Bilbao to SJPD ... Info Greatly Appreciated

[WhitSF]

Hello!

My cousin and I are arriving in Bilbao at 9am on Monday, June 30. We are trying to make it to St Jean Pied de Port that night.

Here is the plan, please critique:

-Take the Bizkaibus to the Bilbao Termibus for Euro 1,40
-From the Termibus, purchase a ticket for the PESA bus to Bayonne at 13:00 for Euro 20,30
-Arrive at At Place Des Basques in Bayonne at 16:00
-Purchase ticket on SNCF Train for 18:06 departure to SJPD for Euro 9,80
-Arrive in SJPD at 19:31
-Try to find way to Gite Compostella....

Many thanks!

 

[mspath]

All sounds GREAT! However in Bayonne you will be purchasing a ticket within the SNCF Gare for an AUTOCAR to SJPdP which leaves at 18:06 from the front of the station and costs Euro 9.80. The train tracks are not in use do to an earlier landslide.

In SJPdP the Gite Compostella, at 6 Route d'Arneguy, is easily found from the center of town

Bon Chemin and Buen Camino.

Margaret Meredith

 

[whariwharangi]

PESA bus from Bilbao Airport (Loiu) to Donostia/San Sebastian bus station (hourly). Euskotren from Amara station San Sebastian to Hendaia station (every half hour) (colocated with SNCF Gare Hendaye). SNCF train to Gare Bayonne (frequent) or ATCRB bus to Place de Basques (hourly). SNCF TER bus from Gare Bayonne to SJPdP (4x daily).

PESA Loiu Aeropuerto - Donostia/San Sebastian 1045 - 1205
walk from Plaza de Pio XII to Amara station 700 meters 1205 - 1235
Euskotren Amara to Hendaye 1245- 1322
SNCF TER Hendaye to Bayonne 1343 - 1417
SNCF TER Bayonne to SJPdP 1455 - 1613

Bilbao Airport
http://www.aena-aeropuertos.es/csee/Satellite/Aeropuerto-Bilbao/en/Home.html

PESA
http://www.pesa.net/pesa/public_home/ctrl_home.php

Map San Sebastian - 41 is Renfe station 42 is Euskotren Amara station 43 is Bus station
http://www.sansebastianturismo.com/images/ssturismo/pdf/city-map-donostia-san-sebastian.pdf

Euskotren
http://www.euskotren.es/

Transdev ATCRB (Hendaye to Bayonne)
http://www.transports-atcrb.com/

SNCF
http://www.sncf.com/en/passengers

SNCF TER
http://www.ter-sncf.com/

 

[WhitSF]

Ahhhh, thank you mspath! That should clear up some confusion. I also mapped the 15 min walk from place des basques to Gare de Bayonne, luckily.

All sounds GREAT! However in Bayonne you will be purchasing a ticket within the SNCF Gare for an AUTOCAR to SJPdP which leaves at 18:06 from the front of the station and costs Euro 9.80. The train tracks are not in use do to an earlier landslide.

In SJPdP the Gite Compostella, at 6 Route d'Arneguy, is easily found from the center of town

Bon Chemin and Buen Camino.

Margaret Meredith

Ahhh

 

[indyinmaine]

I had close friends here in Maine who landed in Bilbao and took the Euskotren. The problem is that the website it all in Basque!!! From all reports it's very picturesque and relaxing ride (did you guess I'm not a bus person?). Here's what I figured out.

It's a narrow gauge rail from Bilbao to Hendaye. Here's the website:
http://www.euskotren.es/es/horarios
Unfortunately it's all in Spanish (you'll never understand Basque!).
Here's the sched from Bilbao to Amara/Donostia. They leave on the hour and take 2h 38m:
http://www.euskotren.es/sites/www2.euskotren.es/files/G10%20Bilbao-Donostia%20%280214%29.pdf
Here's the sched from Amara to Hendaye - they run every 30 minutes and take another 37 minutes: http://www.euskotren.es/sites/www2.euskotren.es/files/Hendai-Lasarte%20H9%20cartel%20%28130909%29.pdf
When you get to Hendaye the end station is in the same place as the SNCF station.
If your plane arrives at 8 AM or before you'd need a cab to the Atxuri station in Bilbao. The Euskotren trip takes 3 1/2 hours to Hendaye. You need to change in Amara/Donostia.
If you make the 9 AM train in Bilbao you'll just make the 12:26 from Hendaye to either Biarritz or Bayonne and by that time you'll probably want to have Caroline pick you up and take you to SJPP!
If your plane gets in between 8 and 10 you could still make the 11 AM train from Bilbao which would connect to the 14:45 train to Biarritz/Bayonne.

Buen Camino