A walk around the old quarter
It is the heart of the town. A quiet place whose narrow and cobbled streets are steeped in history. A place of incomparable beauty.
A must-see collection of historical buildings among which you will find our Mika Jatetxea and that we invite you to visit with us. We offer two brochures for you to download
A tour of the walls
Discover the old quarter by taking a walk around the walls, the best preserved in Gipuzkoa, and appreciate their size and grandness.
Along the Calle Mayor
This is the best way to access the walled town, through the Santa María gate and onto the spectacular cobbled Calle Mayor.
Plaza del Obispo
This square is accessed through one of the narrow side streets off the Calle Mayor, a beautiful spot dedicated to Cristóbal Rojas y Sandoval, a native of the city who was the chaplain of Charles V and archbishop of Seville.
The Parish Church
The church of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción y del Manzano stands imposingly on Calle Mayor with its sober walls and the town’s coat of arms in stone on its tower.
Plaza de Armas
At the top end of Calle Mayor we reach the Plaza de Armas, the upper part of the old quarter, which opens on to the mouth of the Bidasoa River on one of its sides.
The Castle
The castle presides over the Plaza de Armas and today it is the Parador de Turismo Hotel. Its construction is attributed to Sancho Abarca de Navarra and the sober façade corresponds to the time of Charles V. It was both a castle and a palace. It had six floors for housing troops, storage rooms, the munition and gunpowder magazine, dungeons and stables.
Plaza de Gipuzkoa
This is one of the most visited and photographed squares, which is also called Plaza de los Cañones. It is a square of recent creation, with colonnades in the Castilian style and of great beauty.
Stroll across its cobblestone paving.
The Queen's Bastion
An important part of the walls. Its strategic location meant that it suffered fierce attacks during the numerous sieges that the town endured. It was built in the 16th century and from the upper walk, called Murrua, the thickness of the walls can be appreciated.
Visit it from the foot of the wall and also from the top. And don’t forget to go into the galleries.