Pasaia – San Sebastián via the coastal path

A superb walk to spend a lovely afternoon and enjoy the evening in Old San Sebastián, sampling tapas and pintxos.

Details

121329
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 7.43 mi
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 20 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: No
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 1,043 ft
  • ↘
    Descent: - 997 ft

  • ▲
    Highest point: 472 ft
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 7 ft

Photos

Description of the walk

On this route, we follow theGR®®121(red and white markings). To get to the start, we take the Topo train from Hendaye station and get off at Herrera station (as recommended by other walkers)

(1) On leaving the station, we take the road on our left which runs alongside the A-road and the harbour, where we find a footbridge on our right. At the end of the car park, we turn right towards the harbour (it’s not much to look at at this stage). At the harbour, we walk along the quay and pass the Club des Traînières. We arrive at the exhibition-museum.

(2) We continue along the quay; at the end, on the left, we find a path with steps leading up to the top of the cliffs. We pass a picnic area, which offers a lovely view over Pasaia Bay. We continue along the path, which crosses a small wood and leads us towards Faro de la Plata (the lighthouse).

(3) We take the path on the left, signpostedGR®®121. We follow the path all the way along the cliff and through the woods. We stop at a wooden viewing platform to admire the superb view. We retrace our steps and take the stone path that leads uphill. We continue along the path through the hydrangeas and arrive above San Sebastián beach.

(4) A quick stop to take a few photos. Further down, we turn right onto a signposted path that descends towards the “Gros” district of San Sebastián below; note the old building.

(5) We turn right and reach San Sebastián beach. We walk along the beach as far as the Kursal.

(6) We cross the bridge. On the right, we enter the old town of San Sebastián. We linger a while in the streets to enjoy the tapas and pintxos bars and the festive atmosphere of this lovely spot. We carry on to the Town Hall esplanade.

(7) We reach La Concha beach and head straight on towards Amara station.

(8) We catch the Topo bus back to Hendaye.

Waypoints

  1. S : mi 0 - alt. 20 ft - Pasaia railway station
  2. 1 : mi 2 - alt. 56 ft - Museum exhibition
  3. 2 : mi 2.72 - alt. 361 ft - Faro de Plata (lighthouse)
  4. 3 : mi 5.41 - alt. 315 ft - Viewpoint overlooking San Sebastián Bay
  5. 4 : mi 5.73 - alt. 56 ft - Historic house
  6. 5 : mi 6.37 - alt. 23 ft - Kursaal
  7. 6 : mi 6.75 - alt. 26 ft - Town Hall
  8. E : mi 7.43 - alt. 43 ft - Amara Station

Notes

Bring warm clothing in case it’s windy on the cliffs.

Opening times & route guide
Guidebook
Allow around €4.60 for the Topo return trip

Exhibitions at the Pasaia Museum
Museum

San Sebastián Tourist Office
San Sebastián Tourist Office

Worth a visit

The port of Pasaia and its Traînières regattas.
Museum exhibition, replica whaling boat.
Pintxos and tapas in Old San Sebastián at the end of the walk.
San Sebastián Aquarium.
A tour of the city and La Concha beachfront.
Don’t miss the Plaza de la Constitución in the late afternoon.

Hiking and sleeping on board! Fancy it?
With Les Sentiers De La Mer, sleep on board a sailing boat whilst you explore the coastline. Like a bed and breakfast on the water, the sailing boat offers unique, itinerant accommodation. Meet the host sailors of Les Sentiers De La Mer in Hendaye.

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

Reviews and comments

4.5 / 5
Based on 52 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.6 / 5
Route interest
4.7 / 5
kocko
kocko

Hello
I’m glad to see your reply and that you enjoyed the walk
I’d like to know which part was tricky so I can add it to the walk
Perhaps the terrain has changed since I was last there
Thank you
and enjoy your hike

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User 18814863
• Edited:

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 10, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

We set off from Herrera. The start of the walk is rather unattractive and the steps at the beginning can be a bit of a slog, but nothing worth having comes easily!! And the rest is absolutely fabulous!
The walk is very shaded, so it’s very pleasant even when it’s hot, and offers magnificent views of the coast.
There’s one very short section that’s quite tricky, though, which is worth mentioning if you’re with people who aren’t very adventurous or very young children.

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User 28693610

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 11, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely walk to do in good weather, but be warned: it’s almost impossible to park at the designated spot. Expect to walk a bit further, as the car parks are full by the morning – even though we were there in the low tourist season.

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User 8551711

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 29, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A very beautiful hike accessible to all, very crowded in summer

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Scagnelli
Scagnelli

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Superb view of the ocean and San Sebastián

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User 9621196

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 24, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The route is easy to follow, with around a hundred steps to climb, no water sources and plenty of shade.

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User 10884820

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 23, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Perfect route and ideal temperature for the day.

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lavanant
lavanant

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 02, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

a lovely walk through the undergrowth, following the coastline of the ocean. an easy route that takes you to sans Sebastien, where you can relax with some excellent tapas.
A lovely outing.

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marchetreve
marchetreve

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 28, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

make sure you specify the hendaye via herrera stop on the topo; lack of information at the end of the topo about how to get to the port;

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Christophe RH
Christophe RH

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Walk with 2 children aged 8 and 11. No particular difficulties.
The views are great on this wild stretch of coastline.
We started the walk at the 'HERERA' TOPO stop. This section is shorter and not too interesting.

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Sylolo
Sylolo

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 31, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very nice hike with some fine climbs and descents🤪

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Marty12
Marty12

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 13, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A beautiful walk over the ocean. The paths are accessible to all. From Pasaia, there is a whole series of steps to climb up the mountain, then the route curves around the level and there are fewer ascents. The path is very popular with families, joggers and pilgrims....
The Visorando description lacks clarity on the choice of directions at certain junctions, when the directions are written in Basque. But it's easy to ask walkers on the spot.

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Philippe 71
Philippe 71

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 02, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

For the departure from Herrera, start opposite the exit of the station in an easterly/northeasterly direction and not on the left as indicated in the topo!!!!

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Philippe 71
Philippe 71

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 02, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

For the departure from Herrera, start opposite the station exit in an easterly/northeasterly direction and not on the left as indicated in the topo.

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y sabourin
y sabourin

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 04, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Super

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