DIY pintxo routes 2016
San Sebastian Donostia Spain
Air-travel
Bus
Taxi
Rideshare
Train
Car
Travel by air
International travellers by air will usually utilise Biarritz airport (France) or Bilbao airport (Spain).
Biarritz Pays Basque Airport, also known as Biarritz Airport or Biarritz-Parme Airport, is located 5 km southeast of Biarritz, near Bayonne and Anglet, and 40 Km from San Sebastian, just over the border in France.
It is served by Ryanair and EasyJet, among various other budget airlines, and is generally much cheaper to use.
Code BIQ
Bilbao Airport is located 9 km north of Bilbao, in the municipality of Loiu, in Biscay, and 105 Km from San Sebastian.
Code BIO
If travelling locally, San Sebastian airport is situated in the locality of Hondarribia, 22 kilometres northeast of the city of San Sebastian, in the district of Bidasoa, on the River Bidasoa estuary.
Its traffic is basically scheduled domestic and is served by Air Nostrum, Iberia and Vueling.
Code EAS
Travel by bus
There are daily bus services to and from Biarritz Airport and Bilbao Airport
(approx €15 return - 1 hour 20 minutes each way).
In San Sebastian, the new bus station is located beneath the train station.
The Old Town is a pleasant 20-30 minute walk along the river, if you are not dragging luggage along.
There are plenty taxis waiting to take you and your luggage to your doorstep.
Travel by taxi
Undoubtedly the easiest way to travel from airport to doorstep.
Driver will meet passengers on arrival at the airport, and drop off at your hotel in San Sebastian or at the agency to pick up apartment keys before proceeding to your apartment.
(approx € 250 return - 35 min. each way)
Travel by rideshare
Undoubtedly the cheapest way to travel, provided you can secure a ride to/from the airport.
(approx € 4 and 35 min. each way)
Travel by train
The main Renfe train station is just across Río Urumea, on a line linking Paris to Madrid.
There are several services daily to Madrid (from €27, 51/2 hours) and two to Barcelona (from €19.25, six hours).
For France you must first go to the Spanish/French border town of Irún (or sometimes trains go as far as Hendaye; Renfe from €2.25, 25 minutes), which is also served by Eusko Tren/Ferrocarril Vasco (www.euskotren.es), and change there.
Trains depart every half-hour from Amara train station, about 1km south of the city centre, and also stop in Pasajes (from €1.50, 12 minutes) and Irún/Hendaye (ET/FV €1.70, 25 minutes).
Another ET/FV railway line heads west to Bilbao via Zarautz, Zumaia and Durango, but it’s painfully slow.
Unless you are a train aficionado, the bus and rideshare would be a better costcutter plan.
Travel by car
Getting to San Sebastián by car is extremely easy.
The city is connected to the rest of Spain and France by the N-1 (the national highway connecting Madrid to Irun), the AP-8 (Bilbao-Irun) and A-63 (Paris-Irun) motorways and the A-15 highway (Pamplona-San Sebastián).
Once in San Sebastián, you can leave your car in one of the more than 6,000 parking places found in different parts of the city.
Parking downtown is costly (roughly €20/day). Most parking spots are underground, and finding a way to get there can be nerve-wracking.
Left turns are more rare than rights (and are unpredictable). Having a navigator map is essential.
The biggest underground parkings are located in the city center.
