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Bilbao

We'll be in Bilbao for 2 days at the beginning of our driving trip through the Basque country, then on to the Dordogne, winding up in Barcelona. I'm trying to decide if we should stay near the airport, get our car on arrival, and use it to drive into the city (for Guggenheim, rests, exploring, etc.). I'm sure staying in town is more atmospheric, but my ability to walk more than a km at a time is limited, especially if hills and uneven surfaces are involved.

The other possibility is to stay at the airport, and take cabs back and forth.

Or, stay in town and take cabs when necessary, then get our rental car on the way out of town.

Suggestions? Mike?

Thanks,
Lisa

Posted by
401 posts

After spending a few days in Bilbao, we picked up a car for our trip to the Pyrenees. It was a bit hectic getting out of town. We had no use for a car in town; my recollection is that the areas you might want to visit are rather concentrated and wouldn't require a lot of walking. But if so, take a cab rather than bothering with a car until you need to leave the area.

Posted by
743 posts

As you know, I live in Bilbao, and it´s a walkable city with excellent public transport (metro, tram, bus, funicular...very cheap, very clean, very safe). Relatively small (350,000h), there´s currently a "war" on cars in the city, with speed limited to 18mph (30km/h) and lots of streets are turning into pedestrian ones (the idea is to make it a city for the people, not for the cars). I would stay in town, as everything is at hand and a short walk (you can cross the city from one end to the other on foot in less than 45min). The areas to visit are in flat terrain. In the worst of cases, a cab ride inside the city will be around 8eur. Get a hotel with parking, so your car can rest while enjoying the city.

Mikel