Airalo
1GB · 7 days
32k$8.50 AUD
Spain food on a budget
Doing Spain on a budget means the cheapest third of what is worth doing: Mercado de San Martín, Arzak. Activities in this plan start from about $26.
Your 5-day food and drink plan for Spain
Where you staySan Sebastian 3 nightsMadrid 2 nightsabout 355 km between them
5 days · packed · 2 of 19 bookable now · activities from about $58
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Day 1 San Sebastian
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morning
Mercado de San Martín
Market near San Sebastian. Dates from 1884.
Just turn up -
afternoon
Arzak
Restaurant in Spain. Dates from 1897.
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evening
Mugaritz
Restaurant. Dates from 1998.
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evening
Akelarre
Restaurant. Dates from 1974.
Where to eat
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Lunch
Kokotxa
Holds a Michelin star.
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Dinner
Mirador de Ulía
Holds a Michelin star.
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Day 2 San Sebastian
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morningalso worth doing
Camino del Norte
Historic grouping. bien de interés cultural.
Just turn up -
afternoonalso worth doing
Urgull
Mountain near San Sebastian.
Just turn up -
eveningalso worth doing
La Perla
Spa near San Sebastian. Dates from 1912. Basque government heritage site.
Just turn up -
eveningalso worth doing
Iturraran
Botanical garden near San Sebastian.
Just turn up
Where to eat
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Lunch
Martin Berasategi
Holds a Michelin star.
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Dinner
Holds a Michelin star.
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Day 3 San Sebastian
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morningalso worth doing
Mount Ulia
Mountain in Spain.
Just turn up -
afternoonalso worth doing
Good Shepherd Cathedral of San Sebastián
Catholic cathedral. Dates from 1897. A UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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eveningalso worth doing
La Concha Beach
Urban beach near San Sebastian.
Just turn up -
eveningalso worth doing
Jaizkibel
Mountain range of the Basque Mountains.
Just turn up
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Day 4 Madrid
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Travel day
San Sebastian to Madrid
Journey time is an estimate rather than a timetable - check the operator before you book anything tight on either side of it.
Book direct -
afternoon
Sobrino de Botín
Restaurant. Dates from 1725.
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evening
Pub Crawl Madrid
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eveningalso worth doing
Prado Museum skip-the-line
Where to eat
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Breakfast
Café Comercial
One of the city's oldest cafés, founded 21 March 1887 in the era of the Bourbon Restoration in Spain.
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Lunch
DiverXO
Holds a Michelin star.
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Dinner
Listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest in the world, said to have been founded in 1725 by French cook Jean Botín and his Asturian wife and to have been operating continuously ever since.
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Day 5 Madrid
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morningalso worth doing
Royal Botanic Garden of Madrid
Botanical garden and research centre in Madrid, Spain. Dates from 1755. bien de interés cultural.
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afternoonalso worth doing
Museo del Prado
Spanish national art museum in Madrid, Spain. Dates from 1819. bien de interés cultural.
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eveningalso worth doing
Almudena Cathedral
Roman Catholic cathedral in Madrid, Spain. Dates from 1883.
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eveningalso worth doing
Royal Palace of Madrid
Official residence of the Spanish Royal Family. Dates from 1735. bien de interés cultural.
Where to eat
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Lunch
A restaurant in Madrid, Spain.
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Dinner
Casa Labra
Famous for being the site for the foundation of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party by Pablo Iglesias on May 2, 1879.
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Prices are indicative and in Australian dollars. Flights and accommodation are not included. Distances between stops are straight-line, so a walking or driving route will be longer, and they are shown only where both stops have a known location. Items marked also worth doing sit outside the food and drink theme and are there because they are among the best things to do in Spain.
Before you fly to Spain
The part an itinerary app leaves out. These are Spain's rules for Australian passport holders, re-read from the official source and dated below.
Entry
No - Australian passport holders can enter Spain without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period.
Passport
Spain wants 3 months of validity beyond the day you leave. A fare is non-refundable long before a passport renewal is.
Your checklist
21 things to sort for Spain, built from these same rules, 3 of them essential.
- Passport valid - issued within the last 10 years and valid for at least 3 months beyond the date you leave the schengen area
- Take out travel insurance
- Get an International Driving Permit
Last reviewed 2026-10-24. Entry requirements change without notice. Always confirm with the official sources below before you book or fly.
Sort these before you go
The two things worth having arranged before a food and drink trip to Spain, compared on price.
Spain eSIM plans
Spain money and cards
Wise Best exchange rate
Wise debit card
45k0.43%-0.65% conversion fee
Revolut No weekday FX fee
Revolut Standard
30k0% FX fee
Compare only
ING Orange Everyday
Orange Everyday
22k0% with monthly criteria
Prices are indicative, shown in AUD and refreshed from provider APIs where available. Always confirm the final price on the provider's site - it is the price that applies. We may earn a commission if you buy through our links, which never changes what you pay. Partners are listed before providers who pay us nothing, as our terms set out; sorting by price ignores all of that and orders on the number alone. How we make money.
Budget food questions
What counts as budget here?
The lowest-priced third of everything worth doing in that country, measured against that country's own prices rather than a fixed dollar figure. A budget day in Norway and a budget day in Vietnam are not the same number, and pretending otherwise would just describe the exchange rate.
Does a cheaper plan mean a worse one?
No, and the ordering is the same either way: everything is ranked on its review score first, so a budget plan is the best-reviewed cheap things rather than the cheapest things. Flights and accommodation are not included in any of these figures.
Do I need to book restaurants and food tours in advance?
Cooking classes and food tours, yes - they run small and fill up. Street food and markets, no. The plan marks which is which, and anything bookable can be held before you leave Australia.
What if I have dietary requirements?
Cooking classes and organised tours will almost always accommodate them if you say so when booking rather than on the day. Street food is harder to control, so it is worth learning the phrase for what you cannot eat in the local language before you go.
Other ways to do Spain
Spain wellness itinerary
Hot springs and spa days, but also gyms, yoga, hiking and open water. Rest and movement, not one or the other.
Spain sightseeing itinerary
Coastlines, lookouts, day trips and the landmarks that are actually worth the queue.
Spain highlights itinerary
Some rest, some scenery, some good eating. For the trip you have not decided the shape of yet.
Food and drink trips in other countries
Still deciding where to go? These are built the same way - real activities, in an order that works, with the entry rules for Australians attached.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom food itinerary
Australians now need an ETA - this changed in 2025.
🇮🇹 Italy food itinerary
Schengen visa-free - with EES biometrics now in force and ETIAS coming.
🇳🇿 New Zealand food itinerary
Closest to home, easiest to plan.
🇯🇵 Japan food itinerary
Visa-free, cash-friendly, and worth over-preparing for.