Bus Pamplona – Ochagavía

There is a scheduled bus between Pamplona and Ochagavía, in the Salazar valley, the gateway to the Irati Forest on the Salazar side. It is operated by Alsa and runs Monday to Saturday with a single departure a day in each direction. It lets you reach the Pyrenees without a car and sleep in the valley, but it does not reach the forest: from Ochagavía to Casas de Irati there are 23 km of road.

Timetable

• From Pamplona to Ochagavía: Monday to Saturday, at 15:45.
• From Ochagavía to Pamplona: Monday to Saturday, at 9:00.

There is no service on Sundays. Tickets are bought at alsa.es. The Ochagavía tourist office records the timetables in its seasonal document; confirm them with Alsa before travelling, because they may change.

How to fit it into a trip

With a single bus a day, visiting Irati without a car needs at least two nights in the valley: you arrive in the afternoon, spend the next day in the forest and return to Pamplona in the morning on the 9:00. In Ochagavía, the Hotel Rural Aunamendi is in the centre of the village and the Camping Osate at the entrance; in high season, book early. On arrival, call at the tourist office to check that the Irati road is open: in November 2026 it is closed for works from 16 to 20 and from 23 to 27.

From the village to the forest

There are three ways to cover the remaining kilometres:

• Taxi: the tourist office provides those from Jaurrieta (+34 620 270 241), Vidángoz (+34 626 432 007) and Isaba (+34 639 011 077). Call ahead, and arrange the return as well.
• Guided excursion with transport: several companies in the valley run outings to Irati, such as the 4x4 excursions or the guided forest walks. Ask whether they pick you up in Ochagavía.
• On foot: from the upper part of the village the cobbled path to the hermitage of Muskilda leaves, and the old track to Irati and Muskilda links with Casas de Irati; it is a mountain route, so ask at the office first about the distance and the state of the track.

Without a car, in Ochagavía

Even if you do not reach the forest, arrival day is enough to tour the village, with its cross over the River Zatoya and the bridge over the Anduña, and to visit the Nature Interpretation Centre, which explains the geology, fauna and vegetation of Irati.