Bus travel from Bilbao to San Sebastian

I did it years ago so things could have changed, but my first stop is always the airport website--it will give info on buses to the city. If the airport bus in convenient, I'd go with that, but a taxi rarely breaks the bank if you are travel weary and just want to get on with it.
I recall we had to walk a bit to get to the correct bus to SS, but nothing onerous.
I usually check Google Maps and RometoRio for connections, but always confirm the results with the bus company websites.

There is the D050B bus from Bilbao Airport to San Sebastian(Donostia). Goes every hour at 45 past the hour between 6:45 am and 23:45 pm. No need to go into Bilbao.
https://www.pesa.net/pesa/descargas/actual/DO50B.pdf?t=1628256182

Funny how repeatedly the name "Bilbao" is misspelled by "Bilboa", for some strange reason (as a non-native English speaker, I guess it´s got something to do with the way the "o" is pronounced...English has 15 vowel sounds and Spanish or Basque, just 5).

The "logical" airport for the Basque Country, considering the number of international or domestic connections, is BilbAO. This airport (small, but much bigger than the one in Hondarribia, a.k.a. Donostia-San Sebastian airport, 20miles from SS) offers a very good connection by direct bus to Donostia-San Sebastian, direct drive on the winding highway. Donostia-San Sebastian highlights can be seen in one day, it´s a small town (190,000h), I´d also visit Bilbao (345,000h) as a clean, small and walkable city with a really nice architecture, old quarter, the riverfront, the Guggenheim museum, 1915 funicular, pintxos and good food...and so on (but I´m biased, I live here!). In any case, Bilbao is a just 15´ drive to the bus station or center of town, either by bus (3eur, last stop) or by taxi (25-30eur).

You´ll find the Basque Country -anywhere- a perfect place for hiking, there are plenty of green valleys, mountains and natural parks. Hope you´re not coming for the sun and the beaches, it´d not be the right place!

Assuming you mean Bilbao (Bilboa is in Ireland) it sounds like a good plan. San Sebastian/Donostia airport is really small, so Bilbao is usually a much better choice.

There are direct buses from Bilbao airport to San Sebastian/Donostia that depart hourly. If you plan to visit Bilbao, there is also the option of taking the train to San Sebastian/Donostia. The buses are operated by Pesa, https://www.pesa.net, and the trains by Euskotren, https://www.euskotren.eus/eu

Someone mentioned a train. I looked that up but it is not direct from what I have found. Bilbao to SS. I'm trying to make good use of our travel time. I see it take up to 4 hours to SS. What did I miss? Headed to SS for hiking. Traveled to Spain many times since college and did the ART thing. Looking to spot a town to hang a few months out of the year when we retire soon.

Thank you all. I have a better understanding of our travel time now!

I have no idea what you missed, but the train from Bilbao to San Sebastian/Donostia is supposed to take 2:30 and cost €6.30 for a one way trip.

It is a beautiful part of the world and so culturally interesting too. Rethink your idea of skipping Bilbao, it is a very interesting city ti explore.

What is the name of the Bus station in SS as my destination? That is where my ticket from Bilbao airport will be purchased to near to town. And possibly close to our hotel we select soon.
Thank you

Google maps will show you.
https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1GCEA_enUS781US782&tbs=lf:1,lf_ui:8&tbm=lcl&q=san+sebastian+bus+station&rflfq=1&num=10&ved=2ahUKEwi9ro7G2ZzyAhUYHs0KHaX4AQoQtgN6BAgSEAM#rlfi=hd:;si:;mv:[[43.32757296507013,-1.9482461179708155],[43.308839006508016,-1.9953665739725368],null,[43.318206707787546,-1.9718063459716761],15]

The train from San Sebastian to Bilbao takes a long time but traverses some pretty country. It makes many stops (though some may be only on request--I'm not sure). It might be useful in getting you to good hiking opportunities if they are near the SS end of the rail line.

The bus between SS and Bilbao is much faster and runs frequently.

I'm not a native of Bilbao and agree that it's a much more interesting city than SS. It's historic center is larger and is not full of tourist-thronged pintxo bars. SS is attractive and the beach is gorgeous (though often totally overcast), but it doesn't take a great deal of time to see the town.

