San Sebastian

There are three ways to plan San Sebastián, depending on how much of the trip you want arranged. Private tours are for your party only: three hours with an official guide covering La Concha Bay, the Old Town and Chillida's sculptures, or a route through three pintxo bars chosen for contrast. Two package tours include the city. Euskal Herri: Soul & Tradition spends four days in the Basque Country from Bilbao, with a full day here for a pintxo route and a cider house. The Best of Basque Cuisine is three days, starting in San Sebastián and continuing to the Rioja Alavesa vineyards and Bilbao. For other dates or routes, a tailor-made tour is planned from scratch.

Start above the bay. From the viewpoints, La Concha's curve and Santa Clara Island make the city's layout clear before you walk it. In the Parte Vieja, Plaza de la Constitución still has the numbered balconies from its years as a bullring. At the far end of Ondarreta beach, Eduardo Chillida's Comb of the Wind, three steel sculptures fixed to the rocks in 1977, faces the open sea; in heavy swell, air and spray burst through vents in the plaza beside it. The funicular up Monte Igueldo, running since 1912, gives the widest view of all.

On 20 January, the city's feast day, the Tamborrada fills the streets with drum companies for 24 hours, starting at midnight in Plaza de la Constitución. July brings the Jazzaldia jazz festival, and August brings Semana Grande, with a fireworks competition over the bay. In September, the Film Festival, held since 1953, takes over the Kursaal, and rowing crews race traineras, traditional Basque fishing boats, in the Bandera de La Concha regatta. Basque is heard alongside Spanish throughout the city.

In the Parte Vieja, a bar that has kept its recipes for generations can sit a few doors from one reworking Basque ingredients with modern technique. Order what each counter is known for, not everything on the bar. Txakoli, the lightly sparkling white of the Basque coast, comes from the vineyards around Getaria, 25 km west, and is poured from a height. From January to spring, the cider houses of Astigarraga open their barrels for the txotx, served with salt cod omelet and grilled txuleta. For a longer table, book one of the Michelin-starred restaurants in and around the city.

• Why should I visit San Sebastián?
  A bay with a city beach at its center, an Old Town packed with pintxo bars, and several three-Michelin-star restaurants within a short drive. It is compact enough to walk, and Getaria, Hondarribia and the cider houses are all close by.
• Which tours can you book in San Sebastián?
  Private tours for your party only, the Basque package tours through Bilbao, San Sebastián and Rioja Alavesa, and tailor-made itineraries. Small group departures are not currently offered in San Sebastián.
• How many days do you need in San Sebastián?
  Two days cover the city: one for the bay, the Old Town and Chillida, one for the food. Add a third for Getaria or Hondarribia. Our package tours spend three or four days across the Basque Country, with Bilbao and San Sebastián together.
• What's the best time to visit San Sebastián?
  June to September is usually the warmest and driest, though rain is possible in any season. Come in September for the Film Festival, or between January and spring for cider house season.
• How do you get to San Sebastián?
  San Sebastián Airport, in Hondarribia, has mainly domestic connections. Bilbao Airport is about 100 km away, roughly an hour and a quarter by car, and Biarritz Airport, across the French border, is closer still. Direct trains also run from Madrid.