Oñati & Arantzazu Sanctuary, Spain | Tourism Basque Country

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Arantzazu Sanctuary

Views of the Arantzazu Sanctuary

Situated 9 km away from the center of Oñati is the Arantzazu Sanctuary. The sanctuary was built over 500 years ago in honor of the Virgin Mary that supposedly appeared there to a local shepherd in the 14^th century.

A new impressive basilica was built in the 1950s on the edge of the cliff and is one of the best example of Basque avant-garde architecture: entrance gates by Eduardo Chillida, sculptures of apostles by Jorge Oteiza, altarpiece by Lucio Muñoz.

If you are into hiking, the Arantzazu Sanctuary is the perfect starting point. Located within the Aizkorri-Aratz Natural Park, there are lots of trails of different levels that will allow you to discover spectacular landscapes of unique beauty. For example, you can hike to the top of the Aizkorri peak in about 3 hours.

Ask in the tourism office for a publication called “Senderos de Oñati” with more information about existing trails.

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Hotels in Oñati

We have hand selected a few great hotels in Oñati and its surroundings. However, if you want to see a complete listing of all available hotels, be sure to use the search function below.

Hotel Torre Zumeltzegi – $$

Located in Oñati’s old town, the hotel Torre Zumeltzegi is a restored 13th century tower. Its decoration combines the medieval heritage of the building with modern touches – stone walls, wooden beams and parquet floors. The rooms are cosy and feature air conditioning, TV and free WiFi. There is also a restaurant and a bar.

Urkulu Landetxea – $$

About 15 km away from Oñati, Urkulu Landetxea is a charming hotel surrounded by nature which features an indoor swimming-pool, barbecue area and bar. The rooms have stone walls and wooden beams and feature air conditioning, heating, TV and free WiFi. Guests can borrow bikes for free.

Apartamentos Borda Aranzazu – $$

Only a couple of hundred meters away from the Arantzazu Sanctuary, Borda Aranzazu offers impressive open plan apartments with massive windows that lookout over the surrounding nature. These duplex apartments have a balcony and are built from stone and wood. The living room features a flat screen TV, DVD player and sofa. There is also free WiFi.

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Get In & Around

Once you are in Oñati, everything is reachable by foot.

On Sundays and holidays, there is a bus service between Oñati and the Sanctuary of Arantzazu. The first bus leaves Oñati at 7:30 am and the last one at 5:30 pm.

BUS OÑATI-ARANTZAZU

Timetable

Arriving to Oñati

PLANE – The closest airports are in Bilbao (75 km away) and San Sebastian / Hondarribia (95 km away). There isn’t direct transport from either of them.

AIRPORT LINKS

Airport of Bilbao
Airport of San Sebastián

CAR – Oñati is located 7 km away from the toll road AP-1. Using a combination of the roads AP-1 and AP-8 it is possible to reach San Sebastian in about 1 h (75 km) and Bilbao in about 50 min (75 km). Also, by taking the AP-1 it is possible to get to Vitoria in about 30 min (45 km).

The roads A-1 (also called N-1) and AP-1 basically travel in the same direction, connecting San Sebastian with Vitoria and Burgos. The A-1 continues south to Madrid. The road A-1 is free, while the AP-1 is a toll road. To give you a better idea for the cost of the toll road, the AP-1 between Vitoria and San Sebastian costs around 12 €.

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BUS – The company PESA offers buses from Oñati to Bilbao, stopping in Arrasate/Mondragón and Durango. Lurraldebus offers several bus lines connecting Oñati with other towns of the surroundings.

TRAIN – There isn't a train station in Oñati. The closest one is located in Zumárraga, about 18 km away.