Tips for Booking Your Pamplona Hotels, Hostels, and Housing
Book your Pamplona hotel early
Hotels in Pamplona, Spain are booked solid during the Running of the Bulls®, which makes finding accommodation one of the greatest barriers to enjoying all aspects of the world-famous San Fermin Festival. Many people opt to stay in larger neighboring cities like Bilbao and San Sebastian, commuting into Pamplona for the daily festivities. But unless you’re a very early riser, that is not advisable – especially after a night of sangria or Pacheran.
The streets around the bull run route are packed by 7:00 a.m. most days, and parking in Pamplona during the San Fermin Festival is notoriously difficult. Add on your travel time, and you might as well have stayed up all night.
Getting into town in time for the bull run is a gamble, unless you’re with an experienced tour company who knows what they’re doing. If you definitely want a Pamplona hotel in the city center, then you should plan on booking between December and February. By early spring, the best hotels and hostels in Pamplona’s most desirable spots are already reserved for the San Fermin Festival.
If you are running with the bulls, or are going to watch El Encierro, you should plan on finding Pamplona housing within walking distance of the bull run route.
Some of our favorite hotels in Pamplona are the Hotel Maissonave, the hotel AC Ciudad, the renovated La Perla Hotel Pamplona, and the Hotel Tres Reyes Pamplona. If you want easy online booking for your Pamplona accommodation for the Running of the Bulls, be sure you check out the NH Hotels, Iruña Park and Augosinos.
Living like a king – hotels in Pamplona, Spain
Prices for Pamplona hotel rooms range from €300 to €1500 per night in the city center, also known as the Old Quarter or Casco Viejo. As you move farther out, the likelihood of finding hotel rooms at a lower rate are better, but you’re still looking at around €200 a night for three-star accommodation in the Pamplona area.
You’ll find lavishly-appointed hotels in the heart of the historic city center, in addition to simple but tidy hostels equipped with basic amenities like free Wi-Fi, laundry services, individual lockers for valuables and communal lounge areas.
When it comes to accommodations for the San Fermin Fiesta, it’s all about location, location, location. If your budget allows something more extravagant than a Pamplona hostel, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the wealth of features and modern amenities on offer.
Some of the most popular 4 and 5-star hotels in Casco Viejo, the Old Quarter, boast room service, fine dining restaurants, 24-security and airport shuttle service.
Pamplona accommodation Running of the Bulls: apartment rentals
Pamplona hotels can only accommodate about 0.5% of the people who swarm into the city for the Running of the Bulls. Because of this huge influx of tourists, local apartment owners will often rent out rooms to travelers in need of housing. Pamplona apartment owners know that dwellings along the bull run route (Mercaderes & Estafeta streets) are more valuable locations, especially if they are equipped with balconies for watching the bull run each morning.
We work with local homeowners to find the best possible Pamplona apartments for our clients. Almost always, these apartments are in the historic city center or just on the outskirts. While availability may be limited, we strive to fulfill every request we can, and our team is constantly adding new apartments to a growing inventory.
Rooms have comfortable beds with fresh linens. The cost per person, per night is €110. If you would like a private room in an apartment, you would pay for all the beds in it. Sometimes rooms have one bed, but more often two. There are no towels provided in shared apartments, in which guests would share the bathrooms with other occupants.
Visit our Pamplona Travel Tips page for more information about accommodations, dining options, where to park, weather, entertainment and other useful advice for your San Fermin vacation of a lifetime.