Private and Small-Group Wine Tastings in San Sebastián: Couples, Families, Groups and Special Occasions

Our picks for 2026

• For couples: Mimo’s private pintxos and wine tour (evening). Three hours with everything included and a polished guide, at €290 per person for two. Walk La Concha at sunset before you meet.
• Best value for couples: Curdelón’s guided tasting. Five wines and three pairings (cheese, country pâté, pickled mussels) in a small room in Gros. €60 per person, minimum two, in Basque, French, English or Spanish.
• For families: San Sebastian Pintxos Tours’ private gourmet tour with food and drinks. €200 base plus €80 per adult and €75 per youth (10–17). Children 0–9 go free, though what they eat or drink is extra. You get 7 pintxos, 5 drinks (soft drinks count) and dessert, and the guide can meet you at your hotel.
• For groups of 10–50: Devour’s private large-group pintxos tour. €99 per person, set up for friends’ trips, sports teams and corporate groups. Devour needs a week’s notice and confirms the group size one week ahead; after that it is non-refundable.
• For a splurge: a private Rioja Alavesa day plus a three-star dinner. For example, Ikusnahi’s Rioja Uncorked (four wineries, more than 10 wines rated over 90 points) or Wine Tours Rioja’s driver-plus-guide day, followed by Akelaŕe, Arzak or Martín Berasategui.
• Cheapest private format: San Sebastian Pintxos Tours’ “Just guide service”. You hire the guide (€150 base plus €30 per adult) and pay the bars yourself for what you order. Groups of 11–16 adults pay a flat €480. It suits big appetites and tight budgets.

Our pick on GetYourGuide: the San Sebastian: Pintxos and Wine Tour by Devour ($120, 4.8/5 from 649 reviews) has both a shared option, capped at nine, and a private option for your party only. You get eight pintxos and four drinks in three hours (our breakdown).

Every private and small-group option, 2026

Mimo, the wine shops, the wineries and most private operators below take bookings on their own sites; the GetYourGuide listings that match a row are in the next table.

The same formats on GetYourGuide:

The private Rioja listing has only eight reviews so far, so read them before you book. It is run by Ikusnahi Tours, but its inclusions (three wineries, more than eight wines) differ from the four-winery Rioja Uncorked on Ikusnahi’s own site, so treat the two as separate products.

What a private tasting costs by group size (2026 examples)

Totals and per-person costs below are worked out from each operator’s published 2026 rates. Figures are rounded, and food and drink are included unless stated. Shared-tour and winery prices are in our guide to wine tour prices and booking times.

What the numbers mean for your booking:

• At six to eight people, go private. Mimo’s private tour for eight is €175 per person, against €155 on its shared tour. The San Sebastian Pintxos Tours private all-inclusive tour for eight works out at about €105 per person, which is less than most shared tours.
• Couples pay the biggest premium. For two, the cheapest way to go private is a seated tasting (Curdelón, €60 per person), the guide-only format, or Go Local.
• On a Rioja day you mostly pay for transport. If you want a driver and no commentary, Rioja Like a Native offers a private driver for €500 round trip in total. You then book the winery visits yourself; Marqués de Riscal’s visits cost €30–€60.

The wine experiences in more detail

Private pintxos and wine walks

This is the core San Sebastián format. A good guide takes you to four to six bars, orders the house specialty at each and pairs it with txakoli, Rioja, cider or a vermouth. On a private tour you can take the quieter early slot, skip the queues at the famous counters, or swap the Old Town for Gros or Centro, where more locals eat. Expect enough food for a full meal: Devour’s Old Town tour includes eight tastings and four drinks. Our pintxos and wine pairing guide explains what gets poured with what, and our guide to ordering wine in San Sebastián covers the words you will hear at the counter.

