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The Bilbao Bizkaia Card is the smartest way to get round Bilbao and the rest of the province to discover all its tourist attractions. The card also offers substantial savings as it offers unlimited use of public transport. You can also enjoy exclusive promotions thanks to our partners’ offers.
Free use of public transport
Getting around Bilbao and the rest of Bizkaia has never been easier. Once you have activated your Bilbao Bizkaia Card in any transport network, you can travel free-of-charge for 24, 48 or 72 hours, depending on the card you buy.
The Bilbao Bizkaia Card can be used on the following means of transport. You will have all the province’s tourist facilities at your fingertips:
- Railways: Metro (underground), Tramway, Euskotren on their routes through Bizkaia.
- Buses: Coaches (Bizkaibus), Bilbao city buses (Bilbobus).
- Cable: Artxanda funicular railway, La Reineta funicular railway.
Failure to validate the card at the validator machine for your journey may result in a fine. The cards can be validated as follows:
- Metro Bilbao underground: The ticket is validated at the start and end of the journey.
- Bizkaibus: The ticket is validated in the coach at the start and end of the journey.
- Bilbobus: The ticket is validated in the bus at the start of the journey.
- Tramway and Funicular Railway: The ticket is validated on the platform at the start of the journey.
Free guided tours
Thanks to the Bilbao Bizkaia Card, the guided tours, organised by Bilbao Turismo, are free. Professional guides will help you discover the Casco Viejo (Old Town) and the Ensanche-Abandoibarra, two of the most iconic areas of Bilbao. You can sign up for the guided tours at the Bilbao Turismo offices on the day you collect your BBCard.
Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays. Check the special timetables for bank Holiday weekends, Holy Week and summer. Places limited. Prior Booking necessary.
More Information: https://www.bilbaoturismo.net/BilbaoTurismo/en/guided-tours-on-foot
– Bilbao:
Casco Viejo (Old Town)
This interesting route will let you discover medieval Bilbao, with its cobblestone streets, districts, squares and delightful spots, that witnessed the intense trading and port activity driving the growth of the city. Over 500 years and history and a timeless urban vitality are contained in Its city walls, the gothic Cathedral of Santiago, the Plaza Nueva (New Square), the iconic Church of San Antón and the ancient ruins on which it stands, or the hustle and bustle of La Ribera market. The Casco Viejo is also a large retail area of 240,000 square metres right on the street, with hundreds of stores, bars and restaurants.
Ensanche-Abandoibarra
The tour showcases Bilbao’s urban development and its architecture from the 19th century to the present day. An insight into the beating heart of a city that oozes tradition and avant-garde. As you stroll through the Ensanche and Abandoibarra, you will discover the entrepreneurial spirit of Bilbao and its transformation. You can here enjoy the wide range of architecture with works by Frank Gehry (Guggenheim Museum), Arata Isozaki, Alvaro Siza, Norman Foster, Cesar Pelli… and a large open-air art gallery with creations by Chillida, Koons, Kapoor, Bourgeois…
You can book on the Bilbao Turismo Guided Walking Tours website.
– Getxo:
Dramatised guided tours
The Getxo Tourist Office offers you the follewing guided tours (dramatized) so that you can get to know and experience a unique day in our town. You can book any of these experiences by following the links that we provide in their description, or by contacting us at:
Further information on the Getxo Tourism website.
Through the origins of Las Arenas
This dramatised guided tour will show us how Las Arenas was transformed from a marsh into a holiday resort for the middle classes.
www.getxo.eus/es/turismo/que-hacer/Visitaguiada-lasarenas
The Old Port – the Puerto Viejo from its origins
This tour provides us with an opportunity to discover all the curiosities and customs of this old, picturesque fishing quarter.
www.getxo.eus/es/turismo/que-hacer/visita-teatralizada-puerto
VISIT TO THE PUNTA BEGOÑA GALLERIES. AUDIOGUIADED TOUR
This great gallery adapted to the coastal geography was built by Ricardo Bastida in 1919. With columns and covered by a balustraded terrace, it was commissioned by the well-known businessman Horacio Echevarrieta. Its main function was to continue and finish off the containment and defence wall of the cliff on which the Atxekolandeta family seats stand, location of the Echevarrieta family mansion – an English-style home designed by the architect Gregorio Ibarreche in 1910, and which is no longer standing.
Don’t miss the opportunity of going inside and learning about the plan to take full advantage of this space which is so frequently visited and emblematic of Getxo, headed by GetxoTown Halland the BasquePublicUniversity(UPV/EHU), a unique, exclusive symbol of the era of economic transformation at the beginning of the last century.
Further information on the Getxo Tourism website.
– Santurtzi:
Agurtza Fishing Interpretation Centre
With the Bilbao Bizkaia Card, you can go on free, regular guided tours of one of the last traditional wooden fishing boats on our coasts, which form part of our heritage. Discover the world of our arrantzales (fishermen), boarding this jewel in our heritage, an example of those vessels so popular in times gone by on the quay in Santurtzi. On the guided tours, we learn about the fishermen’s life on board and the different kinds of fishing tackle and nets.
Round off the trip with a visit to Santurtzi Itsasoa Interpretation Centre, to discover the link between Santurtzi and see from all angles: professional, social (not forgetting that a large part of the maritime heritage lies with the people), cultural and leisure.
Book at Visit Santurtzi.
FASTPASS: No queues at the major museums
The Guggemheim Museum Bilbao and the Fine Arts Museum are the two major ones in the capital Bizkaia. These internationally recognised museums have become major tourist attractions. Thanks to the BBcard, you can access the two complexes without having to queue to pay the ticket.
Use the Fastpass to save time and make the most of the day, with priority access to pay the entrance fee.
Make sure you check out the guide with the Bilbao Bizkaia Card partner establishments and companies. The partners of the Bilbao and Bizkaia official tourist card have exclusive promotion and discounts for you. The more you use it, the more you will save. Our website has a list of partners according to type activity: museums, shows, restaurants, leisure establishments, etc.