Stunning landscapes, a venerable dining scene, and staggering architecture: Bilbao is one of Basque Country’s great treasures. Good friends of mine who own a photo booth in Edmonton absolutely loved their recent trip to Bilbao and shared some great things to do and see during your trip. Bilbao’s dining scene staggers the imagination. Here you will find long-running restaurants, buzzing pintxo, and Michelin-starred eateries, all offering visitors different take on this country’s cuisine. Here are the top must-see attractions in Bilbao, Spain.
Museo Guggenheim Bilbao
This shimmering titanium gallery is one of the most iconic buildings of modern architecture. It played a vital role in helping to lift this city from its post-industrial depression into the 21st century with sensation. It sparked Bilbao’s inspired regeneration, stimulated more development, and place the city firmly in the international tourism and art spotlight. Some might conclude that structure here overwhelms function but the gallery is more popular for its architecture. But Frank Gehry, a Canadian architect inspired use of flying fins, towers, ship shapes, promontories, cliffs, and flowing canopies is irresistible. Gehry designed the gallery with geographical and historical contexts in mind.
Museo de Bellas Artes
The Museo de Bellas Artes is home to a captivating collection that includes art pieces from 20th-century pop art to Gothic sculpture. There are 3 major subcollections: classical art, featuring works by Van Dyck, Goya, El Greco, Zurbaran, and Murillo; contemporary art, with works by Anthony Caro, Francis Bacon, and Gauguin; as well as Basque art, with works of sculptors like Eduardo Chillida and Jorge Oteiza, and strong paintings by Juan de Echevarria and Ignacio Zuloaga.
Euskal Museoa
One of the best museums in Spain dedicated to Basque culture takes its visitors on a journey from the 21st century to the Palaeolithic days, giving visitors an overview of life among the artists, shepherds, mariners, and boat builders who have left an indelible mark on contemporary Basque identity. Displays of navigational instruments, sheep bells, woodcutters’ axes, model boats, fishing nets, looms, and clothing shows everyday life.
Casco Viejo
The compact Casco Viejo, the atmospheric old quarter of Bilbao, is full of boisterous bars, charming streets, and lots of independent and quirky shops. At the heart of this old town are the original seven streets of Bilbao, which date from the 15th century. The 14th-century Cathedral de Santiago has pretty little cloister and splendid Renaissance portico. The 19th-century Plaza Nueva is further north and is a gratifying pintxo haunt. The Sunday-morning flea market located here is usually full of record stalls and secondhand books.
Azkuna Zentroa
Take an abandoned wine storage warehouse, transform it into a cultural and leisure center, add some Bilbao style and what you get is the Azhuna Zentroa. Designed by Philippe Starck, a renowned architect, it now houses a public media center, a rooftop swimming pool, an art gallery, a cinema, restaurants, and cafes.