San Sebastian day otherwise known as "Dia San Sebastian" is back after a 2 year hiatus!
20th January celebrates the Patron Saint of San Sebastian and it's one of the most beloved days for local Donostiarras. The official start to the amazing 24hr fiesta is midnight 00.00 when the city's iconic blue and white flag is raised and the city fires up.
We head to the nucleus of the "Old Part" Plaza Constitution where the official celebration kicks off. Tamborradas, drumming with local dancers and singers. It is a completely unique experience and the atmosphere is absolutely electric. It's usually a cold night and this years not looking any different but we have never really had an issue with the freezing or the wet, it comes with the territory.
Over the next 24hrs the whole community will be out in force celebrating through the streets of the city with an open door policy on the usually private cooking societies.
And what's with all the drumming?
Arguably the drums and dress up all started back in 1836 in the local carnival celebrating San Sebastian day but for the drumming tradition you have to go way back when.....
Rumour has it the French soldiers, brass band in tow were marching through the city showing off. The local chefs and artisans used to come out taking the mickey by banging barrels imitating the soldiers and there you have it!
There are now around 150 different Tamborradas in San Sebastián who all have an designated area and time that they play and march through the city. Each Tamborrada is made up of a mix of soldiers and chefs each with up to 50 drums and 100 barrels accompanied by a brass band and flag-bearers bringing one huge winter tune and party to the streets of Donostia.
We are open all year round, if you would like more details on all our adventures please get in touch. [email protected]
YES Autumn might just be our favourite time of the year in San Sebastian!
This season September, October, November in the Basque Country is ticking all the boxes.
Here's our "TOP 10 REASONS" why you should book your trip post Summer.
- It's probably the driest months of the year, yes folks it rains in San Sebastian but consistently less in Autumn than Spring.
- The weathers still on point, between 18 - 30 degrees. Fresh mornings, sunny, hot days and cool nights, is there anything better?
- The sea's still warm so Swimming, Sailing, Surfing and Stand up paddleboarding are all on the cards.
- It's harvest time which means if you like wine a visit to La Rioja is an absolute must. See the inner workings of the wineries at their most exciting when all the magic happens. An absolute treat to see the art of vino.
- They don't call it the beautiful Basque Country for nothing and rolling into Autumn it's spectacular, whether it's hiking inland or out on the coast, bike rides through the woods or exploring up into France on those clear cut days.
- It's a whole lost quieter, Summers finished and there's a relaxed vibe everywhere from the beaches to the bars.
- Less people means it's easier to get into exclusive hotels, restaurants and visit our favourite pintxo spots.
- It's swell season, after days and days of small surf September is when those ground swells start to roll in and the whole coast lights up.
- There's still so much going on with the San Sebastian International film festival in September being a full highlight.
- It's sunset time, brooding red skies for days & days.
We are open all year round, if you would like more details on all our adventures please get in touch. [email protected]
And snow it did. For two whole days it dumped it and the whole area was on orange alert. Whilst we had a smattering in San Sebastian and the beach turned white, up in the hills there was serious snowfall. We hit the slopes and hiked our favourite tour “Into the wild”
https://www.experiencesansebastian.com/whatweoffer/hike/
We were met with over a foot of the white stuff with magical views of a snowy Basque Country. We topped it off with hot caldo, chorizo and morcilla pintxos. We are open all year round, if you would like more details please get in touch [email protected]
San Sebastian walking tours
Experience San Sebastian – Into the wild tour
Experience San Sebastian – private tours
With ten days of freezing cold conditions and a week long run of snow. It didn’t quite reach the sandy shores of San Sebastian but you only had to take a step outside the city and head up into the Basque Country hills and the Winter Wonderland was yours for the taking.
We decided to take the camera with us for our adventure up Bianditz, about 20 minutes drive from San Sebastian. We met some skiers along the way, sucked in view after view and Borja our main guide didn’t let us down as he braved the icy river for a brain freeze swim post hike.
At Experience San Sebastian we offer a huge range of bespoke hiking tours so just drop us a mail https://www.experiencesansebastian.com/contact-us/ and tell us what you like and your level and we’ll tailor make the perfect adventure for you.
We provide San Sebastian day tours all year round. If you would like more details on our sightseeing, explore tours or any of our other activities please get in touch https://www.experiencesansebastian.com/contact-us/
So the San Sebastian Summer of 2020 wasn’t quite what we expected. After the main lockdown finished we were relieved to see you still wanted to travel and come to San Sebastian but understandably a lot less than previous seasons which meant we had a lot more time on our hands.
It was great to spend it with friends and family and it gave us the perfect opportunity to go and explore and re-wild ourselves in the Basque Country once again.
