The opportunity arose to have a few days in San Sebastian, one of those places I have wanted
to visit for so long, fascinated by its reputation for amazing food (especially pinxtos) and as a
great place to ‘hang out’ – so I jumped at the chance.
We flew in to Bilbao at the end of April wondering whether the promised public bus to San
Sebastián (Donostia) would be as easy as had been reported- it was. Literally bang in front of
the departure gate – it turned up a few minutes after we arrived. The journey took about an
hour to San Sebastián bus station from where we meandered our short way into the old
citadel in search of lunch. The old town is a stunning warren of narrow pedestrianised
cobbled streets, packed to the gills with small and excellent pinxtos (Basque tapas) bars and
restaurants. We were a bit late for the more celebrated pinxtos spots recommended by our
guide books, so found a spot perching next to an upturned barrel table outside the casual Bar
Sport. My first ever experience of pinxtos was possibly the best I will ever have. We firstly
jostled to the counter and pointed at several small plates on display and chose a few more off
a menu- it was the most organised chaos I have ever witnessed but shortly afterwards glasses
of delicious local cava (€2 a glass) and beer arrived at our barrel table. Plate after plate of
fried calamari, pork kebabs, skewered prawns, Crab tartlets, sea urchins and croquettes
followed. It was a feast and cost about €15 each!
We wandered to our accommodation
overlooking the perfect semicircle of La Concha Bay and sat on the balcony for the rest of the
afternoon soaking up the atmosphere from the bustling beach front below. I asked myself
how it had taken me over 50 years to make it to San Sebastián- the most perfect short break
destination!
We ate at Narru that evening which was a top class but extremely affordable restaurant
specialising in fish and recommended by a friend. We were bowled over by the quality of the
dishes: fish velouté, grilled octopus, hake and mullet, all fishing boat fresh and coked to
perfection. We sat outside afterwards under the colonnade and enjoyed a digestive of a local
muscatel, watching the locals filling the other tables with late night chatter.
On our second day we walked left along the seafront to the far end of La Concha Bay, where
we reached the impressive and iconic steel Comb of the Wind sea sculpture by Eduardo
Chillida with the waves crashing through it. From there, we took the funicular to the top of
Monte Igeldo for a stunning view of the golden sanded semi circle of bay beneath us with its
little green jewelled island sitting at the harbour entrance. We had a leisurely stroll down
along country tracks into town, where we explored the cobbled narrow streets of the old town
before heading to La Chucara di Sant Elmo for lunch – another iconic tapas bar with its
legendary roasted black pudding and quince. We followed this up with the renowned best
cheesecake ever (it was!) from La Vina round the corner. After lunch we stopped for a coffee
in Constitution Square, an impressive large rectangular square which still bears the markings
above the windows from when it was used as the town bull ring. It was a perfect suntrap and
ideal to watch the comings and goings from. We did some window shopping for the rest of
the afternoon, the shops are colourful and perfect for browsing, and then ended up in the
beach reading the paper in the sunshine and one of us having an invigorating April swim in
the sea.
The rest of our stay was on a similar relaxed vein. We spent a morning walking up the Urgull
mountain just behind the old town and explored the castle and its interesting exhibition, from
where there were more stunning views, this time back to the town. We wandered down for
more pinxos for lunch and that evening ate a very impressive two inch thick aged T-bone
steak (another San Sebastián culinary speciality) at Gandarias in the old town.
It was a superbly enjoyable and relaxing four days, memorable for its chilled vibe,
outstanding food and drink, beautiful beach and stunning cobbled old town. I will be back!
by TMS