Aiete Park and Walking Back Through San Sebastian

Aiete Park (Parkea Aiete) is known for its impressive gardens and for the mansion in the park that served as the summer residence of Queen Isabel II, Queen Victoria of England, and Queen Maria Cristina along with Alphonse XII.  The mansion is currently a cultural center for the city of San Sebastian.

To get to Aiete Park, we walk along Playa de la Concha and, in the middle of the beach, take steps up into town, turning right onto the street Aldapeta Galtzada at the top of the steps and walking about 2 km (1.25 miles) to the park.

 Steps up from the bay

 Mansion in the park

The gardens and floral displays in the park are spectacular and we wander the paths into the ravines and along the streams.

 Paths and gardens of Aiete Park

From the park, we descend to the Urumea River (Urumea Itsasaderra) and walk along the river through the city to its mouth between Gros and Mount Urgull.

 Along the Urumea River

At Gros, we're back on familiar ground and head around Mount Urgull on the Paseo Nuevo, once again enjoying the sights and sounds of the ocean and the island and hills in the distance.

 Sights of the Sea along Paseo Nuevo

And, we reward ourselves with a gelatto (pistachio) for finding our way through town to the park and back.

Reward