Bilbao has always been an industrial and maybe not the most interesting city, but since a unique museum has entered the city, it has become more and more interesting and popular. Now it is absolutely worth having a visit, as you have the old town with its fantastic buildings and bars, pintxos, and the Guggenheim museum. This is a great highlight in Basque Country. Keep reading to learn more about this surprising city.

Tourist occurrence: Medium

How to get here: San Sebastian is 1 hour away by public transport, while Madrid is 4.5 hours away by train. 

How much time needed: 1-2 days, as the highlights are close to each other, except the museum.

Be amazed at the Guggenheim Museum

By far the most important sight in Bilbao is the Guggenheim Museum, a modern art museum built in 1997 that really put Bilbao on the map. This is the first Guggenheim Museum I have been to, and it was so incredibly special. This is a highlight you cannot miss. From the outside (see picture above), the building is really interesting, and the dog and spider around the building are already its highlights, but when you enter, there are even more amazing artifacts. The most important artworks to see are the iron scaffolding and the coloured tulips (see picture below), but there are way more. You can have a lot of time here and just enjoy the beauty. Not everything is great, but it is my favorite modern art museum I have ever seen. 

Price: €18

Tourist occurrence: High

How much time needed: 2-4 hours depending on your pace.

Be surprised at the Zubizuri Bridge

Besides the Guggenheim, the Zubizuri Bridge is another project to give Bilbao a more modern look. It is a very weird, but interesting, bridge to walk by. Cars are not allowed on the bridge, so the walk over it is very relaxed and nice. This bridge is great to cross if you go from the Guggenheim to the old town. 

Tourist occurrence: High

How much time needed: 2-4 hours depending on your pace.

Eat Pintxos!

In the whole Basque Country, there is a fantastic culture of eating pinxtos. This is such a great culture, where you go to a bar, have a zurito (small beer), cider, or wine, and have one or two small bites (pinxtos), then head to another bar and do the same. Do not order too many bites at the same bar, because the locals know you are a tourist. The bites are so extremely tasty, so another reason to try them everywhere. Some really good bars (but there are a lot more) are Marinela Jatetxea, Bar Bilbao, Zuga, Gura Toxi, Sorginzulo, and Antxoa. 

Tourist occurrence: Medium

How much time needed: The whole time you are in Bilbao (and the whole Basque county)

Find the hidden gem Casas de Colores

This is a sight away from all the other sights of the city, but the coloured houses of Casas de Colores are a fun stop. This is an absolute hidden gem, and you probably will be here alone. The houses are very bright and nice to see. It will not be the highlight of your trip, but it is nice to find yourself in a surprising neighborhood. 

Tourist occurrence: Medium

How much time needed: The whole time you are in Bilbao (and the whole Basque county)

Stroll around in Casco Viejo

Casco Viejo is the old part of town and absolutely the nicest part of town, where you will spend most of your time in Bilbao. The streets have nice alleys and some great buildings. The highlight of the area is Plaza Nueva, which is beautiful and has many bars with pintxos, which is absolutely great!

Tourist occurrence: Medium

How much time needed: One day

Find some beautiful buildings

Around the Casco Viejo are some very interesting buildings to take a look at. You have buildings like the city hall (see picture above), San Nicolas Elize Cathedral, La Concordia station, Teatro Arriaga, and the Santiago Cathedral. You don't need much time at each place, but enjoy checking them out.

Tourist occurrence: Very low

How much time needed: 5 minutes per building

Grap some food at the Mercado de la Ribeira

The Mercado de la Ribeira is the biggest covered market in Spain. This is a nice market to grab some drinks and bites. You can get some different kinds of cuisine, pintxos, and drinks. However, it is not the best market I have been to in Spain, and it is pretty expensive. I prefer getting some pintxos at the local bars.

Tourist occurrence: High

How much time needed: 1 hour

Have some craft beer

I like a good craft beer bar, and in many cities I am searching for them because I like beer and because you often go to a part of town where you won't come normally. There are not too many craft beer bars in Bilbao, but my favorite was Singular, which is a great bar with local and foreign beers.

Tourist occurrence: High

How much time needed: 1 hour

Things I have not seen, but could be cool

I think I got most of the highlights of Bilbao covered!

Final thought

Bilbao is a good city for a weekend, as you have an amazing museum, a lovely area, and some other good sights. It is also great to combine with other cities in the area, like San Sebastian. The city will not have enough sights to be here for a week, but when eating pintxos, everything will stay great. Bilbao is great, especially for the Guggenheim and the Casco Viejo.

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