We have two full days and one night to travel from San Sebastian to Barcelona in August. I would like for us to get a feel for the beauty of the Pyrenees and some of the more charming and/or dramatic villages along the way. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Posted by
Atlanta
3262 posts
Hi Kenny, Not sure if this is the best suggestion but it's something we did last week. We were driving on Route A 64 and saw the snow-capped Pyrenees in the distance and on a whim headed south from Tarbes through Bagnerges-de-Bigorre where we stopped at the local TI and got a good map. Our route took us through Campan and Ste-Marie-de-Campan. The roads were at times narrow and winding but the scenery was fantastic, especially between Ste-Marie-de-Campan and Arreau. The Tour de France route has gone through this area. We stopped for two nights nights at Saint-Lary-Soulan - a cute village and stayed at Hotel Les Arches. Our starting point was Saint-Jean-de-Luz and we made the drive between Tarbes and Saint-Lary-Soulan in an afternoon. You could use Google Maps to find the route and map the distances. This area (Saint-Lary-Soulan) is mainly a ski region so some restaurants and hotels may be closed in August. We did some hiking and enjoyed the mountain views. You could easily do this with one night and two days. From here you could head south to pick up A 2 to Barcelona. We headed for Toulouse. We loved our time in the Pyrenees - cool weather, hearty food, beautiful scenery! Just one option of many!