6 Things to do in San Sebastián
When last you were reading, you learned about Hernani and cider (cidré) season. Today we are heading to San Sebastián, and I’m going to fill you in on Pintxos vs. Tapas and highlight a few places you’ll want to visit while there.
San Sebastián:
Should you visit the famed city of San Sebastián?
Yes.
What is there to do in this city?
It’s got a little bit of something for every type of traveler.
If you like luxury travel, you’ll love San Sebastián. Foodie? You gotta go! If views of the ocean, white sand beaches and wandering streets is your thing, you’ll also love San Sebastián!
You may have noticed that the names Donostia and San Sebastián are interchangeable. This is because Donostia is Basque for San Sebastian.
Donostia is posh. It’s a vacation location for celebs, the 1% and royalty. It’s also the epicenter for culinary delights in Spain (some would argue, the world) and is packed with cultural activities. At the time we were visiting, they were preparing for the world famous San Sebastián International Film Festival. This isn’t some rinky-dink festival, it draws the most famous in the film industry each year.
The town isn’t large per se but it is large on history, personality and views. It boasts more Michelin Star restaurants per capita than any other place on the entire planet! One of the most famous is Arzak . Anthony Bourdain visited this restaurant several times for his shows and our friend, Jaimé worked there as a chef at one point (that’s a BIG deal, folks). He had some good stories for us about his time there (use your imagination… cranky head chef, high pressure environment, ego, etc). In addition to the ultra swanky restaurants, San Sebastián is littered with Pintxos bars and let me tell you something… the concept of Pintxos (pronounced peen-chose) is absolutely brilliant! If like me, you can never decide on just one dish and eat very small portions, Pintxos are going to be your jam while in Basqueland.
Pintxos or Tapas? What’s the difference?
You may have heard of Tapas as this has become popular here in the States but what are Pintxos? Tapas are appetizers that are courtesy of the bar. You order a drink, they send a snack on the house. Pintxos however are the Basque version (“snacks”) and are ordered and paid for… almost like a micro-buffet of snack foods! You can choose which snacks you want vs. the bar deciding for you.
Either way, it is a very social affair and just because we aren’t kids anymore, doesn’t mean we don’t still need snacks! Some Pintxos are simple while others are fancy (think small toast with fig jam and Foie Gras). I really enjoyed eating alllll of it! The Tortilla Española was especially filling (it’s a potato pie.. sort of. Don’t let the word tortilla confuse you. It has NOTHING to do with the tortillas you’re used to). Jaimé helped us to order our Pintxos and at one point, he pretended to be an American (saying gracias with as much gringo gusto as any true American would have). The bartender was completely fooled and we had a great laugh (but I also wondered…. is this what I sound like when I say gracias???)
If you are curious about the history and origins of the Tapa and Pintxos craze, check out this thorough explanation. You can even book Pintxos tours while you’re there. I’ve included some tour ideas through Viator below.
Finishing up our 3rd Pintxos stop of the day . Delightful!
*please note: I have a few affiliate links in this article. When you click on the link and book or purchase through the affilate company, I get a tiny little commission. Teeny tiny … like Tea-Cup Chihuahua tiny but I sure do appreciate your support! There is no extra cost for you! Affiliate links help to keep this blog up and running! I ONLY include links to products or services that I believe in.
Want to learn more about the history of the basque Pintxo? Grab this book!
Miramar Palace
The royal family of Spain used to vacation in San Sebastián (Queen Isabel II spent her summers in San Sebastián because of the beaches and climate). The royal family did not originally have a residence here so Miramar was built and completed in 1893. It was later enlarged in 1920 and at one point, it was confiscated by the local government, returned to the royal family and later donated to the city where it now serves as an historical site for visitors. I recommend sitting on one of the benches in front of the palace grounds where you can take in the views of the gorgeous beaches.
La Concha Beach
It’s the epitome of a European beach. A wide stretch of clean sand meets the turquoise waters backed by the La Concha Promenade. This promenade, famous for its decorative, white wrought iron barrier, is a gateway to other points of interest in the city, including Miramar Palace, as well as a few beachside parks. The waves here are very calm making this a great beach for families. In the warmer months it gets busy so you’ll want to go early to claim your spot. This, my friends, is the perfect place to walk off your Pintxos or lounge and relish in your surroundings. It truly doesn’t get better!
Monte Igueldo
We headed up to Monte Igueldo for a view of the city from above. Monte Igueldo is one of the surrounding hills above Donostia and it has a small amusement park so if you are traveling with littles, this might be a fun place to visit. They have a few attractions for kids and views, food and drink for adults. Visit their website for more information on operating hours and attractions. Note: if I remember correctly, you have to pay to use the restroom here if you are just coming for the view and don’t purchase an attraction park ticket. The view is absolutely worth the short drive up the mountain and we grabbed a beer and snack while taking it all in.
View of La Concha beach and San Sebastián from Monte Igueldo
The STM - San Telmo Museum
Packed with over 35,000 pieces, it is the museum of Basque society and citizenship.
From their website… “The object of reflection that San Telmo presents is the cultural and historical past as a seed for today's society, from a multi-disciplinary view, open to modern dialogue and debate. The museum constitutes the memory for future generations and it is responsible for safeguarding and making citizens aware of the wealth of heritage that it holds so that everyone can enjoy and make use of it. San Telmo assumes the responsibility of preserving, completing and increasing collections representing the history and evolution of Basque society.
San Telmo is presented as a museum and, at the same time, a place to both disseminate knowledge and create thought whilst aiming to be an instrument to understand the present and build the future from knowledge of the past.”
This museum offers a wide breadth of historical artifacts and we enjoyed wandering through. At one point though, we almost got kicked out of the museum….. Let me explain,……there are large stones in one of the exhibit rooms (I cannot remember exactly what they were used for but I think it was for agriculture and they were BIG) and Jaimé pretended to try and move one. This was likely caught on camera because a very short while later, a museum guard chastised Jaimé and followed us around the proceeding rooms for a bit. It was all in good fun on Jaimé’s part but as a frequenter of museums, I know shenanigans aren’t appreciated. Ooops.
San Vicente Church
Thought to be the oldest church in San Sebastián, the San Vicente is located just a minute away from the STM. It is a lassic gothic church and the outdoor sculptures by Eduardo Chillida are intriguing.
If sculpture is your thing, San Sebastián has quite a few! I found a great guide online that walks you through this history and location of them which I’ll share here. It’s definitely worth checking out.
The Mysterious Basque Language, Euskera
Euskera (Basque) is a language whose origins are unknown. It is Europe’s oldest language and almost became extinct when Franco banned people from speaking it. It is spoken by about 1/3 of the Donostia population because the banning left a gap in the passing down of the dialect. I know very little Spanish, just enough to sort of get by and decipher meaning when I’m reading it but Euskera is completely unrecognizable, Even my brother, who has a decent grasp on the Spanish language was at a total loss. Euskera is nothing like Española. There are a lot of “k’s”“x’s” in the language and the only things I picked up while there was Agur (goodbye ), Eskerrik asko (thank you) and Kaixo (hello, pronounced Kai-show) and Bai (Yes). The English bye and Euskera bai are completely different in meaning.
If you missed last week’s post on visiting Hernani, here’s the link so that you can catch back up with the tribe!