Seated tastings in wine shops and bars

Some people want a table, not a bar crawl: wine geeks, guests with mobility needs, anyone with jet lag. Curdelón in Gros calls itself a “wine jewellery shop”, and its website says it has more than 1,500 labels available for corkage. Its one-hour guided tasting comes in two versions, Spanish wines or New World against Old World. Goñi Ardoteka on Calle Aldamar, at the edge of the Old Town, is a family-run shop. Co-owner Nerea Goñi holds the WSET Diploma and is a certified sherry educator. The shop hosts tastings and has a downstairs room for private groups; one hen party of ten tasted four Spanish wines there around a single table. Essencia is a favourite for natural and unusual bottles; ask about private sessions. More bars for a self-guided evening are in our list of the best wine bars in San Sebastián.

Tastings at your hotel or villa

San Sebastián has very few “sommelier comes to you” services with published prices. Taca de Vi offers 1.5-hour, five-wine at-home tastings and says it covers the Basque Country; confirm that it covers San Sebastián before you book. Easier routes are a private chef or sommelier booked through your villa agency or hotel concierge, or Around Tours’ Clandestine Wine Tasting, which collects you from your hotel.

Private txakoli in Getaria

In Getaria, about 30 minutes west by car, txakoli (a slightly sparkling, low-alcohol white) is poured from a height to lift its bubbles, and the vineyards run down to the sea. With a car, book a winery directly:

• Txomin Etxaniz: €22, 90 minutes, Monday to Saturday except holidays, with a member of the family leading each visit. The winery takes no visits from September to November, so in autumn pick another cellar.
• Ameztoi: €24–€32. Minimum four people, or a surcharge applies.
• Akarregi Txiki: minimum six people, book 48 hours ahead.

Without a car, the tourism office runs a private half day for €145 per adult, €50 for teens and €20 for children, the most family-friendly price in this guide. On GetYourGuide, the Getaria txakoli wine tour ($168, 4.7/5 from 45 reviews) comes as a private or a small-group option, with hotel pickup and the Txakoli Museum. Getaria is also a grilled-fish town, so stay for lunch. Our Basque wine guide covers the txakoli producers and styles.

Private Rioja Alavesa days

Rioja is roughly 90 minutes to two hours away by road. A private day usually covers two to four wineries, from centuries-old stone cellars to Frank Gehry’s titanium-clad hotel at Marqués de Riscal, plus the hilltop medieval village of Laguardia, which sits on a warren of underground cellars. At Marqués de Riscal, Visit 3 (€60) pours Barón de Chirel with Iberian ham and is adults-only. Routes, winery prices and overnight options are in our guide to a Rioja day trip from San Sebastián.

Driver or driver plus guide:

• Driver only: you get comfort and someone else drives.
• Driver plus wine guide (about €100–€155 more per person with Wine Tours Rioja): you also get context, translation and better appointments.

Txokos (gastronomic societies)

Txokos are members-only cooking clubs. A member has to host you, which is why packaged experiences exist. You eat a seasonal Basque meal, often after a market visit, with wine poured at a long table. For anniversaries and corporate dinners this is the format you could not easily arrange on your own. Most are adults only: Chef Ben’s experience is 18+, and San Sebastian Pintxos Tours’ is 14+.

Cider houses (January to May)

The 2026 txotx season ran from 13 January to 1 May, and the 2027 season should open in mid-January. A classic menu costs about €42–€44.50 per person (Petritegi’s children’s menu is €19). A private guide and driver turn it into a group night out. On GetYourGuide, the traditional cider house tour with lunch ($96, 4.9/5 from 193 reviews) handles the transport; our Basque cider houses guide covers the season and the houses.

Special occasions

Proposals and anniversaries

• Book a private evening tour that ends on the Paseo Nuevo or the La Concha promenade at golden hour.
• Ask the operator in advance to have cava or a premium txakoli ready at the last stop. Private operators are used to “secret” requests; agree a code word.
• For a view, add a drink before dinner on Monte Igueldo or Monte Urgull, or book a three-star meal at Akelaŕe, which looks over the sea from Igueldo.

