San Sebastián 7-Day Itinerary: Bilbao, Flysch and Pasaia

How should you spend 7 days in San Sebastián?

Use two days for the city, then alternate day trips with slow days: Bilbao and the Guggenheim on day three, the Zumaia flysch by boat on day four, a free city day, Chillida Leku on day six and Pasaia with Hondarribia on day seven. A Wednesday start fits the museums’ weekly closures best.

A week changes what San Sebastián is for. The 3-day itinerary squeezes the old town, the bay and Chillida Leku into a long weekend; this plan gives the city room to breathe and uses Euskotren trains and local buses to reach Bilbao, the Basque coast and the old harbour towns east of the city.

Turespaña frames the wider province well: the coast towards France has Hondarribia’s historic quarter, declared a Historical-Artistic Monument, while Zarautz, Getaria, Deba and Mutriku combine monuments with long beaches, and Getaria gives its name to a txakoli wine with its own Designation of Origin.

Everything here was checked on official pages on 16 October 2026. Choose a base with where to stay in San Sebastián; for this plan, a room near Amara or Centro makes the early trains easier. Check the season with best time to visit San Sebastián.

What does the 7-day San Sebastián plan look like at a glance?

Days one and two cover the city on foot, days three and four are full day trips by Euskotren, day five is deliberately slow, day six combines Chillida Leku with a free afternoon, and day seven heads east to Pasaia and Hondarribia. The table shows transport, weekly closures and a rain plan for each day.

The order is built around four closures: the Guggenheim shuts on most Mondays (Guggenheim Bilbao), Chillida Leku on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (Chillida Leku), Albaola in Pasaia on Mondays (Albaola) and the Aquarium on Mondays in autumn (Aquarium). Starting on a Wednesday lines every day up with an open door.

If you start on another day, keep the same blocks and reshuffle: Bilbao on any day from Tuesday to Sunday, Chillida Leku from Thursday to Monday, and Pasaia from Tuesday to Sunday.

What should you book and how should you pace a week?

Book the Zumaia flysch boat for a specific date, because departures are scheduled and depend on the sea. Guggenheim and Chillida Leku tickets can be bought ahead; nothing else needs booking outside festival weeks. Follow the two big trips with two slower days, since the Bilbao train alone takes over two and a half hours each way.

The Geopark’s Essential Flysch boat trip lasts an hour, leaves from the Txomin Agirre quay in Zumaia and costs €19, or €11 for under-12s; in October 2026 it was scheduled on 17, 18, 22, 24, 25, 29 and 31 October, and it runs only if weather and sea conditions allow (Geopark). The three-hour Flysch Tour to Mutriku costs €28 (Geopark).

Rooms are the bigger booking risk in summer. In 2026, Jazzaldia ran from 22 to 26 July, Semana Grande from 8 to 15 August and the film festival from 18 to 26 September (ANSA, Onda Vasca, San Sebastián Festival); Turespaña lists 2027 dates as to be confirmed and advises booking ahead for these occasions (Turespaña).

A week also means a tourist-tax question: El País reported a draft Basque levy of up to €7.50 per adult per night, charged for five nights at most (El País), so for a seven-night stay the cap matters. Check the final booking total.

Days 1 and 2: how do you pace the city itself?

On day one, settle into the Parte Vieja, climb Monte Urgull and walk the Paseo Nuevo before an early pintxos evening. On day two, walk the bay from La Concha to Ondarreta and the Peine del Viento, ride the Igueldo funicular for the view and keep the evening loose. Both days work entirely on foot.

Turespaña lists the old-town stops worth lingering over: Santa María del Coro and San Vicente, the San Telmo Museum in a former Dominican convent, and the porticoed Plaza de la Constitución with its numbered balconies. Castillo de la Mota and the Sacred Heart statue crown Monte Urgull, reached by one path to the top or by the Paseo Nuevo breakwater round the hill.

The Igueldo funicular leaves every 15 minutes from both stations and costs €5.50 return for adults (Monte Igueldo, FAQ). With a week, there is no need to do it in perfect light on day two; keep it for the clearest evening you get.

If you swim at La Concha or Ondarreta, the UK government advises learning the beach flags, staying out of the water on a red flag and not swimming where a river runs into the sea (FCDO).

Day 3: how do you do Bilbao and the Guggenheim as a day trip?

Take an early Euskotren E1 from Amara, which runs hourly and takes about two hours 35 minutes to Matiko in Bilbao, and give the Guggenheim the middle of the day. It opens from Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 7pm, and on selected Mondays. Return by an evening train and eat late in San Sebastián.

Euskotren’s 2026 winter timetable has E1 trains leaving Amara hourly from 5.50am on weekdays (Euskotren E1). The Guggenheim opens until 8pm from 15 June to 13 September, opens on Mondays from 15 June to 7 September and on a handful of listed holiday Mondays, closes on 25 December and 1 January, and shuts at 5pm on 24 and 31 December (Guggenheim Bilbao).

Admission prices vary by date; when we checked, adults paid €12 and students and over-65s €6, under-18s enter free, and an audio guide is included. The museum also halves prices from 4pm to 7pm on the last day of each exhibition (Guggenheim Bilbao).

