We could not understand the history of Donostia-San Sebastián, especially the history of tourism, without talking about its famous bay and its beaches.

The bay of La Concha is just one and, within it, there are two different beaches: La Concha and Ondarreta.

La Concha Beach

This is probably the best known of them all. Attracted by its natural beauty and the tranquillity of its waters, this beach became the summer resort of royalty when Isabella II, encouraged by her doctor, decided to treat her skin problems with a revolutionary therapy for the time: “wave bathing”.
The tradition was continued by Queen Maria Cristina, who decided to build an English-style palace in the middle of the bay so that she could spend long periods of time in our city, which led many members of the Government and the Court to follow her example, making Donostia-San Sebastian the epicentre of high society summer holidays in the middle of the 19th century.

It is the closest beach to Villa Favorita as if we go out to the promenade by the Bar, there are only 60 steps to the sand…

Ondarreta beach

Located on the left side of the bay and separated from La Concha beach by the rocky outcrop known as “Pico del Loro”, this beach also has a great family tradition for both locals and visitors. Its sandy beach is wider and less sensitive to tidal changes, but it can also offer more waves than La Concha.

On the other side of the Urumea River, in the Gros neighbourhood, there is another very important beach for the city:

La Zurriola Beach

Formerly known as “Gros beach”, it was renamed after its remodelling and extension in 1994. This beach is much more exposed to the ocean, so the waves and currents make it more dangerous for bathing. At the same time, these factors make it a good place for surfing and other water sports, which has made it a beach with a younger profile compared to the classic and elegant style of the beaches of the bay.

We could also talk about “the fourth beach”, but we’d rather tell you about it in person when we welcome you to Villa Favorita.