Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
minor works by many Spanish artists such as Goya, El Greco, Picasso, Murillo, Zurbarán,
Sorolla, Chillida, Tàpies, and Barceló—along with a handful of local painters. Other in-
ternational artists in the collection include Gauguin, Klee, Bacon, Cassatt, and more. The
museum is at the edge of the lovely Doña Casilda Iturrizar Park, perfect for a stroll after
your visit.
Cost and Hours:
€6,Tue-Sun10:00-20:00,closedMon,lastentry15minutesbefore
closing, a short walk from the Guggenheim at Museo Plaza 2, Metro stop: Moyúa, tel.
944-396-060,
www.museobilbao.com
.
Alhóndiga Bilbao
Bilbao's new culture and leisure center, designed by French architect Philippe Starck, is
worth a quick visit or a lazy afternoon. Not one of the 43 interior columns is alike—the
designs are meant to represent the entirety of materials and styles from antiquity to today.
The center houses a cinema, auditorium, exhibition spaces, and restaurant. Most impress-
ive is its glass-bottomed rooftop pool—from the atrium below, visitors can gaze up at
backstrokers in the water above.
Cost and Hours:
Entry to the Alhóndiga itself is free; a €10 day pass gives you
access to the pool and sundeck. Mon-Fri 7:00-23:00, Sat 8:30-24:00, Sun 8:30-23:00,
10-minute walk from the Guggenheim at Plaza Arriquibar 4, tel. 944-014-014,
Funicular de Artxanda
—Opened in 1915, this funicular still provides
bilbainos
with a
greenescapefromtheirsomewhatgrimycity.Thethree-minuterideofferssweepingviews
of the city on the way to the top of Mount Artxanda, where there's a park, restaurants, and
a sports complex. Bring a picnic on a sunny afternoon, and take a moment to ponder the
giant thumbprint sculpture dedicated to Basque soldiers who fought against Franco during
the civil war.
Cost and Hours:
€1,leavesevery15minutes,Mon-Sat7:15-22:00,Sun8:15-22:00,
until 23:00 on summer weekends, cross the Zubizuri Bridge and walk two blocks along
Calle Mújica y Burton to the cable-car station, Plaza del Funicular, tel. 944-454-966.
Old Town (Casco Viejo)
Bilbao's Old Town, with tall, narrow lanes lined with thriving shops and tapas bars, is
worth a stroll. Because the weather is wetter here than in many other parts ofSpain (hence
thegreenhillsides),thelittlebalconiesthatclimbtheoutsidewallsofbuildingsareglassed
in, creating cozy little breakfast nooks.
