San Sebastian: Basque in its glory

WHERE?

Ciudad meets costa in dramatic fashion at northern Spain's most exciting and civilised city. San Sebastian has a dream location. Just a short bus or train ride from the French frontier, it is arranged decorously around a beautiful bay: La Concha, which means shell, reflecting its exquisite shape. Stand outside the handsome Town Hall on the waterside, with your back to the sea, and the Parte Vieja - old town - is on your left, crowding beneath the great hulk of rock known as Monte Urgull. The newer parts of San Sebastian curl around the bay to your right, ending with the exclamation mark of another towering hill, Monte Igueldo. San Sebastian looks north out to the Bay of Biscay, close to where the Spanish coastline turns the corner into France, which places it at the heart of the Basque Country - Euskadi. You will see its Basque name, Donostia, everywhere.

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More than 30 Spanish cities have direct links from the UK, but San Sebastian is not (yet) among them. The city's airport, 20km east at Fuentarrabia, has links only with Barcelona and Madrid. The nearest international airport is Biarritz, about 40 miles north-east, served by Ryanair (0871 246 0000; www.ryanair.com) from Stansted. A taxi from the airport could cost €120 (£86); the journey by public transport is cheap but tricky, involving a train from Biarritz rail station (about a mile from the airport terminal) to Hendaye on the border with Spain, then a second train on the narrow gauge line (see page 3) from there to San Sebastian's Amara station.

The alternative approach by air is on easyJet (0905 821 0905; www.easyjet.com) from Stansted to Bilbao; catch the local bus into the city, and change to one of the frequent coaches to San Sebastian. You can also reach Bilbao by sea from Portsmouth on P&O Ferries (08706 009 009; www.poferries.com).

In terms of places to stay, you are spoiled for choice - at least outside the Easter and summer peaks, when the Spanish converge on La Concha, and during the film festival in the last 10 days of September when the screen world converges on San Sebastian (www.sansebastianfestival.com). The optimum location is the Hotel de Londres y Inglaterra, perched magnificently on the seafront at Calle Zubieta 2 (00 34 943 440 770; www.hlondres.com). It was built in 1865, as a summer residence for Queen Isabel II; three years later, she went into exile as a result of the revolution. The building served as a casino, a hospital and finally a hotel - graced by guests such as Toulouse Lautrec and Mata Hari (but not in the same room at the same time). Even if you do not stay in one of the 148 rooms, you should certainly visit the bar that reaches out to the promenade - a great place to watch the sun sink into the bay. A double room costs around €155 (£111), with breakfast another €15 (£11) per person - reflecting both the quality, and the relatively high cost of accommodation in San Sebastian compared with elsewhere in Spain.

To save cash, you can choose from a plethora of pensiones and hostales in the old and new towns, with the lowest prices and standards around the main railway station. In contrast, the Hostal Alemana occupies part of a large, elegant building at Calle San Martin 53 (00 34 943 462 544; www.hostalalemana.com), but is clean, friendly and comfortable; furthermore, the peak-season double-room rate is a relative bargain at €93 (£66), with a good breakfast costing an extra €5 (£3.50).

The helpful tourist information office is on the north side of the old town at Calle Reina Regente 3 (www.sansebastianturismo.com). It opens 9am-1.30pm and 3.30-7pm daily except Sundays, when it opens 10am-2pm.

WHY?

Whatever you like about Spain, you are likely to find it here. Simply by criss-crossing the grid of the old town, you quickly assimilate a sense of the ancient origins and tumultuous history of the city. The cobbled streets are pedestrianised (at least after the morning goods deliveries have taken place) and sprinkled with mellow old churches, odd little cafés and elegant specialist shops.

To the south and south-east, the (relatively) new town features grand villas, ambitious squares and some lovely public gardens. You can happily take a walk in the hills; while Monte Igueldo has a funicular to the top, where you find an amusement park, a tangle of footpaths on Monte Urgell leads through woodland up to the Castillo de la Mota, a gently decaying fortress that gives superb views over the ensemble.

The attraction of La Concha, though, will keep dragging you back to the bay. It is the centrepiece of the city in every sense, and each evening the Paseo, or promenade, is crowded with citizens and visitors. From April to October, bathers congregate on its gently shelving sands to swim in ocean waters that are subdued by the curling shoreline - and decorated by the island of Santa Clara, sitting happily in the middle of the bay.

WHAT?

Begin in the superb surroundings at the museum of San Telmo, located in a cloistered 16th-century convent that snuggles up to the base of Monte Urgull on Plaza Ignacio Zuloaga (00 34 943 481 580; www.donostiakultura.com/santelm.htm). The square is named after the local artist, Ignacio Zuloaga, whose work features heavily in the museum - which also includes a wonderful church. It opens 10.30am-1.30pm and 4pm-7.30pm daily except Mondays and Sunday afternoons, admission free.

The old town extends west from here. How old, exactly? Well, much was destroyed in a fire in 1813, but it remains highly atmospheric - particularly the church of Santa Maria del Coro. The delicious façade appears to erupt from the rock in a flurry of Baroque twirls. A couple of minutes west from here, the old fishing port is still lively with people and, especially, restaurants - if it swims in the Atlantic, you can probably order it here, and wash it down with some strong local cider. A trip a few miles out of town is worthwhile to see the excellent Museo Chillida-Leku (00 34 943 336 006; www.eduardo-chillida.com), reached by bus 92 every half-hour from Calle Okendo in San Sebastian. This serene sculpture park is speckled with works by the local goalkeeper-turned-sculptor Eduardo Chillida. At its heart sits a fine 16th-century Basque farmhouse that he rejuvenated and re-cast as a startling venue for art. It opens 10.30am-3pm daily except Tuesdays, admission €8 (£5.50).

Back in town, shopping is as much a pleasure as you would expect in such a well-heeled city. The greatest concentration of alluring stores can be found in and around the Mercado at the east end of the city centre.

San Sebastian is an excellent place to sample the intense flavours and colours of Basque cuisine. Happily, you need not attempt to master the impenetrable language of Euskadi - a smattering of Spanish will suffice. At around 8pm, you should take your first sip of a zurito - a tiny glass of wine or beer - and start eating pintxos (Basque tapas), mainly morsels of fish or meat. Dinner rarely begins before 10pm.

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