Spain: Basque Country & San Sebastián Trip

Date: 2024-06-22

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Spain — Basque Country, San Sebastián
Visited: June 2024

Getting from Birmingham to San Sebastián

San Sebastián, in the Basque Country of northern Spain, is world-famous for its gastronomy and is known as the "Pearl of the Bay of Biscay" — a favourite resort destination for Europeans. It had long been on our list of places to visit, and this trip finally made it happen.

As there are no direct flights from our local Birmingham Airport to Bilbao (the nearest airport to San Sebastián), we took the National Express coach to London Gatwick and flew with Vueling — a Spanish low-cost carrier we booked through British Airways using BA miles, as the two airlines have a codeshare agreement.

From Bilbao airport the journey to San Sebastián takes around 75–90 minutes by bus. As arriving late after that transfer didn't appeal, we stayed one night near the airport and headed into San Sebastián the following morning. The whole trip was 4 nights, 5 days.

Our flight departed Gatwick at 15:55, though heavy rain caused about a 90-minute delay. Once airborne, the cabin felt distinctly Spanish — all the cabin crew were Spanish, and roughly half the passengers too. The in-flight menu was wonderfully Spanish: tortilla (potato omelette), tapas snack sets, Serrano ham sandwiches. Flight time was 1 hour 23 minutes.

Night 1: Holiday Inn Express Bilbao, near the Airport

We chose this hotel as it was the closest to Bilbao Airport on the map.

• Standard Queen room: €150 per night, 2 people, breakfast included
• Free airport shuttle runs every 30 minutes from level 3 of the airport; about 5 minutes to the hotel

Dinner: We had picked up salads with protein from the Pret a Manger café chain at Gatwick — two portions came to £16.80 (approximately ¥3,350). UK prices are remarkable. The room was a perfectly comfortable IHG standard, with a rare bonus of a bathtub — lovely for those of us who like a proper soak.

Breakfast was a continental spread, perfectly adequate before our onward journey to San Sebastián. The coffee machine offered a Cortado — very Spanish — which we tried immediately. With a splash of milk, it was easy to drink and delicious.

From the Airport to San Sebastián by Direct Bus

After breakfast we took the hotel shuttle back to the airport, then caught the direct bus to San Sebastián (Donostia in Basque — the local name used on all signage).

• Journey time: 75–90 minutes
• Cost: €12.90 per person
• Tickets: available online (card payment), from airport vending machines (cash or card), or from the driver (cash only)
• Departures: every 15–20 minutes from approximately 7:45 to 23:45
• The bus drops you at the underground bus terminal beneath the Puente María Cristina bridge

We arrived in exactly 75 minutes with no traffic delays.

Note on cash: We had read that bars typically require cash, so we prepared plenty of small notes. In practice, almost everywhere accepted card — shops, supermarkets and the bus vending machines all took card. The only exception was public toilets in the street, which generally cost €0.50 in coins. We also left a €5 note as a pillow tip for housekeeping each day.

Our Hotel in San Sebastián

Hotel San Sebastián Orly (4-star)

• Check-in: 3pm, check-out: noon
• About 10 minutes' walk from the bus terminal
• Located in a building one street back from La Concha beach
• Reception and breakfast room on the ground floor; rooms on floors 7–12

Standard twin room with bathtub and breakfast, 3 nights: €608 (approximately ¥103,600) — around ¥34,000 per night, which reflects San Sebastián's status as a resort town.

We specifically chose a hotel close to La Concha beach so we could stroll down easily. We ended up being within 1 minute's walk of the seafront promenade, 10–15 minutes along the coast from the old town's bar streets, and 10 minutes from the Bilbao bus terminal — very convenient.

Breakfast was a highlight: plenty of Spanish jamón, salami and local cheeses. We made our own sandwiches in the European style, filling little baguettes with ham and cheese. Given that many Spaniards start the day with something sweet — coffee and pastries — the breakfast spread was also well stocked with croissants, muffins and doughnuts.

Useful Spanish Phrases

• Hola! — Hello
• Esto por favour — This one, please
• Lo mismo por favour — The same again, please
• La Cuenta, por favour — The bill, please (or mime writing in the air)
• Agur — Goodbye (Basque)
• Numbers: Uno, Dos, Tres, Quatro

Drinks to know:

• Sidra (Cider) — local apple cider, pairs beautifully with seafood; traditionally poured from a great height
• Txakoli — local lightly sparkling white wine; also poured from height for tradition
• Mosto — non-alcoholic grape juice, similar to grape juice
• Sangria — red wine with fruit
• Tinto / Blanco — red / white wine
• Caña — draught beer in a glass
• Zurito — smaller draught beer (roughly quarter-pint)
• Cortado — espresso with a small amount of steamed milk; "Café Solo" for single espresso, "Café Doble" for double

San Sebastián Aquarium

Open daily from 10am; a pleasant walk along La Concha beach from our hotel. Entry: €14.