Birthdays and honeymoons

• A seated tasting followed by a Michelin dinner suits a birthday or a honeymoon night. The MICHELIN Guide Spain & Andorra 2026 lists 16 three-star restaurants, and three of them (Akelaŕe, Arzak and Martín Berasategui) are around San Sebastián. The 2026 guide also added a one-star, Itzuli, chef Iñigo Lavado’s restaurant in the Luze San Sebastián hotel on Monte Igueldo. San Sebastián Turismo counts 19 Michelin stars within a 25 km radius of City Hall, 11 of them in the city itself, including Amelia and Mugaritz (two stars each) and Alameda, Ama, Ibai, Itzuli, Elkano and Kokotxa (one star each).
• Book Arzak, Akelaŕe and Martín Berasategui months ahead.

Hen, stag and friends’ groups (8–30+)

• Most shared tours cap at 8–10, so book private. Devour takes 10–50 people at €99 per person; San Sebastian Pintxos Tours has a format for 15 or more guests.
• Split groups of more than 12 between two guides on parallel routes that meet for the last stop. Pintxo bars are small.
• Add a private cellar-room tasting (Goñi Ardoteka), a txoko dinner or a cider house night.

Corporate and team-building

• Ikusnahi’s cooking class in a txoko takes 4–12 people (€940 for four, plus €225 per extra adult). Use it for a pintxo cooking competition.
• Or ask a wine-shop host for a blind tasting, with teams scoring vintages and regions.
• Get written quotes that list VAT, the number of drinks, any minimum spend and the cancellation window. Devour confirms large-group numbers one week ahead, and the booking is non-refundable after that.

Families and kids

• The law (Basque Law 1/2016 on addictions, BOE-A-2016-4170):
  • Nobody under 18 may drink alcohol (Article 33.1).
  • Under Article 32.1, under-16s may enter bars and other closed venues serving alcohol only with a parent or responsible adult. On a family tour your children stay with you; they cannot go off with the guide.
• Child pricing:
  • Mimo: discounts of €46.50 for ages 4–8 and €23.25 for ages 9–11.
  • Eat One Feed One: €125 for children 12 and under.
  • San Sebastian Pintxos Tours: no charge for ages 0–9 (their food and drink is extra).
  • San Sebastián Turismo txakoli tour: €20 for ages 0–11.
• Swaps for kids: mosto (grape juice), local apple juice at the cider houses, Idiazabal cheese tastings, churros on Devour’s family tour, or chocolate at Lurka, the city’s bean-to-bar chocolate maker. Lurka’s standard tastings pair chocolate with wine, so ask for a soft-drink version or its chocolate-making workshop.
• Age limits: Riscal’s premium visits, txoko experiences and Ikusnahi’s small-group Rioja tour are 18+. Check before you promise the kids a trip.

Our gluten-free and alcohol-free guide covers the alcohol-free pairings and coeliac-safe bars in more depth.

Accessibility, diets, languages and etiquette

• Accessibility: Old Town bars are crowded, with steps and standing counters. Eat One Feed One says its tour can be made wheelchair-accessible with notice. Many Rioja day trips are not wheelchair-accessible; Marqués de Riscal lists reduced-mobility access. A seated tasting (Curdelón) or a txoko is often easier than a bar walk.
• Diets: private formats handle gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian and pregnancy needs best. Devour lists vegetarian, pescatarian and dairy-free options, and San Sebastian Pintxos Tours offers gluten-free and vegetarian routes. Tell the operator when you book, not on the day.
• Languages: English is standard. Curdelón offers Basque, French, English and Spanish. San Sebastian Pintxos Tours lists English, French, German, Japanese and Spanish, and Go Local Spanish, Basque, English and French.
• Tipping: no Spanish law or strong custom requires a tip, and many tours list gratuities as included. Locally, 5–10% (or €10–€20 per couple) for an outstanding private guide is generous. Drivers on Rioja days get a similar tip.
• Payment and cancellation: typical windows are 24 hours (San Sebastian Pintxos Tours), 48 hours (San Sebastián Turismo) and one week (Devour large groups). OTA listings often allow free cancellation up to 24 hours before. Rioja weekend and bank-holiday dates can carry surcharges, such as Wine Tours Rioja’s €40 per person.
• When to book: July and August, Semana Grande in August, and September (harvest and the film festival) fill fastest. Book 2–4 weeks ahead for private city tours, 4–8 weeks for Rioja days or txoko dinners, and months ahead for Michelin restaurants.

