Parking in, and access to Bilbao by car...
 

We have been given proper warning by Cova that getting out of (and presumably into) Bilbao may take us much longer than we are imagining - - and now doing some of our final reading, I am really "getting it" that it would really be crazy to think we can navigate the city just with a map and instinct (we are normally very good at doing this in cities large and small).

So... how have YOU approached Bilbao by car - - where have you left the car for a day? (secured garage or lot strongly preferred), and how best (if at all) should we use public transport to add to our getting around the city on foot?

I'll take look in my Maribel's guides' pages on Bilbao, but as always, replies from experience (including mistakes you now know to avoid) will be much appreciated - -including (more) from (and especially, more from) Cova...

Thanks in advance... and...

Best wishes,

Rex

We parked on the street with no problems but it was a Sunday and very quiet by our Hotel.

the timing is what will make the difference of your smoother arrival, i believe.
just remember that offices close around 1.30, so there can be heavy traffic up to 2:30.
then schools get out around 4.30.. causing more traffic for the better part of the afternoon.
then offices closing again around 8pm , but traffic lightening up around 9 ish.

at least this is more or less the norm and i doubt you will have great problems getting into the city once you have figured out names of large avenues near your hotel. just maybe a slow jam of traffic, but that can happen near any industrial city.

there is plenty of underground parking, at least, we never have had a problem.

you may even be lucky to find street parking not far from the guggenheim. we did.

you won't be there june3/4th by any chance will you???

i will be at jardines de albia (bancotel 50 euros) with a couple students and a friend.

have a great trip.

we have reserved lunch menu of the day at guggenheim restaurant. the chef is SUPPOSED to be good. we'll see if we hit a lucky day!

The Guggenheim restaurant is very good. It was a pleasant surprise. The only place we liked was the old city with all it's tapas bars and mingling with the locals.

i have been to bilbao several times.. but taken around by friends and not paying attention to names of places. but am glad you had good food at guggenheim.
we couldn't get in last time we were there.. so i am looking forward to it.

Not headed to a hotel; do want to make the Guggenheim aa centerpiece of our day trip there.

Have a look at June Gourmet. Has good articles on San Sebastien and Bilbao and between.

San Sebastian has a few starred restaurants that are apparently worth considering. However, if you're there I'd advise dining with the locals in the old town of Bilbao as mentioned by another poster. I have fond memories of a light lunch which comprised some potato/tomato based sauce, sheep's cheese, and an ever flowing amount of freshly baked bread, all accompanied by some wondefully sunny wine. For two this little feast came to under 5EUR, now you couldn't even get a glass of wine for that in London.

As for driving, it's such a small city there really is no need to drive around, but I'm sure you'll find somewhere to dump the car.

For shopping, let me recommend a shop tucked away off of a main street that stocks Dior, Prada, D&G, Neil Barrett...(the Italian/rock chic style)...look it up in a telephone directory, they had a great sale - a pair of Prada Car Shoes for 130EUR..which have been reissued this season.

Bilbao is very easy to drive in and out of. There is also an underground car park close to Gug.
Rich,
Photos of our travels around Spain
www.franceinfocus.net/vlc22.html

A couple years ago we were staying in Biarritz, France and did a day trip into Bilbao, by car. We did not have a good map, so found the freeway driving easy, but the in city driving quite tricky. Street names not clear, etc. However, after turning around a few times, we found the Gugg., then found an underground parking garage that was only a couple of blocks from the museum.

Thanks for these additional answers... maybe it won't be so difficult after all.

Very brief checkin from Bilbao cybercafe. Everything has gone great. Dordogne excellent from www.airchateau.com

No problem driving into Bilbao.

More in 48 hrs.

So, hi all... again...

Rest of trip went great.

And I see now that I did not gibe the website name correctly:

http://www.air-chateaux.com

Trip report likely to take me a god 2-5 dayd, and I may do much of it on a separate webpage - - for the ability to edit and show pictures.

Or maybe on virtualtourist.com