# Sunday at La Rhune and Espelette: rack railway and Lapurdi villages You go up La Rhune on a 1924 wooden train, eat inland Basque cooking in Espelette and finish on the main street of Ainhoa. Less than an hour from San Sebastián. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/france/nouvelle-aquitaine/french-basque-coast/itineraries/sunday-la-rhune-and-espelette · Revisado: 2026-11-12 ## El día - 08:45 · Salida: 30 min by car (via Irún, Urrugne and Ascain to the Col de Saint-Ignace) - 09:30 · The La Rhune Rack Railway (first train of the day; return 2 h 30 with 1 h 20 at the top) · Train de la Rhune, From €26 adult - 15 min by car, 17 km - 12:30 · Hôtel-Restaurant Euzkadi (Hôtel-Restaurant Euzkadi · inland Basque cooking · €€ · book by phone) · Hôtel-Restaurant Euzkadi, €€ - 1 min on foot - 14:30 · Espelette and Ainhoa, Villages of Labourd (an hour in Espelette and another in Ainhoa, 10 km away) - 17:00 · Vuelta (via Dantxarinea and the Baztán or by the coast; in San Sebastián around 18:00) La Rhune is the 905-metre mountain you see from Hondarribia beach, right on the border. You go up in a rack railway with wooden carriages that has run since 1924, and from the top you see the coast from Biarritz to Hondarribia and the Pyrenees of Navarre. On the way down, you eat in Espelette, the pepper village, and take a stroll through Ainhoa, a single street of white houses with red shutters. It is a plan for a clear day between April and October. ## The day, hour by hour 8:45 · Departure. From San Sebastián, cross via Irun towards Urrugne and Ascain and climb to the Col de Saint-Ignace, on the D4. It is about 40 minutes. The station has parking; in summer and on long weekends it fills early. 9:30 · Train to La Rhune. From April to June and in September and October, the first train leaves at 9:30; in July and August, between 8:20 and 8:50. The climb lasts about 35 minutes and at the top you have an hour and twenty minutes to go round the summit, which is the border: on the Spanish side there are ventas (roadside inns and shops). The round-trip ticket cost €26 for adults and €18 for ages 4 to 12 in 2026; the family of two adults and two children, €82. You pay by card or on the website: cash is not accepted. Before buying, check the summit webcam on the train's website. 12:30 · Lunch at the Euzkadi. You go down to Espelette in twenty minutes. The same family has run the house since 1873, next to the pelota court, at 285 Karrika Nagusia. On Sundays it serves lunch, not dinner, and closes Monday and Tuesday. Book by phone. 14:30 · Espelette and Ainhoa. In Espelette, the tower that remains of the barons' castle, now the town hall and tourist office, and the church of Saint-Étienne, with painted ceilings from the 17th century. At the end of summer and in autumn there are still façades with strings of peppers drying. Ainhoa is ten kilometres away: a street of Labourd houses from the 17th and 18th centuries. Look for the lintel of the Maison Gorritia, dated 1662. 17:00 · Return. From Ainhoa, the Dantxarinea pass takes you into the Baztan; for San Sebastián it is shorter to go back by the coast. You arrive around six. ## What to order at the Euzkadi Inland Basque cooking with local produce and Espelette pepper, protected by designation of origin since 2000, in almost everything. The menu changes with the season and highlights Banka trout, milk-fed lamb and the Basque pork from the Ospital house. If it is on, order the axoa, the minced veal with pepper that is the village's dish. ## With children, with a dog and if the fog closes in The train works with children of any age: the journey entertains them and under-4s do not pay, though they need their own ticket at €0. At the top, a baby carrier is better than a pushchair. The dog goes up with its own ticket, €6.50, and in Espelette and Ainhoa it can stroll along the street without problems. If the summit is in fog, do not go up: head down to the coast and swap the train for Abbadia castle, in Hendaye, which opens on Sunday afternoons. ## Cómo llegar ### By car Via Irun, Urrugne and Ascain to the Col de Saint-Ignace, about 40 minutes from San Sebastián. From Pamplona, the most direct is the Baztan and Dantxarinea: start with Ainhoa and leave the train for the afternoon. ### Without a car It is not a plan to do without a car: neither the pass nor Espelette has a train, and Sunday buses are scarce. ## Consejos ### Check the summit before you set out The train's website has a webcam and forecast. With the mountain wrapped in cloud, you pay to see nothing. ### Buy the ticket on the website In summer you avoid the queue, and cash is not accepted anywhere. ### Bring a layer It is cooler at the top than on the coast, also in August. ## Cuándo no ir The last weekend of October, with the pepper festival, unless you are going on purpose: Espelette fills up and parking is hard. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How much does the La Rhune train cost? In 2026, €26 for adults and €18 for ages 4 to 12, round trip. The family of two adults and two children paid €82. ### Does it run in winter? No. In 2026 it ran from 28 March to 1 November and reopening is announced for March 2027. ### Do I need to book the restaurant? Yes, especially in season. The Euzkadi serves lunch on Sundays and closes Monday and Tuesday. ### Can I take a dog? Yes. The dog pays its own ticket, €6.50 in 2026. ### How long does it take from Pamplona? About an hour and a quarter, via the Baztan. That day do the plan the other way round: villages in the morning, train in the afternoon.