Permanently moored in the bay of La Concha, the Royal Nautical Club of San Sebastian has the appearance of a luxury ship made of concrete. Rationalist in style and built around a rectangular block of just one floor, designed by Jose Manuel Aizpurua and Joaquin Labayen. Its construction began in 1929 and was completed a year later, in 1930.
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Permanently moored in the bay of La Concha, the Royal Nautical Club of San Sebastian has the appearance of a luxury ship made of concrete. Rationalist in style and built around a rectangular block of just one floor, designed by Jose Manuel Aizpurua and Joaquin Labayen. Its construction began in 1929 and was completed a year later, in 1930.
But as far as the Club is concerned, this was created many years before by a group of sailing enthusiasts in 1896. Their first clubhouse was to be found on a large, floating platform anchored in the bay. But the Cantabrian is not a peaceful sea, not even in a bay sheltered by an island, so nine years later, they decided to buy a fish–processing factory on the same site as the current building...
First of all, they built a wooden structure, until nine years later it was demolished, and the present building of reinforced concrete took its place, also swallowing up the space beneath it at beach level, which had been an aquarium.
Almost 56 metres long and ten meters wide, divided into three decks with huge windows and breath-taking views, the building has been classified as a Property of Cultural Interest.
Today, the private, members-only, Royal Nautical Club shares the premises with an area on the top deck which is open to the public.
And finally, follow this tip from the locals: walk a few metres along the pier on the port side, go down the steps to the edge of the sea, and as long as it isn't stormy, sit down for a while and enjoy the feel of the sea breeze on your skin, its salty taste… And its sweet sea smell.
