Savoring San Sebastian Spain


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Europe » Spain » Basque Country » San Sebastián
November 5th 2021
Published: December 7th 2021
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Leaving a city like Barcelona is not the easiest thing to do. Sure, it's fairly straight-forward from a logistical point of view, but from a traveler's point of view, it is more challenging. Barcelona is a fabulous place that provided a marvelous time for us. It is no small wonder why people rave about it. But...it was time to move on. We'd been on the road for over 40 days and seen great places, great friends and eaten some stunningly tasty food. With only one stop left before our return to the States, how do you transition from such a lively place like Barcelona? You go to San Sebastian, also known as Donostia, in the north east of Spain. Not far from the border with France, this is one place we would recommend to anyone. It's a city with two names and some of the finest cuisine around. So much fine cuisine that it boasts the most Michelin-rated restaurants per capita than anywhere else in the world. What's not to like about that?

San Sebastian turned out to be one of our favorite locations on this trip. It was exciting from the moment the airplane banked in a nearly full
Scenes from the overlookScenes from the overlookScenes from the overlook

We took the funicular to the top.
circle over the ocean to come back and land appropriately on the only runway we could see from the air. It gave us an outstanding view of the city, the bay and the surrounding mountains.

For those that know us, the foodie alarm was ringing.....and quite loud. We had secured an AirBnb in Old Town, which proved to be logistically perfect. We were mere minutes away from great food. The apartment was one of the nicest we had ever stayed in and provided an extremely comfortable and convenient place to stay and very close to the water. The weather forecast overall was not in our favor, but after all, it was early November in the north of Spain and the seasons were changing. We had been extremely fortunate up to this time with very favorable weather, but after our first day, that was not the case. No worries though as we had brought the proper gear and so we pushed on, troopers that we are! When you find yourself in a city that prides itself on food, nothing should stop you, not even the colder, rainier winds of November.

The reason for the city having two names was that one was Spanish, the other Basque. Although the two names are not at all similar, they mean the same thing...Saint Sebastian. There is a lot of history here, but we'll spare you the details. Essentially, it's the story of how a region throughout the centuries attempted to keep its identity in the face of bigger governmental powers. The local culture prevails in spite of this, which makes this area of Spain unique.

Our first full day there was quite pleasant and we rode the Funicular Monte Igueldo and took in some magnificent views of San Sebastian. This is a seriously old funicular, but we enjoy these things for some reason and find them hard to resist. After descending back to sea level, we walked back to our apartment from there and enjoyed a 6 mile stroll around the bay back to our apartment. The city has a moon-shaped bay on one side, which allows for sunbathing (certainly not this time of year), some surfing and promenades along the water. We were staying on the eastern side of Old Town and a few feet from our apartment was the Urumea River, which runs into the Mediterranean unless the tides are high and it's mouth turns into an estuary due to the influx of the sea. Interesting to watch this, especially in stormy weather as the water pounds the rocks along the river and sprays onto the sidewalks.

The alluring neighborhoods with their small restaurant storefronts along with a town square were almost story-book in fashion as the ambiance was exhilarating. On our first night there, we strolled to Constitution Square and shared a bottle of wine and pinxtos. PInxtos, you say? Yes....this is the Basque term for tapas, and we rapidly learned that in this town, it meant that we were in for some real treats. As MJ often says, "our taste buds are dancing." But this proved to be only the beginning of the great taste treats ahead.

In our time there, we dined on some fantastic cuisine and on one night, took a tour of Old Town with a local who shepherded us to several places to sample the best pinxtos in his opinion and local wines. A word on wines here.....we are constantly delighted and amazed at the superior quality of wines not only here in San Sebastian, but throughout Spain and Portugal. Small vinters are producing some fabulous wine, which sadly is unavailable in the U.S. Each time we had a bottle, we would take a picture of the label and we would lament the fact that we were enjoying yet another vintage we would never be able to get at home....such is our lot.

We admit we ate our way through San Sebastian even more than the other cities we visited. We enjoyed shrimp, squid, octopus, cod, anchovies, hake, and so many others. We ate pinxtos and fine dining. Each provided a lovely experience and we long to return to this quaint town with its beautiful bridges, charming lightening along the boardwalk, tiny pedestrian streets and back alleys filled with shops, pubs and restaurants. This is our kind of town.



