While there’s no Jack in the Box or Wendy’s late night drive through Pamplona does offer a few other solutions: Kebab on Inigo Arista: While not the best Kebab in Pamplona this kabob is centrally located and is normally open until 12am(midnight). But like all businesses in this great land, they can close whenever they want.

Bavaros: Pamplona Spain: Monasterio de Azuelo, 1

Barbaros: Bocadillo and hamburger place. This little gem hidden on the edge of San Juan not only is open until 2am it also has a home delivery service!

Vending: Near Yamaguchi

Vending Machines: If all else fails and you decide to go straight home from Singular instead of going to Marengo there are always Pamplona vending machines. You be sure to find that lion bar or bag of Lay’s Receta de Campasita you can also find Batteries and Phone cards.

Vending: Near Yamaguchi

Vending: Calle Ermitagaña

While it may sound gross at 3 in the morning a hot ham a cheese sandwich from the vending machine on Calle Ermitagana leaves no room for many questions. If you need batteries and other things, there’s a series of machines near Yamaguchi thats there in a pinch.

Check out the google map link to find other random vending machines of desperation… and feel free to add more of you own personal favorites for late night eats!

Every once in a while that craving will come around for some spiced meats sliced off a vertical spit.  Like any city in Spain, Pamplona is full of Doner Kebab restaurants that come in all varieties, prices, and degrees of cleanliness.  We want to break down some of the best kebab places we have found.

View Larger Map

Consider this list a work in progress.  We’ll update anything that needs to be updated as we go along, or if you readers recommend a place we don´t know about.  There are more kebab places out there but there is zero information about them on the internet.

• Naqash Doner Kebab on Calle Amaya 16 - Our top choice favorite spot, and worth the walk to get there.  If the blue lit panels and “aquarium vibe” don’t make you dance the awesome selection of music videos will.  The atmosphere, overall quality of the food (vegetables are real fresh) and presentation here is much better than you will find in other spots.  They have chicken and beef available all the time, lamb on Saturdays.  Cheaper prices than other places too.
• Bar Malembe on Calle Nueva - Great new place in lo viejo, next to Plaza de San Francisco.  The staff is very friendly and welcoming, the place is inviting and clean and they put together some tasty kebabs.  Includes table service.  Prices start under 4 euros (kebabs are usually cheaper in lo viejo).  on Calle Nueva
• Pak Doner Kebab on Iñigo Arista, next to Ensayo - Best location for students, the only Kebab place in Iturrama.  Pak is on this list mostly out of convenience.  The kebabs are decent satisfying on any normal occasion (they are awesome when in a pinch).  Get in good with the workers and you will be treated very well, otherwise the service can slide sometimes.  It is also one of the more expensive kebabs around starting at around 4 euros (it is also one of the busiest).  You may see some other Pak Doner Kebabs around town.
• Hekmat Kebab on La Bajada de Javier – Another clutch value located in the heart of Lo Viejo.  This place gets points for having very good quality, but the fact that it is open until 3 or 4 in the morning on weekends (depending on demand) makes it among the best Kebab choices in town.  Thanks to our readers for helping us out with this one.  We’ll be sure to make this part of the end of the night.

There are other notable kebab places around (for example, there is one that opens up at 5 am to catch the late night crowd) but we wanted to give you the best we have come across.

One of the absolute most necessary and rewarding things you could do for yourself in Pamplona is to get a bike.

Pamplona is full of river-side pathways, bridges, ancient walls, ruined forts, mountains and vistas that you have to get out to see.  Even if the outside is not your thing, with a bike you will suddenly realize how quickly you can get around, and how much more there is to see.

For just getting around, walking is enjoyable enough but does take some time.  The public transportation here (with the buses or villavesas) is good but not great.  With a bike, you can get from any point of the city to the other in about 10 minutes.  And from the city to the mountains in 30.

The city itself caters to bike riders.  Bike lanes have been paved in many of the parks and alongside many roads.  The city has its own rentable street bikes that you can pick up and drop off (more on nbici later).  The government of Navarra releases a guide to the best trails in the area.  And a 5 time winner of the Tour de France and one of the greatest bicyclists ever, Miguel Indurain, is Pamplona’s favorite son (see his biography, he is like a Basque Superman).

Picking up a bike here is not difficult. There are various shops located throughout the city where you can buy new or used bikes.   Or you can head to the big stores (Carrefour and Corte Ingles both carry bikes, but Decathlon might have the best selection).  A simple, new bike can start at about 100 euros.  After your time in Pamplona is done, you can sell it to one of the bike stores and make some of your money back.

Make sure that you get a lock for your bike.  Pamplona is a very safe city but when it comes to stealing bikes this city is no exception.

