Playa de La Concha
The glorious crescent of sand that curves all the way west from the old town to the pleasant but unremarkable suburb of Ondarreta, the Playa de La Concha, has to rank among the very finest city beaches in the world. Even in the depths of winter it’s usually busy with walkers and playing children, while on summer days every inch tends to be covered in roasting flesh. Swimmers keen to escape the crowds can head out to floating platforms moored offshore. Slightly further out, a little pyramidal island, the Isla de Santa Clara, is accessible via regular ferries that set off from near the aquarium, just outside the old town. Also at the old-town end of the beach, the strange-looking building that resembles a boat seen side-on is the Real Club Náutico (Royal Sailing Club), built in the Rationalist style in 1928.
San Sebastián’s festivals
San Sebastián’s busy annual calendar of fiestas and festivals kicks off on the stroke of midnight at the start of January 20, the feast day of its namesake saint. Carnival too is celebrated in style, but the two biggest events of the year are the five-day Jazz Festival in late July (943 481 900, jazzaldia.com), which attracts some of the world’s best-known performers and DJs, and the week-long Film Festival in the second half of September (sansebastianfestival.com).