.
You can walk along the coast from San Se toward Hondarribia and return via bus from Pasaia Donibane, or you can take a bus or train to Deba or Zumaia (other towns as well, this is just the stretch that I did) and walk a dramatic coastal portion of the Camino with geologic formations.
There is also a thread here about my interest in visiting the market in Tolosa as a day trip, but I did not end up doing it--was enjoying San Se too much!