Hotels
Luxury hotels in San Sebastián: grand hotels, villas and spas
From Belle Époque by the river to rooms beside a three-star restaurant. These are the most exclusive hotels in San Sebastián, and what sets them apart.
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In short: luxury hotels in San Sebastián
Hotel Maria Cristina is the city’s most classic luxury hotel, with Amelia and the Mimo cookery school in the building. For spa and calm, ARIMA by the Basque Culinary Center is our pick. For a Michelin weekend, Akelarre on Monte Igueldo is in a class of its own.
First choice: Check availability and prices at Hotel Maria Cristina
When Queen Maria Cristina chose San Sebastián as her summer residence in the late 1800s, the aristocracy followed. They built villas on the hills and palaces along the bay, and the city took on an air of Biarritz and Deauville that it has never lost.
Luxury in San Sebastián is less about marble and more about food. The best hotels either have a star chef in the house or sit a short walk from one. Choose your hotel by the kind of weekend you want.
Miramar Palace
The royal summer palace above La Concha set the tone for the city’s elegance. Photo: Adrian Leversby / Picolo.com
The grand hotels in the centre
The classics stand by the river and the bay, where the city was at its most elegant a century ago.
Hotel Maria Cristina
The grand hotel by the River Urumea opened in 1912 and is still the city’s great address. Today you share the building with Paulo Airaudo’s restaurant Amelia and the Mimo cookery school, so both dinner and class are a lift ride away.
Best for: classic luxury and world-class food.
Good to know: During the film festival the hotel is full of festival guests.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Hotel Maria Cristina
Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra
The white hotel on the promenade is luxury with sand outside the door. The best rooms face the bay and Santa Clara, and Bistró de Londres opens from breakfast.
Best for: beach luxury in the middle of town.
Good to know: Book a bay-facing room. The view is the reason to stay.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra
Hotel Palacio Bellas Artes
The city’s newest luxury hotel occupies a stately building in Centro and belongs to Hilton’s Curio Collection. The rooms are large and quiet, and La Concha is eight minutes away.
Best for: modern comfort in a historic setting.
Good to know: The hotel has a café and a bar, but no restaurant of its own.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Hotel Palacio Bellas Artes
By the river mouth
The city’s grandest buildings line the River Urumea, Maria Cristina among them. Photo: Adrian Leversby / Picolo.com
Villas and small luxury hotels
The smallest hotels often give the most personal luxury, with few rooms and staff who remember how you take your coffee.
Hotel Villa Favorita
An adults-only villa on the La Concha promenade, with few rooms and a couples’ spa. From the door you step straight out into the sunset over the bay.
Best for: couples and honeymooners.
Good to know: The hotel does not accept children.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Hotel Villa Favorita
Villa Soro
A mansion east of the river, with a garden and massage treatments. The luxury here is calm and space, a quarter of an hour from Zurriola beach.
Best for: a quiet, elegant stay.
Good to know: The old town is a fair walk away.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Villa Soro
Bidaia Boutique Hotel
A small design hotel in Gros with a garden and Cafe Bazán in the building. It is among the best-rated hotels in the city.
Best for: couples who love design and personal service.
Good to know: It sits in a residential area, about twenty minutes from the old town.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Bidaia Boutique Hotel
Luxury with a star chef and a spa
Outside the centre are two of the most special hotels in the city, both built around food and wellbeing.
Akelarre
Pedro Subijana’s restaurant has held three Michelin stars since 2007. The rooms step down the hillside towards the sea, with a spa and an indoor pool.
Best for: a weekend where dinner is the main event.
Good to know: You need a car or taxi to reach the centre, about a quarter of an hour.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Akelarre
ARIMA Hotel & Spa
A Small Luxury Hotels property eight minutes from the Basque Culinary Center, the renowned cookery school. The spa offers massages and treatments, and the hotel sits by the Eureka science museum, a little outside the centre.
Best for: spa time between meals.
Good to know: The centre and La Concha are about a quarter of an hour away by car.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at ARIMA Hotel & Spa
Good to know before you book
Book the table first: if you plan to eat at a starred restaurant, secure the table before you book the hotel. The best known are fully booked months ahead.
Room category: at Hotel de Londres and Maria Cristina, the view over the bay or the river is what you pay for. Check the room type.
Festivals: during the September film festival the luxury hotels are the first to fill.
Tourist tax from 2027: the new tourist tax from 1 January 2027 is highest for hotels in the top categories, and is charged for up to six nights per stay. Last checked: October 2026.
Our pick for spa and calm
ARIMA Hotel & Spa
ARIMA is for travellers who want a quiet base between big meals. The hotel belongs to Small Luxury Hotels and sits a little outside the centre, eight minutes from the Basque Culinary Center, the cookery school where tomorrow’s chefs are trained. The spa offers massages, facials and body treatments, and after a day in town it is good to return to the calm outside the centre. A taxi takes about a quarter of an hour to La Concha and the old town. Choose ARIMA when the weekend should be as much about rest as about eating well.
Frequently asked questions about luxury hotels in San Sebastián
What is the best luxury hotel in San Sebastián?
Hotel Maria Cristina is considered the city’s most classic luxury hotel, with Amelia restaurant and the Mimo cookery school in the same building. Hotel de Londres y de Inglaterra is the first choice for beach luxury. Akelarre is best if you want a hotel with a three-star dinner, and ARIMA suits you when the spa matters most.
Which luxury hotels in San Sebastián have a spa?
Akelarre has a spa with an indoor pool and views over the Bay of Biscay. ARIMA Hotel & Spa offers massages and treatments, and Hotel Villa Favorita has a couples’ spa. Villa Soro offers massage in the house. In the centre, Catalonia Donosti also has a spa, but it is a mid-range hotel.
Where do the film stars stay during the San Sebastián film festival?
Hotel Maria Cristina is the festival’s traditional hotel, and many guests stay there during the September film festival. It stands by the River Urumea, just over the bridge from the Kursaal festival centre. If you want to stay there during the festival, book very early.
Are the luxury hotels in San Sebastián worth the price?
It depends on what you plan to do. The city is small, so you pay for the experience rather than the location. For a food trip or a honeymoon, the most exclusive hotels give a lot back. If you will mostly be out, a good mid-range hotel near La Concha can be just as right.