Questions to ask before you book

• Is it only our party, or “private-style” with a minimum group size?
• How many stops, pintxos and drinks are included, and what does an extra glass cost?
• Which wines? Are there premium pours (Rioja Gran Reserva, top txakoli) or an upgrade?
• Can you handle our diets, non-drinkers or a pregnancy with real alternatives?
• Is the guide local, and do they have wine training (WSET or sommelier)?
• For day trips: is a separate guide included, or only a driver? Which wineries, and are the visits booked in advance?
• Are children allowed, how much do they cost, and which venues are 18+?
• What is the cancellation window, and is VAT included?
• For groups: how many guides per head, and is there a minimum spend?

Red flags:

• No address or company name.
• “Private” tours that put you with strangers.
• Fixed bar routes that look commission-driven. San Sebastian Pintxos Tours, for example, says it has no agreements with bars.
• No dietary questions at booking.
• Rioja trips that do not name the wineries.

What a good private guide does: they read the room. They speed up for hungry teenagers, slow down for wine geeks, order the dish that is best today, and hand you a list so you can do your own crawl the next night.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a private wine tasting cost in San Sebastián?

In 2026 a private pintxos-and-wine tour costs about €105–€290 per person depending on group size, a seated wine-shop tasting about €60 per person, a private txakoli half day €145–€250 per person, and a private Rioja day about €300–€775 per person.

What is the best wine tasting for two in San Sebastián?

For a romantic evening, a private pintxos-and-wine tour (Mimo: €290 per person for two, 3 hours, all-inclusive). For value, Curdelón’s one-hour guided tasting of five wines with three pairings at €60 per person.

Is a private wine tour worth it compared with a group tour?

For groups of six to eight or more, yes: per-person prices often match or undercut shared tours. For a couple, a private tour costs about double, and you get your own pace, a quieter table and wines picked for you.

Can children join wine or pintxos tours in San Sebastián?

Yes, with conditions. Under Basque Law 1/2016, under-16s may enter bars only with a parent or responsible adult (Article 32.1), and under-18s may not drink alcohol (Article 33.1). Many operators offer child rates or free places for young children, but txokos and premium winery visits are often adults-only.

How far in advance should I book a private tasting?

For June to September, book private city tours 2–4 weeks ahead and Rioja days or txoko dinners 4–8 weeks ahead. Groups need more notice: Devour wants a week’s notice for its large-group tour and confirms the numbers one week before, after which the booking is non-refundable.

Can I visit txakoli wineries privately?

Yes. Txomin Etxaniz (€22, 90 minutes, Monday to Saturday, no visits September to November) and Ameztoi (€24–€32, minimum four) take bookings directly. Akarregi Txiki needs a minimum of six people and 48 hours’ notice. Private guided half days from San Sebastián cost about €145–€250 per person.

Do private tours cater for gluten-free, vegan or non-drinking guests?

Most private operators do, if you tell them when you book. Expect alcohol-free alternatives such as grape juice (mosto), apple juice or soft drinks.

Should I tip my private wine guide in Spain?

Tipping is not mandatory in Spain, and some tours include gratuities. For an excellent private guide, 5–10% or €10–€20 per couple is generous by local standards.

Book a private or small-group tasting

For the feel of a private tour without planning one, the Devour Pintxos and Wine Tour runs as a small group of at most nine guests from $120 per person. It lasts three hours, with eight pintxos and four drinks across five Old Town bars, and the meeting point depends on the option you book. The same listing has a private option for your party alone, with your own guide and pace; for groups of 10 to 50, Devour’s large-group tour at €99 per person is booked on its own site. Tell the operator the occasion (a proposal, a birthday, a hen party or a team night) when you book, so the guide can plan the last stop around it. Check your dates early, because private slots in summer and September go first.

More options are on our private pintxos and wine tours page.

Related reading:

• San Sebastián wine tours and tastings: the complete guide
• Rioja day trip from San Sebastián
• Wine tasting for beginners in San Sebastián
• The best wine bars in San Sebastián
• Basque wines explained: txakoli and Rioja Alavesa
• Gluten-free and alcohol-free pintxos and wine