First time in Bilbao

Due to its picturesque streets, unique culture and world-class cuisine, Bilbao is becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination.

This is everything you need to know if you’re planning a first-time trip to Bilbao, with information on attractions, accommodation, transport, food and more.

Why Bilbao?

Bilbao and the Basque Country have long been recognised as one of Europe’s hidden gems, but the recent boom in global tourism has seen a huge increase in visitors.

It was only a matter of time until the secret got out. A unique ancient culture, a rare language, delicious food, excellent museums, beaches, mountains, elite sports teams… Bilbao has something for everyone.

Beyond that, on the practical side, Bilbao is reasonably sized and has efficient transport links to the surrouding regions, making it the perfect destination both for a short weekend getaway or as part of in-depth tour of the Basque Country and nothern Spain.

How long should you stay in Bilbao?

You could stay in Bilbao for a lifetime and never got bored. If you plan on just staying in Bilbao we recommend staying for at least two days. The city’s transports links make it the perfect base for a tour of the wider Basque Country. If this is your intention, we’d advice staying for a week, if not longer.

Bilbao covers an area of just 41.3KM², of which only 17.4KM² is urban land. Compared to other cities with a similar population size (350,000), this is on the smaller side.

Walking from one end of Bilbao’s main urban area to the other only takes around one hour. Nonetheless, there is no shortage of sights to see and activities to do.

We’ve published a series of itineraries for those staying in the city for one, two or three days. We’ve even written a guide for groups thinking of organising a stag do in Bilbao.

Main attractions and activities

There are plenty of things to do for every visitor to the city. Whether you’re a solo traveller, a couple or a family, Bilbao has something to offer.

Even if you’re not fuzzed about walking tours, events and sightseeing, Bilbao is the perfect place to stroll around, stop at bars or cafe and for a ‘cafe con leche’ or ‘kaña’ (beer) and watch the world go by.

Undoubtedly, the city’s major attraction is Frank Gehry’s monumental Guggenheim Museum. The contemporary art museum is the jewel in Bilbao’s eye and well worth a visit, for art lovers and non-art lovers alike.

However, Bilbainos only have one true love… Athletic Club de Bilbao. The most unique football team in the world due to their Basque-only transfer policy, Athletic play at the magnificent 50,000 seater San Mames Stadium, aka The Cathedral. If you’re stay coincides with a home fixture, GET A TICKET! You will not regret it.

Other attractions include Mount Artxanda, Azkuna Zentroa/Alhondiga, the Fine Arts Museum, the Maritime Museum. Mount Artxanda and Parque Doña Casilda.

Bibao is one of the Iberian peninsula’s cultural hub and there are no shortage of activities and events. Why not check out a Basque music gig at Kafe Antzokia or a similar venue, or a Candlelight Concert at the Church of Incarnation.

Best place to stay?

Bilbao is very walkable so realistically you could stay anywhere and be comfortable. Although it’s always advisable to keep an eye on your belongings and watch out for pickpockets – like any major city – with the exception of the San Francisco neighbourhood (and only at night), Bilbao is a safe place and it would be unusual to run into any trouble anywhere in the city centre.

The only thing to bear in mind is that Bilbao is in a bowl surrounded by hills and mountains, so the further you stray from the city centre, the further up a hill you might have to walk.

Our main piece of advice is to find accommodation close to a metro station as this will make getting around the city much easier.

The most popular and central neighbourhoods in the city include Casco Viejo, Abando, Indautxu and Deusto.

The city offers a range of hotels and hostels for all tastes and budgets. If you fancy something different which will come with some peace and quiet plus extraordinary views, it might even be worth getting a ‘casa rural’ (cottage) on the city’s outskirts.

Check out our advice on Bilbao’s best luxury hotels, mid-range hotels and cheap hostels.

Booking.com early 2026 deals

Booking.com are offering 15% off on stays across a range of Bilbao hotels when booked before April 2026.

Click the following link to take a look at which hotels are offering early 2026 deals discounts.

When should I come to Bilbao?

Bilbao maintains its unique charm throughout the year. That being said, first-time visitors to the Basque Country should know that it is VERY rainy here, especially in the winter months.

The weather in Bilbao is not like the south of Spain. In the winter its rains incessantly. To put it into perspective, Bilbao’s average yearly rainfall is double of that of London, UK.

Bilbao in the winter is beautiful and Bilbainos love to get into the Christmas spirit. Gran Via’s tall trees are decked in spectacular dangling lights and nativity parades are common. But, we repeat, it rains a lot.

Take a look at our guide on what to expect when it comes to dealing with the rain in Bilbao.

The warmest months are June, July and August, with temperatures normally around 25-30ºc on average, sometimes climbing above 35ºc. Summer electric storms are also typical at this time.

What’s more, Bilbao really comes to life at the end of August during its annual city-wide festival, Aste Nagusia.

Arguably the best time to come in terms of weather is September. It’s not too hot, not too rainy and there are normally less tourists than in other months.

What food and drinks should I try in Bilbao?

Bilbao is a foodie capital of the world and you should spend your time eating as much as you can.

The city’s most famous culinary output is pintxos, the Basque version of tapas. You’ll see pintxos on counter-tops in cafes and bars throughout the Basque Country. They typically consist of bitesize portion of fish, seafood or a meat stacked and skewered on to a slice of baguette bread along with peppers, olives and cheese depending on the type.

Other traditional Basque dishes include ‘Bacalao al pil-pil’ (cod in pil-pil sauce), ‘Txuleton’ (matured rib steak), Alubias (bean stews) and Burnt Basque Cheesecake.