We went on some crazy hiking missions, paddle boarded down rivers where no paddleboarder has ever been before, joined forces for extraordinary cycling tours, did far too many early bird surfing escapes and explored the depths of the back country where we found exciting new local experiences and real, traditional Basque food at its absolute best.
Here’s a glimpse of what we did. I think there will be some new San Sebastian Day tours on the horizon for 2021.
We provide San Sebastian day tours all year round. If you would like more details on our hiking, stand up paddle boarding or any of our other activities please get in touch https://www.experiencesansebastian.com/contact-us/
Reaching the top of Aneto at 3404m the highest peak in the Pyrenees.
There were some shallow parts on this new SUP adventure
With mountain bikes and 85km under our belts we rode some crazy single tracks.
The line up at Guethary never tasted so sweet with good swell, light winds and a mellow crowd.
Lumbier Canyon for an incredible hike, icy swim and vulture spotting.
Aralar area was full of surprises but this waterfall was our top spot.
We’re super pleased to announce our new Kids Summer Adventure weeks are up and running.
This is something we’ve been planning to do for a long time and this season seemed like the perfect time especially after we’ve all been cooped up inside all Spring. We are all in need of a heavy dose of the great outdoors especially the kids. So we’ve created a brilliant week of action and fun for exclusive small groups of children 10-14 years in English.There will be a huge focus on safety with the introduction of new rules inline with the government advice for the prevention of Covid 19. So no need to worry you’re kids are in safe hands!We’ll hike, bike, sup and sail our way round the Basque country. So who wants to come on an adventure?
We provide San Sebastian day tours all year round. If you would like more details on our sightseeing, explore tours or any of our other activities please get in touch “[email protected]”
Hike Adarra
Not a soul around on the river Oria
Cycling along the old railway track of Leizarán
Sailing the Basque Coast
San Sebastian’s been voted a top spot for foodies for many years but it has so much more than that, jaw dropping beaches being one of them.There are 3 beaches right on the cities door step all worth a visit but which one is for you?
La Concha Bay – A beautiful white natural sandy beach, the most famous of the three and the one that hogs the limelight. Its the beach closest to the old part, the centre of the city and the harbour. It gets busy in Summer especially on a big high tide but the further you walk the less people there are. It’s super safe with no waves and its fun to swim out to the floating platforms.
Ondarreta – A stunning wide enclosed beach and a firm favourite with locals. It’s usually calm in Summer although with a good swell small rideable waves peel down the city wall. Sitting in front of an affluent area of the city with the busily main street of Antiguo a short walk away. Its the closest point to Santa Clara island if you fancy a swim out for an ice cream with a pitstop at the diving boards. Absolutely great for families and well worth the walk.
La Zurriola – This is the cities surfing beach which works well for all levels you just need to choose your spot. Its a consistent beach break picking up waves with even the most smallest of swells and holds its size up to 2 – 3m. A large beach in front of the cool up and coming area of Gros with a good atmosphere and plenty of people spotting. Head to the far end for beers and to watch the sun go down.
Our top trip tip is to walk the 3 beaches including paseo nuevo, around a 10k stroll of gob smacking views and dreamy scenes. If walking isn’t for you join us on the San Sebastian City bike tour and cruise the shoreline for a real behind the scenes moment.
We provide San Sebastian day tours all year round. If you would like more details on our sightseeing, explore tours or any of our other activities please get in touch Contact us
So Corona virus has struck and we’re in the first week of containment here in San Sebastian and we’re sticking to the rules. This means no outdoor activites, not even a stroll on the beach. There is an air of stepping into the unknown but we are hopeful everything recovers quickly and we can get back to normality as soon as possible. San Sebastián remains to be a beautiful, unique and extraordinary place to visit and we hope we’ll see you here again soon. Take care & stay bug free. We’ll keep you updated.
Last year we had many requests to explore the French side of the Basque Country with you and it turned out to be a favorite. Also taking the slow route along the coastline between San Sebastian and Bilbao to show you the sights, secrets and mysteries of this special area was a top bespoke trip.
So we’ve designed two new Experience San Sebastian tours which are stunning sightseeing trips to give you spectacular scenery and a real flavour for the area.
Get a real taste for what’s on the other side of the border with the French Coast and Country tour. The main stops will be Saint jean de Luz, Biarritz, Sara and Ainhoa.
For the Bespoke Coastal transfer tour, don’t miss out on what’s in between San Sebastian and Bilbao. It’s an absolute jewel of an area with stunning views, and historic towns, ending in Bilbao before we drop you off at the airport. This tour we can completely tailor make to suit your timing and of course it can be reversed starting in Bilbao and finishing in San Sebastian.
Please click away for all the details https://www.experiencesansebastian.com/activites/explore/
We provide San Sebastian day tours all year round. If you would like more details on our sightseeing, explore tours or any of our other activities please get in touch “[email protected]”
Dreamy views of the Basque Coast