Later on we will also talk about some of our favorite trails and places to explore.  In the meantime, we suggest getting your bike and getting lost.

Coming up between the 22nd and 30th of this month, Pamplona will decide which bar has come up with the best pincho from the last decade.

The various winners of the last ten years of Semana Del Pincho (held annually in the Spring) will all compete for a cash prize that will be judged by experts and journalists.  Twelve of the most decorated bars and restaurants in Pamplona: Aralar, Baserri, Baviera, Charlot, Chelsy, Don Pablo, Fitero, Gaucho, Letyana, Melbourne, Nuevo Hostaf y Cafetería Yanguas (see the list with pintxo descriptions).

The great news is that all of these bars will be bringing out the best pintxo they have come up with.  These bars are free to fix their own prices, and the hope is that they make them a bit cheaper for the public.

Make sure you get out and try some of the best cuisine Spain has to offer.  Let us know what places you think are best.

Spain is famous for its tapas and you will be able to go tapear (go out for tapas) in every city from Cantabria from Andalucia.  However, here in the north, it is important that you realize this one difference – tapas are called pintxos (the name used in the Basque language of Euskera).  You’ll want to remember this next time in the bar.

Sometimes you may see it written pincho (which is Spanish for spike or thorn).  A unique feature of many pintxos , especially compared to tapas, is that they are often “spiked” or held together by a toothpick.  Both words are pronounced the same, though you will see pintxo used more often in this part of Spain.

A pintxo is hard to define but it could be best described as a gourmet appetizer.  They are created by the specialists home to every bar, and these cooks will add their own ingredients and styles to their creations.  Pintxos are to be enjoyed visually as well.  All of these elements and criteria make it easy to see how these bit of the Basque cuisine if followed by such a large subculture.

Pintxos are a huge deal for Pamplona. Alongside with San Sebastian, these are two of the biggest entities in pintxo circles.  The Ayuntamiento of Pamplona offers tours (La Ruta de Los Pintxos) and even sanctions a competition every spring , for a week in April, between every pintxo bar in Navarra, though most are in Pamplona.

For this Semana del Pintxo, each competing bar will create and submit a new pintxo for the competition.  Cooks are brought in from all over Spain, and people come from all over the world to circle around Pamplona and try new dishes at nearly 100 different places.

Needless to say, we strongly recommend you get out there and try some.  If you need a place to start, head down to El Casco Viejo at night, or take a look at Guia de Pinchos from the Asociacion Hosteleria Navarra.  It is organized by zone with locations, opening hours and a description of their specialties.

We have our own favorite pintxo bars here in Pamplona, but we’ll share some of those another day.

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On the south end of the Casco Antiguo (Old Town), and on the north end of the newer neighborhood of Iturrama lies La Ciudadela (The Citadel).  Originally a five-star military fortress to protect Pamplona’s southern border, the majority of its impressive walls now host the city’s biggest park, forum and event center.

The Ciudadela was built in 1571 in the Renaissance style of the age to protect what had been a weak chain in the defense of the city.  Before 1571, there existed a castle in the Casco Antiguo that was responsible for its protection (on the site of the Plaza del Castillo), but Felipe II recognized the need a fortress that was capable of handling new technology in munitions and firepower.  The castle at Plaza de Castillo was torn down, and the Ciudadela was ordered to be contstucted.

The 5-point star layout of the Ciudadela is designed to account for every possible angle of an oncoming attack, but in 400 years of military service hardly any shots have been fired against it (there was an episode with Napoleon for example).  Perhaps the greatest threat to the walls has been the city itself, whose growth called for the demolition of two baluartes to accomodate new ensanches, roads and neighborhoods.

Today the layout of Pamplona very much pivots around the old fortifications.  The Ciudadela is now the central park, and the Ayuntamiento (town government) consistently organizes events, concerts, art galleries, and even installed free Wi-Fi, and courts for volleyball, handball and fronton.  The old moats are often swarmed with people jogging, some old walls have even become favorite spots for rock climbing.

The internal section of the Ciudadela, where the art exhibits and some events are held, is open to the public until 9.  The external park does not close, though the walls are only lit until 11 o’clock.  At night, it is an amazing place for a game of Capture the Flag.

So you have an existing mobile phone that you would like to use?

If so, you may be able to get it to work here (it must have a SIM Card that you can take out and replace).  You should find out if your phone is locked (meaning that it will only work with the original chip).  If you want to unlock it (liberar tu movil), there are many services around town where they will do it for 30 euros and give you back your phone the next day.

You will have to get this done before getting your new service for your old phone in Pamplona.

What kind of service would you like?

