Where to stop from Porto to San Sebastian?
 

In September we will be driving from Porto to San Sebastian. Any cute/interesting towns to visit on the way? We just cannot find any recommendations in our search. We plan to stop and see the museum in Bilbao but after reading reviews here we won't go inside but we might stay a night for the tapas bars. We will visit St.Jean de Luz and Biarritz.

I am sure you already know this, but St. Jean de Luz and Biarritz are not on the way from Porto to San Sebastian.

The drive across the coast of northern Spain is one of the most beautiful in Europe; do you have time to detour along that route?

You might want to consult the Michelin Green Guide for Spain and the one for Portugal.

We could detour for a day or two. Just in the planning stage but aren't St. Jean de Luz and Biarritz very close to each other?

From Porto we visited and/or stayed in many of these places on our way to Hondarribia:Baiona, Santiago de Compostela,Leon, Ribadisella,Los Picos de Europa,Santillana del Mar, Comillos,Bilbao, Getaria,etc. Look at the Spanish Tourism website under Green Spain. Also see www.maribelsguides.com There are posters from these areas on this board and hopefully they'll see your post. We loved this itinerary. Later we went to the Pays Basque towns, cities and villages, Pyrennes across to the Mediterranean, and down the Costa Brava to Barcelona. Liked it all but hold a special place in my heart for Santiago de Compostela.

Yes, Biarrtiz and St. Jean-de-Luz are very close to each other, but are in the Pays Basque (France), just up the coast from San Sebastian-Donostia.

There are so many great stopping places en route; see the ones Happy Traveler mentioned. These are perhaps not on the most direct route, but well worth visiting.


I would put the GMuseum in Bilbao down the list as far as priorities along the northern Spanish coast unless you are a Gehry or Serra fanatic. There is so much gorgeous scenery and many truly wonderful towns, and of course there are the Picos de Europa.

For one night try Leon or Burgos.

Don't miss Lekeitio.

Thank you for the suggestions. I need to do a lot of research as I am having difficulty getting my head around this trip. I have been to the south of Spain but don't know the north at all. I decided to this trip after reading some of your reports on San Sebastian. Our flights to and from London are booked for Sep. 13-Oct.6. From London we are going to Prague for 3 nights Sep. 19-22 and after that we will fly from London again to Porto and travel from there for 7 to 10 days. I will look up the suggested towns and will buy the Michelin green guides. By this time I would usually have the car leased and hotels booked but I'm really having trouble this time. Thanks again.