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The Real Basque Way: San Sebastian, Beyond the Stars
5.0
8 Ratings
Donostia
Discover San Sebastian’s culinary roots with a full-day tour. Savor seasonal ingredients, classic pintxos, and innovative dishes at iconic spots.
Duration:
5 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Historic Center - We’ll start our day with the most perfect tortilla imaginable – both crunchy and oozy at the same time – at a busy locals’ cafe. We’ll then visit a neighborhood market where chefs and grannies line up to buy fresh kokotxa – fish necks, a Basque favorite – by the kilo on the way to meet a cheesemaker thinking way beyond the region’s borders. Down the street we will stop by the workshop of a Mexican of Basque origin who is reviving a chocolate tradition that once connected this port to his home country.
- Puente de Santa Catalina - Heading out of the historic center, across a bridge where the Urumea river meets the Cantabrian Sea, we will be welcomed into a number of restaurants and food shops run by a tight-knit circle of culinary professionals who are filling in the gaps between San Sebastian’s Michelin-starred restaurants and its simpler neighborhood spots. Here, depending on the season, our day may include a homey fish stew and a sip or artisanal cider, or perhaps exceedingly fresh and delicate Cantabrian anchovies accompanied by a new school txakoli, the classic Basque white wine, minerally and smacking of the sea. Committed to quality, but restless for change, it is in these places where we will taste what is of the moment, meet the young leaders of the city’s pioneering kitchens and truly experience the Basque Way.
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What's Included
- Breakfast
- Lunch
- Snacks
- Alcoholic Beverages
What's Not Included
- Private transportation
Additional Information
On this full-day exploration of San Sebastian, we’ll get an edible crash course on the very roots of this seaside city’s cuisine, delighting in peak seasonal ingredients, learning about local culinary traditions and visiting iconic haunts, old and new. Stop by stop, from classic pintxos to new school ciders, funky gastrobars to sleek dining rooms, the throughline will reveal itself, and that is the irresistible Basque way of enjoying food.
Location
Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra
Zubieta Kalea
The meeting point is in front of Hotel de Londres, waterside, under the shade structure.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(8 Ratings)
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Acbrenna
Jul 17, 2024
Great tour - I really enjoyed our tour with Astrid - a varied and interesting whistlestop tour through different aspects of Basque cuisine, including lots of delicious wine. Thank you Astrid!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jsjaeger
Jul 15, 2024
the new san sebastián scene - support up and comers - Selena - phenomenal guide. such a lovely day. Emphasizes new and experimental food in this phenomenal city. felt authentic and well paced
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ghunter64
Jul 10, 2024
Basque Food Adventure - Selena’s culinary walking tour was absolutely fantastic, it was like we were meeting an old friend and visiting our favourite places in San Sebastian. The tour description says you will eat the most delectable tortilla, and you will! Eggy, oniony deliciousness that will easily eclipse anything you’ve already tried. The visit to the artisan chocolate store was an unexpected surprise, you definitely won’t leave without stocking up for your travels. Our final two stops, an organic wine store and brilliant little restaurant started by enterprising young chefs, left us feeling completely fulfilled. The tour group was small and very private, and Selena took the time to engage with everyone and answer whatever questions we came up with. Selena was extremely knowledgeable and even helped us with some brilliant suggestions for our upcoming visits beyond San Sebastian. We ‘d definitely recommend this to anyone who wants to take their time getting to know more about the city and the fantastic food, wine and cultural traditions of the Basque country in Spain.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lorag338
Jun 17, 2024
A MUST DO in San Sebastián - This is a MUST DO for your trip to San Sebastian! Thank you Estefania! Your expertise, humour and love of food made for a great day. It was the highlight of our entire trip!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Wivibee
Jun 17, 2024
Michelin worthy tour - Wonderful exploration of tastes and especially of lesser known locales, frequented more by locals than tourists. Informed commentary by our guide, Estefania, a chef in her own right and a resident of San Sebastián/Donostia. She welcomed questions and gave us the kind of colorful commentary that brings a place and food scene to life, with requisite reality checks too.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Scu89
Jun 9, 2024
A must to get to know San Sebastian - A great tour! It gave us a double experience of San Sebastian, on the one hand getting to know its streets, monuments, buildings while they took us to unique restaurants and gastronomic establishments that give a twist to getting to know the city in the traditional way. The guide was wonderful, very friendly and explained in detail much of the history of the city and the development of the gastronomic establishments that we visited.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Gonzalo
Jun 1, 2024
Donostia's Hidden Gems. - It was a wonderful experience in which we discovered several 'hidden gems' of Donostia that we would not have reached if it were not for EstefanÃa.
Review provided by Tripadvisor