43 Best Hotels in Bilbao and the Basque Country, Spain

This clean-cut urban hotel, located steps from the river and Zurriola Beach, opened in 2017 and is a dependable option for families and business travelers alike. Rooms are bright and modern with charcoal-gray furniture, large TVs, and (in upgraded digs) balconies and sofa beds.

Tastefully converted from a private mansion, this 1911 landmark on the shore is a favorite for quick overnight rail getaways from Bilbao, and scenery along the 37-km (23-mile) train ride is spectacular. Guest rooms are charming and comfortable in a grandmotherly kind of way. Those upstairs have balconies with marvelous views. (No. 22 is the best room in the house.)

Sandwiched between the Casco Viejo and the industrial area surrounding the Guggenheim, this corporate hotel soars seven stories over the Nervión, and its best rooms boast semicircular windows that make you feel like you're hovering over it. Cloudlike beds, exceptional breakfasts, and personable service make this hotel a regular choice among business and leisure travelers.

San Sebastián's buzzy new Hotel Arbaso likes to call this luxurious hilltop villa with five rooms its finest "suite," but that's selling this sister property short; after all, most suites don't span 67 acres teeming with goats, sheep, and pampered Basque "Wagyu" cows (a passion project of the owner). Situated 20 minutes from both Hondarribia and San Sebastián, Basalore—with its on-call chef and chauffeur and ample room for events—is one of the most exclusive rentable homes in Spain. For a family looking for the ultimate splurge or for a deep-pocketed company planning a small retreat, this well-appointed getaway is hard to beat.

This cozy, cinema-themed pension with in-room Nespresso machines and huge TV is a good value. Sure, there's no round-the-clock reception, and rooms aren't impeccably soundproof, but staff are exceedingly personable and all of Bilbao's main sights are at your fingertips.

Welcoming hosts run this budget-friendly inn in a 13th-century family farmhouse overlooking the Bidasoa estuary. Beneath its quintessentially Basque low, wide roofline, rooms are simply appointed with old-fashioned wooden furniture and patterned linens. The property is situated 5 km (3 miles) away from Hondarribia's tourist fray, west of the hermitage of Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.

On a bluff overlooking the Bay of Biscay and the Urdaibai Nature Reserve just outside of Elantxobe, this rustic family-run inn is removed from the harborside bustle, offering a breath of country life on the Basque coast. The cheerful rooms have terraces overlooking the sea, and two suites are available for families.

Built in the mid-19th century for Empress Eugenia de Montijo, wife of Napoléon III, this neo-Gothic limestone castle-cum-hotel with rooms in the watchtowers and defensive walls is one of the most extraordinary lodgings in the area (and Relais & Châteaux agrees). Overlooking the Urdaibai Nature Reserve wetlands 30 minutes north of Bilbao, near Gernika, it's a favorite home base for bird-watchers, with excursions by canoe available for exploring the marshes. The excellent restaurant focuses on local products, from seafood to Txakolí, making this a culinary destination as well.

Rioja's renowned "gastro hotel," Echaurren is a food lover's paradise with two envelope-pushing restaurants and Relais & Châteaux--certified digs. The crown jewel of the property is El Portal, a two-Michelin-star temple to Riojan cuisine with surprising offal preparations, but there's also casual bistro dining in El Cuartito. Rooms are minimal and modern with blond wood, large windows, and—in upgraded rooms—uncommon perks like double showers and wine-based bath products.

Close to—but not within earshot of—the raucous food fight that is Calle del Laurel, this hotel by the cathedral is within walking distance of all the major sights. In 2021, it became a Eurostars property, and now has a digital option at check-in and renovated rooms that can be unlocked with your phone. Stash your car in the garage beneath the nearby Plaza del Espolón (€15 per day).

This sleek art hotel across from the Guggenheim showcases the conceptual wit of Javier Mariscal, creator of Barcelona's 1992 Olympic mascot Cobi, and the structural know-how of Bilbao architect Iñaki Aurrekoetxea. Design highlights include undulating seven-story walls in the lobby, glass elevators, and bathrooms with wood-plank floors. Rooms are minimalist yet well appointed and decorated in calming grays, whites, and earth tones.

The oldest hotel in Pamplona, where Ernest Hemingway conceived of his first novel, The Sun Also Rises, is a comfortable and conservative hotel with some early-20th-century accents such as velvet bergères and ornate headboards. Hemingway watched the running of the bulls from room 201 in 1924. 

Overlooking the San Mamés soccer stadium (known as "La Catedral") and with views of the Nervión River, this former schoolhouse is just a 15-minute walk through the lush Parque de Doña Casilda gardens from the Museo de Bellas Artes and the Guggenheim. Rooms are contemporary in style. The restaurant, El Botxo, serves carefully prepared Basque and international cuisine.

