San Sebastian Hotels

We had a great stay at the Pension Edorta, www.pensionedorta.com , right in the heart of the old town. Down their street to the east, the Constitution Plaza is just 200 yards away. And 200 yards to the west down their street is the sea, at the harbor. The beach itself is southwest about a 5 minute walk. We had a rental car, and the parking garage was farther than the beach. But it was October, so we walked the promenade overlooking the beach, but didn’t spend time on the sand.

hey hey fred
you can check on booking.com about what hotels are available and what they have to offer. not being political but the presidential G7 meeting was in biarritz which i'm sure will bring more tourists into the area since not many go there. haha
since you plan to spend a couple days before cruise, go out an adventure the area. my best friend is french basque from the area near saint jean pied de port. lots of green countryside, farmers and ranchers with animals and produce growing area with produce, fruit and vegetables, sheep, cattle to live off the land.
bayonne is famous for it's chocolates and jabonne ham. maybe stop at les halles covered and other items for sale at the market. lots of local products (bayonne-tourisme.com) (euskoguide.com)
tripsavvy.com (search getting to san sebastian)
travelswithmaribel.com writes a blog about the area
the guardian.com (search northern spain road trip)
biarritzbylocals.com biarritz is a famous beach for surfers, check out what's going on at beach with cafes, restaurants serving tapas.
ascain- home to txopinondo.com making aplle wine, cider, juice, brandy, liquer, eating basque food, tours open to the public
ixtassou: village home to famous black cherries with shops with local products like jams jellies brandies
guide-du-pays-basque.com roam around the aisle of markets for culture awareness
rhunetrain.com take a cog ride up into the mountains
bascovino.com (small group tours) has some tours, email them and take a tour out into country, seeing a small village of esplette, home to red peppers,
francethisway.com scroll to pyreness atlantiques for a guide to small village.
due some research, you have a few days to check out the area, lots to see and do even though won't see it all. maybe stop at a tourism kiosk in city center and what they have to offer. enjoy your time and go on an adventure.
my friend absolutely loves her family area, even though we are traveling to paris and annecy next month for another part of france to check out.
have fun
aloha