Why go
Choose the station to match the railway on your ticket. Renfe serves the mainline network, and Euskotren offers a different route along the Basque coast and toward Hendaye. If arriving from France, check whether your train ends at Hendaye or Irun and plan the local connection into San Sebastián.
The full story
The main station began as the North Railway station, inaugurated in 1864. It stands near the Urumea rather than in the old town itself, a reminder of how rail access reshaped the city beyond its earlier walls. In 1868, Queen Isabella II left from this station for exile in France after the revolution known as La Gloriosa. The station was enlarged in the late nineteenth century, when a metal canopy was added over the tracks. A later raised walkway linked the station side of the river with the María Cristina bridge. These layers make the rail approach part of the city's history as well as a practical entry point. The bus station beside it came much later, bringing two different modes of arrival into the same area. Look at the station building and the river crossing before heading into the centre: together they show why this part of town became an arrival corridor.
Useful to know
- Check the station and railway name on every leg of a cross-border journey.
- Allow time for a change between French trains and the local network at Hendaye or Irun.