Ur-Alde

Having been to Donostia three times, I’ve stayed in hotels, apts and pensions in the Old Town. I picked Ur-Alde for its convenient location, great value and excellent help before we arrived. Aitor and Mikel kept up that 5-star support throughout the stay. Thank you for all your patience and stamina. Slow-travelling with my elderly mother meant I needed lots of help. Mom is 93 years young and doesn’t walk well, but Ur-Alde’s elevator and Provenza room made her feel at home. We appreciated the roomy walk-in shower and separate toilet. The mattresses were comfortably firm, and I loved the long supportive pillows. In our 8-day stay in early September, temperatures went from 20 degrees to 32 degrees and back down, so we used the air conditioner for a few days. Before we arrived, I messaged Ur-Alde on WhatsApp. They sent instructions for late arrival access, cancelled my restaurant reservation when bad weather rerouted our flight to Bilbao, and called taxis for me because my travel SIM couldn’t make voice calls. Their suggestions for bars and restaurants were very useful. After researching for several months, I was glad to see both new and familiar names on the list, and really liked how it was organized by style, location and budget. The lighting and electric outlets were modern and suited to international visitors. Our room, Provenza, was the second biggest and faced the street. With the window closed, it was quiet. There are bars right below, but the breeze was always pleasant and there was no cigarette smoke. Aitor and Aritz advised our taxi to stop at the intersection of Marikalea and Portukalea, then it was a straight, easy 50 metres to the pension. We enjoyed daily ice cream at Carlos Arribas, nougat shopping at Casa Torens and fresh bread from Galparsoro Okindegia. On evenings when we didn’t want to walk far, it was convenient to go downstairs for food. The bars immediately to the left and right of the pension weren’t great, except for the calamari at La Mejillonera and the croquetas de jamon at Muxumartin. Just around the corner, Casa Alcade had much better quality and selection. And Pension Ur-Alde is less than 200 metres from some world-class dining! Pensions are often unstaffed in the afternoons and evenings, and some don’t even have daytime staff. Pension Ur-Alde is staffed during the day, responds quickly on WhatsApp, and has a very diligent cleaning lady. Mom and I had a wonderful stay.