Two great hikes out of SS:
east to Pasaia, Hondarribia (in May, the orchids were in bloom) -- pick up the trail in the Gros part of SS
from Zumaia to Deba (you can take train there) This is a northern, seaside branch of the Way of St. James--the rock formations are stunning!

If it´s hiking, Donostia-San Sebastian is as good as any other place in the Basque Country, it´s like a national sport over here. The train from Bilbao to SS takes long, it´s a narrow gauge railway and a small train (modern), it stops in almost every town and it´s very scenic. Think of mountains and green valleys all over the northern coast, as you probably know. There´s just one bus terminal at Donostia-San Sebastian, so can´t miss it! (opened a couple of years ago very close to the city center).

Neat towns on the coast that you maybe should not miss, west to east: (Bilbao) Getxo, Plentzia, Mundaka, Gernika, Ea, Elantxobe, Lekeitio, Mutriku, Zumaia, Getaria (then SS), Pasai Donibane, Hondarribia. There are plenty of hiking routes that link most of them.

Okay, Do I purchase the bus in advance or purchase at the Bilbao Airport? And where do I purchase this ticket at the airport? I just watched a you tube video. ( 10 years old) Looks like you can exit the airport and catch the bus in front of the terminal. Is that still true? Looking like the best solution to fly into Bilbao and bus to SS. Much cheaper out of JFK. Thanks all!

You can probably buy it from the driver, but here is info for online purchase and schedule:
https://www.pesa.net/pesa/en/compra

You might see a vending machine on your out of the terminal toward the bus. In my experience those vending machines allow you to choose English as the language displayed, and I've never had a problem with my US credit card being accepted. It might (or might not) save money to buy the ticket from the vending machine rather than from the driver. In some situations there is a branch of the tourist office in the airport and it sells key transporation tickets. I have no idea whether that is the case in Bilbao.

Bilbao airport is also small and very easy to handle. After you exit, on Arrivals, there´s a place where you can buy your tickets for the bus (I believe it´s 17eur one way). Again, strong recommendation not to miss Bilbao, frequently overcasted by San Sebastian for no reason at all. Very rainy area any time of the year (we are having an awful summer this year, it´s been raining almost every day) so bring adequate clothing for all kind of weather.

Yes, Now we are rethinking about staying the afternoon or maybe the night before we head to SS. Hiking is the main reason for SS. Oh and maybe the food. I see we can bus into town as well then go to bus station to continue our plans to be in SS for the eve. or not.

Bilbao is in a valley surrounded by mountains, and as said before, hiking is the national sport over here and there are zillions of routes everywhere. If the main reason for SS is hiking, it´s just another good place. The best hiking is inland, though, in the highest mountains and through deep forests and beautiful valleys. The food is fantastic all over the Basque Country.

The old town of Bilbao and the area of the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao would be the minimum to see in this city. And it´s walkable, as is Donostia-San Sebastian and most cities in Spain.

Alice,
I suggest you use Rome2Rio website, I always start there with high-level planning. It will give you the best/fastest transportation options.
Otherwise, I consult the RS guidebooks for planning buses or trains in and out of specific cities. It's worth every penny and if you sign up for the email you'll get promotions from time to time. Or go to your local library, a valuable resource for borrowing his guidebooks.
The Man in Seat 61 is the best guide I've found for train travel, it includes photos of the trains and stations; very helpful to me since I like those visual cues.
Happy Trails,

Oh, btw if you get to Bilbao and the Guggenheim museum, you simply must eat lunch there. One of the best meals I've had anywhere. The food everywhere is excellent, as mentioned by others.

Be very careful about using Rome2Rio. It is, indeed, useful for high-level research. It's usually accurate about whether you can complete your trip by rail or will need to use a bus. If a transfer is required, that info is generally OK. However, you absolutely cannot trust the fares, travel times or frequencies shown on the Rome2Rio website. They are often way off-base. You need to keep drilling down until you find the name of the bus or rail company offering the service you are considering, then go to its website for accurate information. Most of the time Rome2Rio will give you a clickable link.