My husband and I are scheduled to fly into San Sebastian two days before our Basque Country tour begins in Bayonne in October 2025. For those of you who have been to both towns, which one would you recommend for a couple pre-tour nights? I was planning to book a seaside hotel in San Sebastian for those nights, but I'm now wondering whether Bayonne is one of those places that has a special charm that perhaps once there, I will wish we had gone straight to Bayonne. Any votes for Biarritz instead? I'm not usually this indecisive! Thanks!
Posted by
Bilbao
946 posts
Definitely, Baiona-Bayonne over Biarritz, in my opinion. Biarritz has the "name" but nothing extraordinary about it, nice town but not that much to do. Baiona-Bayonne is bigger, more interesting and with more things to see and do.
Do not expect a "resort" -like city in Donostia-San Sebastian, this is a quite rainy area (Biarritz and Baiona-Bayonne too) and weather is very unreliable. But absolutely beautiful places.
Posted by
Walnut Creek, CA
795 posts
We spent 2 day pre-tour in st jean du luz at the grand thalasso hotel and spa right on the beach.
Biarittz is modern if thats what you are looking for.
SJDL was scenic, historic, easy to walk every where, has great restaurants and has a great beach.
Please consider it.
We did not find any special charm in Bayonne.
Posted by
la rioja
714 posts
I agree with Mikel about Biarritz, and since you will visit both Bayonne and San Sebastian with the tour, have you thought about Saint Jean de Luz. With two nights you can make a day trip to Biarritz or Hondarribia. If you dare, you could rent a car for a day trip to the villages like Ainhoa or Espelette.
As commented, the weather could vary greatly.
Posted by
Used to be Steilacoom, now it’s Las Vegas
2465 posts
We booked two extra days at the RS tour hotel in Bayonne prior to the start. We had already been traveling for 2 weeks prior to the start of the tour so we appreciated being able to settle in for several days without having to pack and unpack. We actually enjoyed Bayonne and found it easy to do a day trip to Biarritz via public transportation. Several group members did day trips to St.John de Luz as well. There were great restaurants and lots of chocolate shops in Bayonne.
Posted by
Somerville, MA
742 posts
I like Bayonne but it looks like you are already slated for 2 nights there on the tour. 2 nights is plenty, especially if you won’t have a car.