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Five days in Bilbao
A day at a time
Day one: the river and the museum
The old town and its market in the morning, then the riverside walk past Zubizuri to the Guggenheim for the afternoon, and pintxos back in the Seven Streets in the evening.
Day two: the hill and the riverfront
The funicular up Artxanda for the view, then Abandoibarra, Doña Casilda Park and the Fine Arts Museum, ending at the duck pond.
Day three: down the Ría to the sea
Metro to the river mouth, across the Bizkaia Bridge by gondola, and the old port of Algorta and the seafront of Getxo.
Day four: the shipyards and the stadium
The Euskalduna, the Itsasmuseum and its crane, San Mamés and its museum, and Azkuna Zentroa in the Ensanche.
Day five: Begoña and a day out
Up to Begoña in the morning and back through the cathedral and the Plaza Nueva, or give the day to Gernika, the coast or San Sebastián.
Itineraries
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How to plan a day in Bilbao
Bilbao is a city to walk, and its river makes planning simple: almost every central sight lies along it or a few streets back. A good day follows the water in one direction and returns on the other bank, or by tram. Put the places that need a ticket at the start of the day and leave the walking, the parks and the pintxo bars for the afternoon and evening.
Check the closing days of the museums before you fix the order. The Guggenheim shuts on some days of the year and on most Mondays outside summer, and the other museums have their own weekly closures, published on their sites; swap days around them. The booking ahead page explains what to reserve.
Half a day
If you are passing through, or arrive by ferry or cruise ship with only a few hours, concentrate on the river between the old town and the Guggenheim. Walk the Seven Streets and the market, cross to the riverside walk and follow it to the museum, and see the building from outside, with Puppy, Maman and the La Salve bridge, even if there is no time to go in. The tram along the river brings you back to the old town or on to San Mamés and the bus station.
Cruise passengers landing at Getxo can reverse the plan: start with the old port of Algorta and the Bizkaia Bridge, then take Metro line 1 into the center for the old town and the river.
One day
Start in the Casco Viejo, the Seven Streets, while the shops open. Walk through to the Cathedral of Santiago and out to the river at the Mercado de la Ribera, best in the morning when the fish counters are full. Cross to the Arenal, pass the Teatro Arriaga, and follow the right bank downstream past the city hall to Calatrava's Zubizuri.
Cross Zubizuri and continue along the left bank to the Guggenheim. Give the museum the early afternoon, with a booked time; walk round the outside afterwards to see Puppy, Maman and the building from the water's edge and from the La Salve bridge. In the evening, take the tram or walk back to the old town and the arcades of the Plaza Nueva for pintxos.
Two days
On the second morning, ride the funicular up Artxanda from the right bank near Zubizuri for the view over the whole valley; on a clear day it explains the city better than any map. Come down and cross to Abandoibarra, the rebuilt riverfront around the Iberdrola Tower, and walk through it to Doña Casilda Park.
The Fine Arts Museum stands inside the park, with its collection from the Middle Ages to the present and its new extension. Finish at the duck pond, then walk up into the Ensanche, along the Gran Vía to the Plaza Elíptica, for an evening in the nineteenth-century city.
Three days
Give the third day to the Ría and the sea. Take Metro line 1 to Areeta, walk to the Bizkaia Bridge, the world's first transporter bridge, and cross to Portugalete in its hanging gondola; on a clear day, buy a ticket for the high walkway and ride the lift up for the view of the river mouth.
Cross back and walk along the seafront of Las Arenas, past the mansions of the industrial families, to Getxo's beach at Ereaga and the old port of Algorta, a knot of steep lanes and painted houses with bars for lunch. Return to the city on Metro line 1. In the evening, the riverside walk is lit and the old town is lively.
Five days
With a fourth day, go back to the riverfront's downstream end: the Euskalduna concert hall, the Itsasmuseum with its dry docks and Carola crane, and San Mamés and the Athletic Club museum. In the afternoon, visit Azkuna Zentroa in the Ensanche, and in the evening see an opera or a concert if the season allows.
On a fifth day, climb to the Basilica of Begoña, using the lifts inside the Casco Viejo Metro station or the long stairs, and come back down through the cathedral, the Plaza Nueva and the Teatro Arriaga. Or spend the day outside the city: the day trips page covers Gernika, Gaztelugatxe, San Sebastián and Vitoria-Gasteiz.
Five days give a full picture of the city; a week lets you add two day trips without rushing. Pair Gernika with Mundaka and the Urdaibai estuary on one day, and San Sebastián or Vitoria-Gasteiz on another, returning each evening to Bilbao's bars.
The evenings
Bilbao's evenings belong to the bars. The old town, the Plaza Nueva and the streets around them fill with people going from counter to counter for a pintxo and a glass of txakoli; the eating and drinking page explains how it works. The riverside walk is pleasant after dark, when the Guggenheim, the La Salve bridge, the Iberdrola Tower and San Mamés are lit.
For something more formal, the Euskalduna and the Teatro Arriaga have opera, concerts and theater through much of the year, and Athletic's home matches turn the streets around San Mamés red and white.
With children, or with limited mobility
Children enjoy the funicular, the gondola of the Bizkaia Bridge, Puppy outside the Guggenheim, the ducks in Doña Casilda Park and the crane and boats at the Itsasmuseum. Keep museum visits short and break them with the parks.
For anyone who struggles with steps, the river flats are easy, and the tram is the most accessible transport, with stops level with its doors. The old town is flat but cobbled in places; Begoña, Artxanda and the old port of Algorta are steep, and the funicular and the Metro's lifts are the way up.
Adjusting for the season
In rain, which is common from October to April, put the museums and the market first and save Artxanda and the coast for a clearer day. In August the city fills for Aste Nagusia; enjoy the festival, but book the Guggenheim and your room early. In summer, add the beaches of Getxo to day three. See when to come for the months.
More photographs
Seen on the way
An old stone arch over the cobbled path of the Calzadas de MallonaZarateman, Wikimedia Commons, CC0