In terms of drinks, the country’s indigenous wine is ‘txakoli’, (a dry, zesty white wine), Basque apple cider, ‘patxaran’ (a liqueur made from sloes) and kalimotxo (cheap red wine mixed with cola).

Besides alcoholic drinks, Basque are big coffee lovers and there are several top specialty coffee places around the city.

If you for some reason grow tired of pintxos and steaks and want something more familiar – or perhaps something a bit different – fusion cuisine has become very popular in Bilbao in recent years and there are loads of fantastic international food restaurants in the city.

What’s the best way to get around Bilbao?

The city has a fantastic public transport network. Although you can easily walk around the main city centre, Bilbao’s metro system, buses and trams are perfect for travelling around the city.

Our main piece of advice is to buy a barik card, Bizkaia’s travel smart card. Also bear in mind that you can’t use contactless debit/credit cards to pay on public transport in Bilbao, except when using the airport bus.

We’ve got extensive guides on the different forms of public transport in Bilbao.

What is Bilbao Airport like?

Bilbao Airport is the main international transport hub in the Basque Country, connecting Bilbao with over 41 destinations from across 19 countries.

Take a look on Skyscanner to see if there are flights to Bilbao from your closest airport.

It’s a relatively small and simple airport, with only 14 departure gates. What’s more, it only takes a few minutes to get through security.

To get from Bilbao Airport to the city centre, you need to catch the green A3247 bus. They leave the airport every 15-20 minutes and take about 30 minutes to get the city stopping off in three places.

Check out our airport guide to know what you need to do well ahead of your visit.

What should I know about locals in Bilbao?

Citizens of Bilbao, called Bilbainos or Bilbotarras, are the best people in the world. If we had to use any word to describe Bilbainos, it would be ‘proud’.

Bilbainos are stoic, caring and honest. But above all they love their city. Most Bilbainos refer to Bilbao as ‘the capital of the world’ – and it’s not as tongue-in-cheek as you might think! They genuinely do cherish the city.

For example, although they love to travel, many Bilbainos have never lived abroad, as they just don’t see the need.

One thing to bear in mind is that the Basque Country and its culture has a history of suffering oppression and this has had an impact on how Basques see the outside world. It’s true some residents are struggling to adjust to the recent increase in tourism levels, but on the whole, Basques are really happy that people from across the globe are taking an interest in their nation and culture.

Basques don’t often do fake niceness. This can come across as cold at first if that’s typical in your culture, but this doesn’t mean the locals are rude or that they don’t like you.

For a Basque or Bilbaino, it could be considered insincere or impolite to be anything other than direct and honest. So, don’t expect a lots of smiles and ‘how are you? how can I help you today?’ when you walk into an establishment. Many times, you’ll simply be asked what you want and then you’ll get it with little to no small talk from the servers.

A really easy way to make a good impression with the locals is to learn a few words of Euskera (Basque), the oldest living language in Europe.

We’ve written an article explaining what the Basque language is and why it’s so unique, in addition to a guide with some simple Basque terms and expressions you can use during your time in Bilbao.

Visiting the rest of the Basque Country?

If you’re planning on staying in Bilbao for longer than a day or two, we’d highly recommend seeing other parts of the Basque Country.

Bilbao belongs to the province of Bizkaia, which is one of seven Basque provinces. There are four in modern day Spain: Bizkaia, Gipuzkoa, Araba and Nafarroa; plus another three in southern France: Lapurdi, Zuberoa and Nafarroa Behera.

Bilbao is the perfect base to explore the rest of this wonderful country, as well as parts of northern Spain like Cantabria. In the ‘Beyond Bilbao’ section on this website, we’ve published some guides with ideas for easy day trips from Bilbao.

For example, we’d suggest visiting Bizkaia towns like Gernika, Mundaka, Bermeo and Getxo, or heading to other major Basque cities: Donostia-San Sebastian, Vitoria-Gasteiz. Biarritz, Baiona and Pamplona.

Mobile data and sim cards in Bilbao

Bilbao has a free WIFI service with over 200 hotspots across the city. However, it doesn’t always have the most reliable connection. If you’re in desperate need of data or signal, head into a bar or cafe, get a small drink and connect to their WIFI. Likewise, most public buildings, such as tourist offices, will have a free WIFI inside.

Occasionally, some service providers will have pop-up kiosks in Bilbao Airport, but there are no permanent shops there. But you can connect to the airport’s free WIFI.

If you’re an EU citizen, you should be able to use your current mobile data plan as normal thanks to the EU’s data roaming laws. Nevertheless, check with your provider for their data usage or ‘fair usage’ limits. This is the same for UK tourists as long as their plan includes ‘free EU roaming’. Confirm if this applies to you before visiting. In most cases, visitors from the UK get 2/3 GB of free data usage and are then charged after that.

If you’re coming to Bilbao from outside the European Union, you’ll need to buy a pre-paid sim card or e-sim. The main service provider in the Basque Country is Euskaltel, while other popular companies include Lowi, Yoigo, Movistar, Vodafone and Orange. If you buy a sim in one of their shops, you’ll need to take a form of ID with you to complete the transaction.

Our advice is to buy an e-sim before travelling or upon arrival at the airport. For example, Airalo is a reliable e-sim company that provides a range of plans to suit visitors and their needs. Airalo, through Guay Mobile, offers a package with unlimited data for 10 days.

*Before purchasing anything, e-sim or physical sim, make sure it’s compatible with your phone model.

See Airalo’s list of supported devices if you have any doubts.