Which place for 3-4 days in August: Valencia OR San Sebastian? Barcelona our main focus

Sorry, I won't be much help on these specifics, but I am trying to get my head around Madrid not being a good option. That sounds like an urban myth like 'Paris shuts down in August. Don't go there' - Wrong!!! Of course Madrid will still exist and there will be people around. Who do you think supports the load of tourists that insist on traveling in high heat because that is their vacation period? Sorry, I just don't get it....but I do understand wanting a beach and trying to find a cooler option.

Maria - yea I had the same thought about Madrid.

Our primary reason for deciding not to go to Madrid is that it will simply be too hot to enjoy the experience. We don't want to feel like we have to spend a good portion of the day looking for an air-conditioned place rather than walk around. I assume they'll be enough Madridlenos sticking around to make it interesting.

I got the impression that it would be too hot from reading other posts. Open to other inputs / ideas though...

I have not been to Valencia, but then I prefer Bilbao to San Sebasgian, so perhaps it's OK for me to comment since neither of your options is going to get a fair shake from me!

I'd go with San Sebastian on weather grounds. Its average high temp in August is 77.2. Valencia's is 86.4. Those are just averages, so I suggest going to wunderground.com to check out the historical monthly weather stats. They show hour-by-hour temps for each month on a graph. Check at least the three most recent years to see what sort of range you can expect. I've occasionally looked at that data for the Basque Country cities, and it seems to me that, though temperature spikes do occasionally occur, they tend to last for just one day, because the coastal weather is so changeable.

It's true that there are not a lot of sights in SS, but the San Telmo Museum is worthwhile, and the old town is unavoidable because it's where all the tapas bars are. But there are good side-trips that can be made pretty effortlessly:

• Bilbao: Roughly 90 minutes by bus, or you could travel slowly through the very pretty countryside for 3 times that long on the FEVE train. Good museums, a much larger old quarter than SS has, less touristy. I enjoyed wandering around the "downtown" area with its very attractive late 19th/early 20th century buildings.

• Hondarribia: Large town essentially on the French border, 30 to 60 minutes away by bus. Pretty medieval district on hill and a fishermen's quarter (restaurants) below. Go armed with a map so you don't have to walk all the way down the waterfront to the tourist office.

• Zarautz, Getaria and Zumaia: Former fishing villages ,now touristy beach towns, but retaining their historical architecture. All can be visited (albeit quickly) in a day via train/bus. I walked between two of them.

I perhaps should have mentioned that I think eight days in Barcelona would be wonderful. I would have no need to go elsewhere. But I love the modernista architecture.

I just got back from Valencia/Barcelona. It was my first time to Valencia. Very interesting to see. Good food, interesting architecture. The people were very kind. Oh, and cheap hotels. I was happy to see the city. Now, if I had a choice, I'd rather spend time in San Sebastian. Barcelona has everything - my favorite big city in Spain. Madrid also has plenty to see and do. But for me, I love the landscape, food and beaches in Basque Country. I love San Sebastian and Bilbao. But San Sebastian was my favorite. The food is outstanding, the sea is beautiful (beach), there is plenty to see and do. Good luck!

Thanks a lot for the thoughts. We've ruled out Valencia for now.

A couple of other people recommended staying in Catalonia and going to places near Barcelona - Girona or Tarragona (with side trip to the Dali museum if Girona). We could probably spend another day in Barcelona with that plan too. That sounds appealing to cut down on travel time, but it seems like people normally just spend a day in these places based on comments I've read, and that implies it's not as interesting (admittedly not a reliable conclusion).

On one hand, people do say great things about Barcelona. We have 9 full days excluding travel, so we could just stay in Barcelona w/ perhaps 2 nights nearby. I'm probably leaning towards Girona w/ side trip to Dali Museum if we follow this plan.

But people really rave about San Sebastian and going there would allow us to see Basque Country. And people seem to just love it. So it seems like that'd be preferable than spending time near Barcelona. I'm really dreading the 730am train we'd take each way to get there, but hopefully we could sleep off the prior night (at least my wife can; harder for me).

Any thoughts on these options? Really torn about this. I know everyone's preferences are different, etc, but any more thoughts appreciated.

Oh, I've checked for lodging and train tickets - they're still available so that's not an issue.

Btw is AirBnB the best source for apt rentals? I've heard other options are common in Spain but no one has told me which one specifically.

I see apartments showing up on booking.com all the time, but Barcelona is one of the cities that is trying to crack down on unlicensed apartment rentals. I don't know how far they've gotten in their enforcement efforts.

As for whether you should go to San Sebastian, there's no definitive answer. You will gave a great time either way. If you think about it, Europe is full of great places you are not going to visit on this trip. There's always too much to do and not enough time to do it. I tend to favor long stays and a variety of destinations--two preferences that are always in conflict!

Just got back from San Sebastian and Bilbao on day trip. Great, but since you are focused on Barcelona go to Valencia because it is closer

I was just in the Basque country in May 2017. I had a very mixed trip, partly due to wrong expectations. If you want the full details (and I do mean DETAILS), here's my trip report: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/basque-country-trip-report-bayonne-san-sebastian-vitoria-gasteiz-and-bilbao-may-2017

The short version: I didn't take to San Sebastian as so many do, and I much preferred Bilbao (and a place that hasn't been mentioned yet, Vitoria). For me, your concerns that San Sebastian wasn't urban enough were well founded, as well as the fact that I didn't like the food. I don't like Spanish food in general, and Basque food did not change my opinion; I know most people love both the city and its food, so this is a minority report all around. It IS lovely, however, and the views from the funicular, walking along the beach, etc, are quite beautiful.

I like the idea of Barcelona and the surrounding area for the whole time. I loved my day trip to Girona, and there's also Figueres, Sitges, Tarragona, Montserrat, and lots of other possibilities. That's in addition to the many sights in Barcelona itself. The National Museum of Catalunya (MNAC) by itself is so huge, the ticket is good for two days! There's plenty of other museums, as well as lots of Modernista architecture (and not just Gaudi).

Barcelona with numerous day trips could work. Downside to San Sebastian is the six hour train ride each way. Not an issue when one is in Spain for a month but in your short time frame, it uses about 12 hours of your vacation on a train. Valencia could be fun but for beaches, Sitges is much closer.

Thanks everyone! Very helpful to help narrow this down. This is the hard part of travel - once you start looking into things it's really hard to prioritize and accept the limitations of what you can do in any one trip, as you mentioned acraven.

I think we've decided to stay closer afield to Barcelona and NOT go to San Sebastian.

If we do that, it seems like most people would recommend staying in Catalonia vs going to Valencia. I'd probably choose a couple of nights in Girona with a trip to Figueres thrown in (maybe an extra night after more research). It's closer to Barcelona and people seem to like it more than Tarragona (from my unscientific poll of comments...).

Does anyone think Valencia would be a better option if we're choosing between Valencia and Girona / Figueres? Primary advantage I'd see is included in my original post, primarily that it's a big city with its own vibe and would provide exposure to a different region of Spain. People don't seem to talk it up as much as other places so I'm leaning towards staying in Catalonia.

Yet again, my trip planning comes down to the wire... :). One day I'll have things mapped out more in advance.

Many thanks again!