On a cloudy morning (our third day), we decided to visit the aquarium. It was about a 20-minute stroll along the promenade to the far end of the beach. Highlights included fascinating exhibits on the Basque region's historic whaling tradition — this area was one of Europe's whaling centres, alongside Iceland — followed by local fishing methods and an impressive large tank with a walk-through tunnel. Sharks and rays glided overhead. The week we visited happened to be the last week of school before the Spanish summer holidays (which run from late June to early September — about two and a half months!), so the aquarium was filled with excited school children.

Monte Igueldo — Panoramic Views over La Concha

A funicular railway climbs to the summit, offering breathtaking views over La Concha bay and the city.

Getting there: Bus 18 from San Sebastián Cathedral bus stop to "Funikularea" (20 minutes); or bus 16 (the frog-logo D·BUS) to Funicular Plaza; or a 30-minute walk along the coast.

On a gloriously sunny morning (Day 2), we walked along the La Concha promenade and reached the funicular in 20–30 minutes. It was low tide, and many people were wading along the shoreline in swimming costumes and shorts — a wonderful sight. At high tide these stretches are underwater, but in the morning they are walkable. We made a mental note to bring swimwear next time.

The funicular itself is over 100 years old, made of Swiss wood — charmingly retro. Return fare: €4.50 per person (cash). It runs every 15 minutes from 11am. At the top: a fantastic viewing platform and a wonderfully old-fashioned fairground that felt like something from childhood.

La Concha bay has a small island in the middle that helps break the waves, making it perfect for swimming.

San Sebastián Pintxos Tour

3-Bar Tour — 6 pintxos & 3 drinks per person, Japanese-speaking guide

We booked this tour through Veltra to make the most of our first visit to San Sebastián. Our guide, Kaori Numayama, has lived here for 13 years, has a Spanish husband and two daughters, and originally came to Spain out of a love of flamenco — falling completely in love with San Sebastián on her first visit. She now runs Discovery Basque, a specialist tour company for the Basque region, and answered every question instantly and with remarkable depth of knowledge.

We visited 3 bars over the evening, ordering drinks and 4 dishes at each stop — sampling 12 dishes in total. Highlights included:

• Grilled squid with three-colour sauce
• Classic bar pintxos
• Foie gras on top of bean soup
• A little steak

We were so happy we went back for dessert — a bar serving exceptional French toast (the famous cheesecake bar was closed on Mondays).

Walking home along the promenade slightly merry at 10pm — still light outside at this time of year — the streetlamps all came on at once. It was beautiful.

Bar Hopping over Three Days

We visited 10 bars over our 3 nights, including two in the new town across the river. Between us we sampled foie gras, sea urchin, seasonal wild mushrooms, prawns, squid, octopus, steak, white asparagus, pork belly and cheesecake.

Everything was outstanding. The octopus was tender and delicious; the pork belly was extraordinary — truly great Spanish pork. The tortilla was wobbly and creamy, not solid. Wild mushrooms (early summer harvest, locally foraged) were intensely fragrant and had a wonderful bite. Sauces left on the plate were too good to waste — the accompanying bread was always put to use.

The standard across the city is simply remarkable. In most cities you'll find a handful of excellent restaurants; in San Sebastián, almost every bar is excellent. "The world's greatest food city" — we now fully understand why people return again and again.

Journey Home

Checked out at noon, walked to the bus terminal via the river and bay views, and took the 1pm bus back to Bilbao Airport (75 minutes, card payment). Our return flight was delayed 20 minutes due to post-Brexit passport control queues at the departure gate.

The National Express coach from Gatwick back towards Birmingham encountered a mechanical fault midway — the driver stopped safely at a motorway services and arranged a relief coach, but with an hour's wait ahead of us and Google Maps showing we were just an hour from home, we called our son to collect us. We arrived home at 2:30am. A very long day indeed.

San Sebastián — Summary

A mild climate, safer than many European cities, the Bay of Biscay in front and mountains behind, beautiful Spanish architecture throughout the town. Mornings: a leisurely hotel breakfast. Daytime: walking the gorgeous beach, swimming, sightseeing. Evenings: exploring the extraordinary bar culture of the old town. The people were warm and welcoming.

We now completely understand why people say "once you've been to San Sebastián, you keep going back." We will absolutely return — there are still dishes we didn't manage to try. Highly recommended for anyone who loves great food and drink.