11 Fun Things to Do in Bilbao
Bilbao is the biggest city in Spain’s Basque Country, and renowned for the impressive Guggenheim Museum. But beyond that, there are lots of fun things to do in and around Bilbao, and here are eleven suggestions.
Find Art on a Walk in the Woods
Photo by ‘Simoncio’ and used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2.
About 40 minutes from the city is the Painted Forest of Oma, where the Spanish artist and sculptor Agustín Ibarrola has playfully decorated a few dozen trees in bright colours and geometric shapes, and a few animals are also hidden in the woods for you to discover.
Don’t miss reading: Best Time to Visit Bilbao!
Hear Music in a Market
Photo by Galder Segurola and used under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
La Ribera Market is the biggest indoor market in Europe, but don’t just visit in the daytime. Go at night when the market’s bars and restaurants stay open and there’s often live music from one restaurant’s own resident jazz band.
Ride to the Top of a Mountain
Photo by ‘Ardfern’ and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
An ancient funicular will take you to the top of Mount Artxanda, which is 251 m (823 ft) high, for wonderful views over the city.
Swim on the Roof of an Old Corn Exchange
Bilbao’s Azkuna Zentroa used to be the city’s corn exchange but it was given a modernistic make-over in the 1990s by the French designer Philippe Starck. It remains futuristic-looking and is now an art and sports venue, but worth seeing whether you go to an event there or not. It also has a glass-bottomed covered rooftop swimming pool.
Tour a World Heritage Bridge
The Vizcaya Bridge is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and crossing it as a pedestrian is quite an experience. Suspended 46 meters (150 feet) above the river is a gondola, which carries passengers across beneath the main bridge. Even better, though, is to take a guided tour of the world’s oldest transporter bridge. You’ll need a good head for heights.
Enjoy a Concert in a Palace
The Euskalduna Palace is the city’s conference centre but there’s plenty to enjoy there even if you’re not attending a conference as it is also a concert venue for theatre, music, and dance.
See a Work of Art in a Train Station
The Abando Train Station is a must-see whether you’re travelling by train or not as it has an enormous and beautiful piece of stained glass that depicts some of the city’s sights and life in the surrounding Basque countryside.
Visit Bilbao’s Other Great Art Museum
Photo by ‘Ardfern’ and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
The Guggenheim is such a stand-out art museum in Bilbao, visitors might forget there’s another fantastic art museum, the Fine Arts Museum. Here you’ll find work by such artists as El Greco, Goya, Van Dyck, Gaugin, Francis Bacon, and Peter Blake.
Cross a Bridge to Take a Photo
Outside the Guggenheim Museum is the La Salve Bridge, which is quite a work of engineering art itself. It’s worth crossing as you get a better view of the Guggenheim from the far side of the river.
See a Hotel that’s a Work of Art
When you’ve toured the Guggenheim you haven’t finished with art in the area. You might notice that Jeff Koons’ famous Puppy sculpture is reflected in the glass of a hotel opposite, the Gran Hotel Domine. Walk inside and have your breath taken away by the atrium.
Climb the Steps to a Former Cemetery
The Calzadas de Mallona is a set of steps that was built in 1745. They go from the Plaza de Miguel de Unamuno, which back then was a gateway into the city, up to what was the Cemetery of Mallona. The cemetery closed in 1927 and all that remains is an arch, but climbing the steps takes you past lots of interesting old buildings.
BEST GUIDE
Our choice of the best guide to take with you is this Lonely Planet Pocket Guide to Bilbao and San Sebastian.
