These are 5 best things to do in San Sebastian, Spain

San Sebastian: small, but cosmopolitan

Good to know is that San Sebastian is called ‘Donostia’ in Basque. This can be useful if you want to follow the signs to the center, which are not always clear. As soon as you enter the city you can see from everything that San Sebastian is a rich city – or at least it used to be. You can’t ignore the opulent Art Nouveau architecture. High facades with many decorations, bridges with colorful statues and a wide river that divides the city in two. Although the city feels grand, ‘only’ 187,415 people live there, which is the same number as the city of Breda. And yet – perhaps because of all the splendor on the street – you have the feeling that you are in a metropolis.

Nice hotels in San Sebastián

• Room Mate Gorka
• One Shot Tabakalera House
• Zenit San Sebastian

The best travel time?

The nice thing is that you can visit this city all year round. In the winter months it is pleasantly mild, never really cold, and in the summer months there is always a little wind. It never really gets very hot in the summer, which is nice. Spring and autumn are the best: then the sun is shining and the temperature is perfect for doing fun things in and around the city. And there are many!

▸ Tip: rent a bike to discover all the highlights in San Sebastian! Fun to do and you see a lot

1. Discover Parte Vieja: the old center of San Sebastian

San Sebastian has many nice neighborhoods, but there is one that you should not miss: Parte Vieja, or the old center. It is by far the most touristic but also the most beautiful area of ​​the city. Parte Vieja is located at the foot of Monte Urgull. You get there by crossing Boulevard Zumardia.

Parte Vieja consists of a network of streets that all look alike. Turn left and right a few times and you’re lost. But that’s what’s fun here. These streets are mainly filled with souvenir shops and pintxos bars. You probably know that the Spaniards have a siesta, so between 2 and 4 pm you can shoot a cannon in the street here. After that, the fun comes back pretty quickly.

It is a nice neighborhood to stroll around. You will also find the Basque museum San Telmo and the beautiful church San Bizente Eliza, nice to look around.

Tip: just not in the old center, but beautiful is the colorful city park Gipuzkoa Plaza.

2. Look up at Constitución Plaza

By far the most beautiful place in Parte Vieja is Constitución Plaza (also called Plaza de la Constitución). On this rectangular square, you should definitely look up at the white and yellow balconies and doors of the apartments above the square. For a long time, Constitución Plaza also housed San Sebastian’s town hall, but it has since moved to a different location. Particularly striking are the numbers of the balconies, which used to be used when bullfights still took place on the square. At the time, the balconies were rented out to have a view of the battle. On the basis of the numbers you knew which balcony you had rented.

Around the square you will find beautiful arches under which restaurants and terraces can be found. On sunny days (and the sun almost always shines here) it is a very popular place for a glass of cava with pintxos.

3. Eat pintxos

You can’t go here for one thing: pintxos (also known as pinchos). They are the snacks of the Spanish Basque Country. Usually they are slices of (toasted) bread with all kinds of toppings, but they can also be small skewers or simply small dishes. In San Sebastian you eat them all day long, but especially in the afternoon. The city is literally bursting at the seams with pintxos bars. In fact, it is almost impossible to find a restaurant where you can get something other than pintxos. But that’s not a punishment at all.

The idea is that you take a seat at a table and order a number of different pintxos. The advantage is that they are in a display case, so you know exactly what you order. These are often examples and they are still freshly prepared. I would like to give you tips on where to eat them, but we just chose a bar in Parte Vieja where there was room and that was a great success. My assumption that you always eat well in Spain was confirmed again. So definitely enjoy some pintxos.

4. Chilling out at Playa de la Concha

San Sebastian has three city beaches: Ondarreta, La Concha and Zurriola. And that is also one of the reasons why this city is so popular. San Sebastian is a beautiful city so you can also chill on the beach once you’re done sightseeing. Of these three, La Concha is the main beach: the largest (1,350 meters long) and by far the most popular beach in the city, shaped like a crescent moon. La Concha is also in a good spot: right next to the old, historic center and close to the shopping area.

Next to Playa de la Concha is Alderdi Eder, which is a nice park with palm trees and flowers to walk through. If the sun doesn’t shine, or if there is just a rain shower – the bad luck we had – then a walk on the boulevard along La Concha is definitely recommended.

5. Across the water: go into the Gros district

San Sebastian has two bridges to cross the water to the other side of the city. And they really made something beautiful out of it, because both bridges are embellished with lots of color and images. From the El Centro district you can walk to the Gros district – where you will also find the city beach Playa de Zurriola. Maybe it’s the gray sky hanging over our heads, or the chilly boulevard next to it, but Zurriola looks a bit lackluster.

The Gros district is different from Parte Vieja and El Centro: a lot quieter, more pleasant. Cataluña Plaza is the central square in this district. We take a seat on a terrace and order two glasses of rosé and a bottle of water with bubbles, for which we only have to pay 5.50 euros. If you know that the water was by far the most expensive drink (2.40 euros), then this is slowly the time to start thinking seriously about emigrating to Spain.

Even more places to see and things to do in San Sebastian

• Paine del Viento: sculptures attached to the rocks along the coast (next to Ondarreta beach).
• From the top of Monte Igueldo you have a beautiful view of the city. It is the highest mountain in the bay of La Concha. To get there, take the Funicular de Igueldo funicular. Here you can clearly see how green and mountainous the surroundings of San Sebastian are. And the perfect crescent of La Concha is also clearly visible. So take this cable car up anyway because the view is fantastic!
• Want to move a lot? You can too, climb Mount Urgull (partly) for a nice view. It is the ‘mountain’ with a 30 meter high statue of Christ on top and the ruins of an old castle. You can walk to the top via two different walks. Or walk around Monte Urgull and take the Paseo Nuevo, a hiking trail that goes around the mountain.
• You have to go in to shop in the El Centro district. Everything south of Avenida de la Libertad (Askatasunaren Hiribidea in Basque) is a shopping mecca.
• Crazy about surfing? Then you have to visit Zurriola beach.
• Go cycling: San Sebastian is a nice city with good cycle paths. Especially along the bay there are beautiful paths with a view of the sea, but there is also a lot to see in the city by bike. Rent a bike online via Baja Bikes.