Phone numbers come in two ways – contract and pre-paid (contrato or tarjeta).  Contracts will offer you better, cheaper prices but they will often ask you to keep the service for at least a year.  Pre-paid cards are more expensive, but you make no commitment to any company.

Most students will go for the pre-paid option, it is usually the most convenient and recharging your mobile phone with credit (saldo) can be done at stores, ATMs or Cash Machines and supermarkets.  Also, you can get a pre-paid phone today with just a valid form of ID.

Which Carrier / Company to go with?…

Now that you have that figured out, you just have to decide which mobile phone company you want to go with.  Here in Pamplona, and here in Spain, there are the Big Three – Vodafone, Orange and Movistar (of Telefonica).

There will always be new offers on phones and fees so it is recommended that you go check out the websites given above to see what the current offers are.

Mobile phone service is pretty good with all of them, but all of them may not work great in some apartment buildings around town.

To get your service…

Simple. Go to one of the many stores that you will see around town.  For about 20 euros you can walk out with a pre-paid service, a free mobile phone, and about 10 euros worth of credit. And your phone will work immediately.

Pretty soon you will be mastering the art of the llamada perdida.

You probably could walk from one side of town to the other in less than an hour but just in case you have less time than that, here are a few suggestions of places to go:

1. El Caballo Blanco (one of the best places for a coffee in Pamplona, on the city walls)

2. Walls of Pamplona (Best place to watch the sunset on the foot hills of the Pyrenees. Really, amazing)

For a 360 degree view, click here

3. La Ciudadela (Great fort in the middle of town. Perfect for a football game or writing a novel)

4. Calle Estafeta (Where the bulls run, and great street for Pinchos)

5. La Puerta de Francia( Yeah, this has a totally sweet draw bridge)

6. La Cathedral (Great example of gothic and other styles of arqutecture. Random hours, but there is also a muesum around the corner

7. Parque Taconera there are live animals in this park… including an ALBINO PEACOCK!!!

8. El Rio Arga (Great for biking or BBQ’s… not at the same time)

9. Salir de Pintxos (this is the name for tapas in the north): Go out around 9:30pm and go eat the best bar food in the world. “God I’m so HUNGRY!” Say no more! If there is one thing Navarra has it’s good food. Here’s a few places I recommend for historic and gastronomical reasons:

Bar Iruña: One of Hemingway’s old stomping grounds… he had many as he liked the sauce.                     

Sarria Bar: Also know as “The Ham Bar” by foreigners due to all the cured ham hanging from the ceiling.

Bar Gaucho: Some pintxos can be pricey but for a good reason… the same reason they have won multiple victories during the “Week of the Pincho”

What you’ll find in the city: McDonalds, Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut.  Most of these places are all located between Pio XII and Parque Yamaguchi, all within a block or two of each other.  See the map below.

View Larger Map

Outside of the city, you will find some places as well.  There is a McDonalds next to La Morea that has a drive thru, a KFC inside the bus station by the Ciudadela, and Burger King can be found at some local malls in the suburbs too.

We’ve listed the places you probably will be most familiar with, but there are just as good Spanish options for fast food here in Pamplona.

• Telepizza - probably a better option than the quality you get at Pizza Hut here.  There are many locations around Pamplona.  Ordering Pizza is more expensive in general.
• Pans & Company - good fries and sandwich shop with a location near Plaza del Castillo and another at La Morea (a local mall).
• Bocadillos (Sandwiches) can be picked up at any bar around the city.
• Kebabs, probably the European equivalent of the American burger place.  Excellent option but more on Kebabs later.

Map of Pamplona from El Idealista

BEFORE SEARCHING: You should know if you are looking for an empty apartment (piso en alquiler) or a shared flat (piso compartido).  Expect some places to ask you for a deposit (una fianza) and in rare cases a statement from your bank (un aval bancario). Some places may also ask you to sign a contract.

Most of the searching is done on the Internet, and here are the best sites with reference to Pamplona.  Its a good idea to check all of them everyday if you are actively looking.

• Loquo -  Just like a Spanish Craigslist
  
• Segunda Mano – An online directory of everything second hand, much of it devoted to pisos
• Idealista – This directory features a map based search option which can be useful
• Diario de Navarra – Classified postings with the local newspaper, a great resource.
• Easy Piso – Another site for shared apartments

If you are a student, please check with your university, they will likely have a alojamiento (housing) office.

Around town you will additionally find some ads on streetlamps and especially on walkways to and from the universities.  The two walkways that cross under Avenida de Navarra (see map) will always have ads, especially at the beginning of the semester.

WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you call to inquire about the apartment whenever you see an interesting ad.  People rarely respond to emails so its always better for you or for a friend who speaks Spanish to call.