More than five hours on trains is a lot for one day. If that feels too much, stay a night in Bilbao, or swap this day for a second coast day. Driving is the other option; see renting a car in Spain.

Day 4: how do you see the Zumaia flysch and the coast?

Ride the Euskotren E1 west to Zumaia for a one-hour Geopark boat trip along the flysch cliffs, layers of rock that record millions of years of geological history. Collect an audio guide at the Zumaia tourist office first. In the afternoon, stop at Zarautz for its long beach, or detour to Getaria for txakoli.

The Essential Flysch trip covers the coastal flysch between Zumaia and Deba; audio guides in English, French and German are collected at the Zumaia tourist office, five minutes’ walk from the quay, and a “Flysch on foot” walk may be offered if the boat is cancelled for weather (Geopark). The longer Flysch Tour continues past Deba to Mutriku, with about an hour ashore in its historic quarter (Geopark).

Zarautz and Zumaia both lie on the E1 line between San Sebastián and Bilbao (Euskotren E1). Turespaña names Zarautz, Getaria, Deba and Mutriku as towns with both monuments and long beaches, and Getaria as the home of a txakoli with its own Designation of Origin.

Sea conditions decide this day, so keep it flexible: if the boat is cancelled, swap day four with day five and try again.

Days 5 and 6: what should a slower middle of the week look like?

Make day five a city day without an agenda: Gros and Zurriola beach in the morning, a long lunch, the Aquarium or San Telmo Museoa if it rains and an unhurried pintxos evening. On day six, take the BU05 bus to Chillida Leku in Hernani for the morning, then keep the afternoon free for the beach or a nap.

The Aquarium by the fishing port opens from 10am on every day except Monday in October to December, closing at 7pm on weekdays and 8pm at weekends, and feeds its sharks at noon on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays (Aquarium). Across the river, Turespaña places Rafael Moneo’s Kursaal on Gros beach, and the María Cristina bridge leads from the centre to the railway station.

Chillida Leku opens from 10am to 6pm every day except Tuesdays and Wednesdays, which is why it sits on a Monday here. Adults pay €14, under-18s €7, and the Lurraldebus BU05 runs every half hour to a stop directly outside (Chillida Leku).

Slow days are when the San Sebastián eats guide earns its place: a long lunch instead of another sight is the point of a week here.

Day 7: how do you combine Pasaia and Hondarribia?

Take the Ekialdebus E09 to Pasaia, about 20 minutes, to see Albaola, the sea factory behind the replica of the 16th-century whaling ship San Juan. In its winter timetable it opens from 10am to 2pm on Tuesdays. Continue to Hondarribia’s old quarter for lunch, then return in time for your departure.

Albaola’s winter hours are 10am to 2pm on Tuesdays and Sundays, and 10am to 2pm and 3pm to 6pm from Wednesday to Saturday; it closes on Mondays. General admission costs €10, or €14 with a guided tour, and the bus stop is a ten-minute walk away. Euskotren and the Renfe commuter train also stop at Herrera in Pasaia, from where a ten-minute boat crosses to the site (Albaola).

Hondarribia’s historic quarter is a declared Historical-Artistic Monument, according to Turespaña. Aena lists Lurraldebus routes linking San Sebastián Airport with Hondarribia, Irun, Rentería and San Sebastián (Aena), which makes Hondarribia an easy last stop before an afternoon flight.

Prefer France? Swap this day for Hendaye: Euskotren’s E2 runs from Amara to Hendaia in about 40 minutes, every 15 minutes on weekdays towards Irun, with alternate trains continuing over the border (Euskotren E2).

How should you plan a week around San Sebastián’s weather?

On average, expect rain on two or three days of any week, whatever the season. AEMET records rain on about ten to thirteen days a month, and 1,507mm a year. Keep the boat trip and the Igueldo funicular movable, and treat the Bilbao day as your rain-proof option, since it centres on the Guggenheim.

AEMET’s 1981–2010 normals for Igueldo give November as the wettest month, at 169mm, April as the month with most rain days, at 13.4, and July as the driest by frequency, at 9.8 days; summer also brings more thunderstorm days (AEMET). Even a June or September week should include an indoor plan.

The boat is the most weather-dependent part of the week: the Geopark says its trips depend on weather and sea conditions and puts visitor safety first (Geopark). The Igueldo amusement park’s rides usually close in persistent rain, though covered rides may open in light drizzle (Monte Igueldo).

The UK government warns about distraction thefts by teams in Spain, drink spiking in nightlife areas and unlicensed taxis, whose passengers can be fined up to €600 (FCDO).

Which tours fit a week here, and who should change the plan?

A guided pintxos evening suits the first night, a Bilbao or Basque coast tour suits travellers who would rather not manage trains, and a cooking class fills a wet slow day. Families should cut the Bilbao day short or drop it. Drivers can add inland towns, and anyone with only three days should use the shorter plan.

Before booking a coast or Bilbao tour, check whether Guggenheim entry or the flysch boat is included, the time at each stop and the cancellation terms. The Geopark’s boats cost €19 for the one-hour trip (Geopark), a useful benchmark when comparing packages.

For inland towns such as Tolosa, Ordizia and Azpeitia, which Turespaña singles out for their monuments, a car helps; see renting a car in Spain. For a long weekend instead, use the San Sebastián 3-day itinerary.