Map
9 plans, by travel time
Under 30 min
8 plans
Hondarribia: old town, the Marina and Jaizkibel
Old town and the Marina 2 h 30+Ferry and boat along Jaizkibel+Grill house €€€
You stroll round the walled old town and the Marina, cross to Hendaye by small ferry, eat at a grill house on the outskirts and in the afternoon see Jaizkibel from the sea. Half an hour from San Sebastián.
Getaria: museum, the Ratón and grill
Balenciaga Museum 1 h 30+The Ratón and walk to Zarautz+Harbour grill €€€€
You see the Balenciaga museum, climb the Ratón of Getaria, eat grilled fish above the harbour and walk to Zarautz beach. Half an hour from San Sebastián and an hour from Bilbao.
Biarritz with children: seals and a calm beach
Aquarium and calm beach+Market and tapas bars €€
The seals and sharks of the Biarritz aquarium, a bar lunch at the market and an afternoon in the bay of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, where hardly any swell enters. Less than an hour from San Sebastián.
Coastal path and boat along the corniche
Coastal path 3 h 30+Fish restaurant €€
You walk the first stage of the GR 8 along the cliffs from Bidart to Saint-Jean-de-Luz, eat chipirones behind the market and see from the boat the coast you have walked. Half an hour from San Sebastián.
Saint-Jean-de-Luz: harbour and a fish restaurant
Old town and harbour 2 h+Fish restaurant €€
The old town and harbour of Saint-Jean-de-Luz in the morning, chipirones at a restaurant behind the market and a return along the cliff road. Half an hour from San Sebastián.
Biarritz: surf at the Côte des Basques and the market
Surf lesson 1 h 30+Market and tapas bars €€
An hour-and-a-half surf lesson at Biarritz's learner beach, tapas and produce at the covered market and, in the afternoon, the Atalaye aquarium. Less than an hour from San Sebastián.
La Rhune: rack railway and Espelette
Rack railway 2 h 30+Inland Basque cooking €€
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.
Lapurdi villages and a castle above the sea
Two villages and a castle+Inland Basque cooking €€
Ainhoa and Espelette without crowds in the morning, inland Basque cooking beside the pelota court and, in the afternoon, the neo-Gothic Abbadia castle on the Hendaye cliff. For when the La Rhune train is not running.
1 h to 1 h 30
1 plan
Gaztelugatxe, Mundaka and the Casa de Juntas
Gaztelugatxe 2 h 30+Basque cooking facing the estuary €€€
You climb to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe before the crowds arrive, stroll round Mundaka, eat above the estuary and finish at the Casa de Juntas in Gernika. About 40 minutes from Bilbao.
Driving time from central San Sebastián on a Sunday morning, with no stops, to Saint-Jean-de-Luz. Biarritz is a quarter of an hour further. Without a car, door to door on the Euskotren Topo to Hendaye and then a French regional train.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Which plan is best without a car?
Saint-Jean-de-Luz and the coastal path from Bidart: the Topo goes to Hendaye and the regional train from there stops at Saint-Jean-de-Luz, Guéthary and Biarritz. La Rhune and Espelette need a car.
And with small children?
The Biarritz aquarium and the beach in the bay of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, where hardly any waves reach. With slightly older children, the La Rhune rack railway, from late March to early November.
What time do people eat in France?
Early. Many restaurants serve from 12:00 to 14:00 and close the kitchen at that time. Book for half past twelve or one o'clock.
What is there to do in winter?
From November to March the La Rhune train and the coastal cliff boat do not run. That leaves Ainhoa, Espelette, the Abbadia castle, the coastal path, the aquarium and the old town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz.
Do we have to pay tolls?
The French A-63 is a toll road. The free alternative is the coast road through Hendaye, slower and with better views.