Semana Grande / Aste Nagusia — Donostia's Grand Festival Week

San Sebastián's most crowded festival

Semana Grande, or Aste Nagusia in Basque, is held in the second week of August and is Donostia's most popular festival. For nine days the city is completely transformed and lives outdoors.

The essential moments

• International Fireworks Competition — every night at 22:30 over La Concha bay. Europe's most acclaimed pyrotechnic event
• Free concerts on the Boulevard and Zurriola — varied programme from midday to the early hours
• Street theatre in the Old Town — companies from across Spain and Europe take to the streets and squares
• The grand comparsas parade of 15 August — the most spectacular of the year
• Tamborrada of 15 August — the year's second Tamborrada, with the same ritual as on 20 January

The fireworks competition: how to enjoy it

Each competition night, a different country launches its display from the island of Santa Clara. The best vantage points are La Concha bay, the Paseo de la Concha and the Monte Urgull viewpoints. Cafés and restaurants along the promenade fill up hours before — book ahead.

Practical information

The complete programme is published at donostia.eus in early August. Hotels are booked months in advance for these dates — if you have not yet arranged accommodation, look at options in the nearby towns of Gipuzkoa.