Where we stayed: Airbnb

Restaurants recommended: Casa Urola

Taberna Gandarias Jatetxea


Additional photos below
Photos: 56, Displayed: 25


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Casa Urola 1956Casa Urola 1956
Casa Urola 1956

An amazing meal and tapas
Spanish Artist BeautySpanish Artist Beauty
Spanish Artist Beauty

Sadly, I can't find my notes on the artist.
Basque IPABasque IPA
Basque IPA

Continuing to sample beers around the world
Salmon PinxtosSalmon Pinxtos
Salmon Pinxtos

A taste treat
Shrimp PinxtosShrimp Pinxtos
Shrimp Pinxtos

Complex Flavors
A few more anchoviesA few more anchovies
A few more anchovies

Many combinations
Our guide in San SebastianOur guide in San Sebastian
Our guide in San Sebastian

Tempting us with many wines
Excellent Spanish WineExcellent Spanish Wine
Excellent Spanish Wine

I wish we could get these in the States.


7th December 2021

San Sabastian looks great
And your blog made me hungry. Coincidentally I'm making Fabada for our evening meal, it's a Spanish dish. You posted a picture of 'Muga' wine. I've not seen that in the UK for years. There was (for some weird reason) a little bodega in our small northern town which only sold Rioja's and that was one of them. It shut 20 years ago, alas.
7th December 2021

San Sebastian looks great
Our blog made us hungry also. LOL. We shared with the locals that we had limited choices of Spanish wines in the states. They said most of the vineyards are small batch. They hinted lesser wines get sent to the U.S. ...... figures.
7th December 2021

san sabastian.
I admit, I had to look up what pinxtos meant. :) That is quite a complement to say that this town was your favorite. Happy travels home.
7th December 2021

San Sebastian
Spain offers many tasty treats. We loved the water, the foods, the people, and the architecture. Known for having more Michelin rated restaurants than any town in Europe... per capita.
7th December 2021

Savoring San Sebastian
What a splendid end to your trip! What delicious memories you have to savor. ?✈️I enjoyed sharing it.
7th December 2021

Savoring San Sebastian
It was the perfect blend of water, architecture, quaintness and food!
8th December 2021

Everyone's Favourite
Been to Donostia 3x and each visit is memorable. My grandchildren's favorite too! I remember Casa Urola (among many others) and all that vino and txakoli! Can't go wrong there. A fitting (savoury) end to your Iberian Adventure. Olé!
8th December 2021

Everyone's favorite
I may end up there 3 times before it is over with. There are not many places I feel a pull to return to but this one is so cute. A savory end to this trip indeed. Thank you for reading along.
10th December 2021

Fabulous
Glad you had a great time in San Sebastian. After reading this, San Sebastian has moved higher up my list of places to visit. Those Pinxtos look amazing.
12th December 2021

Fabulous
Moving San Sebastian up on your list is a good idea. We had a great time. You will eat your way through this town.
11th December 2021

Foodie heaven
We didn't get to San Sebastian on either of our trips to Spain, but sounds very much like we need to add it in there. Hoping to get there next year! Sounds like absolute heaven if you like your food, as we do.....
12th December 2021

Foodie heaven
Hopefully, you will get to San Sebastian next year. It is a foodie paradise.
18th December 2021

Delicious!
I greatly enjoy following your travels, and I can't wait to one day be able to see as much as you both have in Spain! San Sebastian looks wonderful and I think the city owes you part of their tourism commission! haha I think I'd also need a month to eat all those delicious meals you had. I'm glad you've both been safe and have had a lovely time :)
19th December 2021

Delicious!
Thanks for following along on our trip. We were well fed while in Spain and especially San Sebastian. It is a great town on the water and the seafood was awesome. It would be great if the tourism board would fund our next trip.
30th December 2021

Travels
So pleased to see that you've been able to see many different places on your Spain/Portugal adventure, given the challenges of our current environment. San Sebastian seems a great place to end your trip and the food sounds amazing even if there is too much seafood for my liking
30th December 2021

Travels
Our timing to Spain and Portugal was perfect. Both countries are highly vaccinated and numbers were low at the time. We spent most of our time outside so we felt safe. The food was amazing on the entire trip but San Sebastian was special.
4th January 2022

How did I miss this??
My taste buds are dancing just looking at your photos. All of this good food, wine, and a funicular to boot!! What a great way to end your trip.
4th January 2022

You missed it...
San Sebastian is a true taste treat. Plus... it is on the river and sea. It is a charming town to add to your list.
4th January 2022

Had to look SS up
I actually had to look on Google Maps and Wikipedia to learn a little bit more about San Sebastian. I have heard the name before but when I read your blog I realised I knew absolutely nothing about that city. It looks nice. /Ake
4th January 2022

San Sebastian
We enjoyed our time in San Sebastian and assume we will make it back there one day. It is beautifully situated on the river and near the sea. The food and people were wonderful.
22nd January 2022

San Sebastian
Wow, San Sebastian looks like a beautiful city, and seems quite off-the-beaten track. What a lovely place to end your journey. You must have been quite tired by then, so what more can one ask for than comfortable accommodation, and good food and drink ?
22nd January 2022

San Sebastian
Indeed it was a good place to end our journey. Lovely town.... add it to your list.

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