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Wise Pilgrim APPHondarribia sits across the Txingudi Bay from Irún and is worth the detour — or makes a perfectly good alternative starting point if accommodation in Irún is full. The old town occupies a fortified hilltop overlooking the bay, and it's considerably more atmospheric than its neighbor.
The Puerta de Santa María is the main gate through the Muralla — the walls that still encircle the old quarter. Inside, the Calle Mayor climbs steeply between stone townhouses with wrought-iron balconies and carved coats of arms. At the top sits the castle of Carlos V, now a parador with views across to France.
The lower town spreads along the waterfront, where the Barrio de la Marina has a different character entirely — brightly painted fishermen's houses, seafood restaurants, and a working harbor. The contrast between the fortress above and the fishing village below gives Hondarribia its particular appeal.
A water taxi crosses the bay to Pasajes, connecting to the camino without backtracking through Irún.
June: A Medieval market is held on the second Sunday of June.July: Santiago is celebrated on the 25th of July.August: Several neighborhood fiestas on the 15th to celebrate the Assumption of Mary.October: San Francisco de Asís on the 5th.
Hondarribia's walls tell a violent story. The town was besieged repeatedly — by the French alone at least nine times between the 16th and 19th centuries. Its strategic position at the mouth of the Bidasoa made it the key to Spain's northeastern border. The current walls date mostly to the 16th century, reinforced under Carlos V and Felipe II. Legend holds that the Apostle Santiago himself passed through Hondarribia on his way to Galicia.
