Day trip from Pamplona by bus?

With access only to a bus (or train?) I'd say consider Olite, which is 30 min south of Pamplona. It's a walled medieval town with winding narrow streets and impressive old walls. Don't miss the Royal Palace of Olite, the seat of the Kings of Navarre, actually incorporated into the old town's fortifications. For me, it's one of the more impressive medieval castles in Europe.

Ah, that looks interesting — and it about an hour by bus with several each direction. Thank you.

And only about 30 min by local train starting at 3,30€! - https://venta.renfe.com/vol/buscarTrenEnlaces.do?c=_ph38

I suspect Olite will be your answer, but another possibility is Tudela. Very nice cathedral, central plaza, museum, dining, etc. Both train and bus service.

Uxue or Ujué will have good connections with Iruña-Pamplona and it´s a hidden gem. Gallipienzo, nearby, is also a great visit, but it´s small and probably with less bus connections.

I’ll second the comments about the Royal Palace in Olite. It has been carefully restored.

If you had time for wine tastings, there is Bodega Cosecheros de Olite and Bodegas Vega del Castillo right in town. Both were inexpensive.

We didn’t make it to Ujué as it is along a very rural, 4-digit road, with too many twists and turns for my wife. After the A-1601 by SOS del Rey Católico, she’d had enough.

Thank you for the suggestions! Another day in Pamplona loomed ….dull …

Hi MJ,

I'm going to second @ History Traveler suggestion for Tudela. It is bigger and there is more to see. If the weather was better, Uxue would be a great choice.

Have you thought about Logroño? I bit long of a right, but much more to do/see.

Your biggest problem is the weather. Definitely won't be sunny. You shouldn't have a problem with it being Good Thursday, but you may find some places close. Mostly it will effect locals (my green grocer, butcher, supermarket, ...) are closed on that day.

Olite is a fine choice. Be aware that it's not touristy and not overly blessed with restaurants. It's worth doing a bit of research ahead of time to see what's there and when it is open.

Another possibility--considerably more time-consuming to reach if my memory isn't failing me--is the very atmospheric hill town of Laguardia. It has bus service. You'll want to take the elevator up to the historic district. Laguardia is more touristy than Olite, but maybe not so much in late March. It's in wine country--not an interest of mine, but there seemed to be a lot more food options there (in the summer) than in Olite.