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Bilbao, Spain

Bilbao, Spain

Bilbao is set a ways away from Spain’s best-known destinations like Madrid and Barcelona, but there are reasons to seek out a cruise to the largest city in Basque Country. BC’s an “autonomous community” that Spain considers its own nation and comes complete with its own language. Your ship’s approach to the city is Ria del Bilbao and this waterway affords you your first look at the surrounding mountains that — get used to it! — are going to be featuring prominently in your photos. Tourism is huge here, and it’s a great sign that so many of Bilbao’s visitors come from other parts of Spain. What attracts them? It might be the city’s collection of museums, including the famous one with the crazy-cool exterior and all the modern art inside. But it could very well be the food. Basque cuisine is world-class with award-winning chefs all over the place… so, no joke, if you spend most of your visit on fine dining nobody would bat an eye.

  • Visit the ancient Basque capital of Guernica, a name made infamous by Picasso’s 1930s painting.
  • Walk Bilbao’s cobblestone streets and cross the city’s 17 bridges.
  • Explore the seaside resort town of San Sebastian, a Basque Country highlight that practically straddles Spain’s border with France.