Typically we try to avoid beach resort towns.  Jacked prices, rip-offs, crowds, and heat top the list of reasons to steer clear from them.  But with its convenient location across the Spanish-French border in Basque country, and with the brisk Easter Sunday weather beckoning us to play outdoors, we knew there couldn’t be any harm in dropping by San Sebastian.  And we were glad we did.

Fortunately it was Easter Sunday, which meant free parking, and plenty of it.  After parking in the neighborhood streets we stumbled upon Miramar Palace:

My favorite view overlooking Playa de la Concha was from the hill of Miramar Palace. Everyone including ourselves picnicked on the blooming fields of grass.  

Thanks to the low tide, we were able to stroll along Playa de la Concha.  Later at high tide all the sunset surfers would come out to play with the waves.

Monte Urgull, with its towering Jesus standing tall upon its peak, could be easily seen from the beaches.  We figured we’d slowly make our way in that direction, and eventually up the hill.

As expected, the views looking down at San Sebastian from Monte Urgull were lovely.

San Sebastian is made up of two beaches: Playa de la Zurriola to the east and the larger Playa de la Concha to the west.

High-five, Jesus!

On the somewhat crowded tourist street at the bottom of Monte Urgull, the north end featured a basilica, and its south end focused on a gothic cathedral.

To my surprise, we didn’t spend any money in San Sebastian!  Maybe because it was Easter Sunday, and numerous shops in the center were closed.  Or maybe because it was our ignorance to San Sebastian’s world-famous gastronomy.  Little did we know that the most gourmet tapas in all of Spain could be found in San Sebastian, and that the little city boasted a number of Michelin-starred restaurants.  We weren’t hungry, but had we been equipped with that knowledge, we might have indulged on some fancy tapas.

It is no wonder why the Spanish and the French flood this little resort beach city during the warmer months of summer.  Beautiful beaches, plenty of parks and walks, dramatic views, and wonderful food sound like an ideal, local getaway weekend.  San Sebastian was definitely worth the quick detour on our road trip!