Amenities at this traditional hotel in a restored stone building include a complimentary glass of wine at check-in, to be taken in a 16th-century wine cave. Guest rooms, organized around an indoor courtyard, are baroquely furnished with heavy woods and flowy drapes. There are two restaurants—one formal, the other more down-home—which makes the Hospedería lively in the evenings.

Housed in a monastery atop a 9th-century hermitage, this rural hotel run by a Benedictine community is an ideal base for hiking. Rooms here are simple, and the restaurant offers local dishes at unbeatable prices.

While on the property, you can view the carving of the Virgin of Valvanera, patroness of the grape harvest and barren couples. She is portrayed with a pomegranate (symbolizing fertility) and vines.

This magnificent inn occupies a wing of the historic Monasterio de Yuso. Heavy medieval stone walls conceal minimalist if slightly austere guest rooms, and there's a long baronial dining room on the ground floor that serves regional dishes from La Rioja.

Arbaso means "ancestor" in Euskera, and though this three-year-old hotel is awash with modern comforts (e.g., Marshall speakers, gym and sauna, smart bidet toilets, Apivita cosmetics), it exudes Basqueness in its staff uniforms, inspired by traditional jai alai uniforms; cuisine at Narru restaurant, hinging on local meats and seafood; and design elements, drawing on the Basque Country's raw materials like wood and natural stone. Entry-level rooms peer out over a "zen" courtyard, while the best digs afford vistas of the bay and add fireplaces and living rooms. Keep an eye out for low-season steals. 

With rooms overlooking Bilbao from the heights of Artxanda, this Basque farmhouse with cheery interiors and eager young owners offers excellent value. It's surrounded by the green hills and meadows you see from the Guggenheim Museum, so what you lose here in big-city ambience you gain in fresh air and solitude. Nearby asadores—including one next door—are good dining options. You'll need a car to get to downtown Bilbao.

Just a few steps from the Plaza de los Fueros in downtown Gernika, the Boliña is a pleasant and modern base camp for exploring the Vizcayan coast. Rooms are simple and small but comfy, and the food is a great value.

On the main beachfront promenade overlooking La Concha, this stately hotel has a regal, old-world feel and Belle Époque aesthetic that starts in the marble lobby, with its shimmering chandeliers, and continues throughout the hotel. The gentlemanly bar and restaurant face the bay through large windows, and the classically styled, pastel-tone guest rooms with views west out to sea are some of the best in town. Seventh-floor rooms have private terraces with superb vistas.

A favorite with anglers and hunters, this cheery inn across from the confluence of the Urbión and Najerilla Rivers has spartan wood-trimmed bedrooms with red-checked bedspreads and an excellent restaurant specializing in caparrones (kidney bean stew) and game dishes made from venison, wild boar, partridge, woodcock, and the like. The hotel has various lodging and meal options, and friendly staff can advise on area hikes.

This modern four-star is tucked away on a relatively quiet pedestrian street yet steps from the action on Plaza del Castillo and Calle Estafeta. It's popular with business travelers, thanks to reliable Wi-Fi, a gym, and a sauna. There are suites and triple rooms for families.

Belle Époque grace and opulence are embodied here, in San Sebastián's most legendary hotel looming over the Urumea. It has hosted countless movie stars and dignitaries since opening in 1912, and its salons are appointed with Oriental rugs, potted palms, and Carrara marble columns. The newly renovated guest rooms—many with river views—feature elegant (if perhaps gaudy to some) design accents like tufted headboards and fuchsia wall art. Marble bathrooms add more pampering with deep-soak tubs and separate showers. A piano player teases out an eclectic medley of tunes nightly at the bar.

Frank Gehry's post-Guggenheim hotel looks like an extraterrestrial colony in the middle of one of La Rioja's oldest vineyards. The jumble of pink-and-gold titanium sheets curves around rectilinear sandstone surfaces; inside, guest rooms are streamlined and appointed with designer furniture. Amenities include the winery visitor center, historic cellars, and horseback riding, and golf. There's also a spa featuring grape-based emollients and two award-winning restaurants.

Between the Guggenheim and the Museo de Bellas Artes, this quiet boutique hotel with floor-to-ceiling windows and impeccable service is the sister property of the Domine just up the street. Its Y2K aesthetic—picture all-white rooms, crimson throw pillows, and white leather sofas with polished steel legs—ironically feels current once again.

A small, attentively run hotel near the Atxuri station, this modest pensión has modern rooms with views of some of Bilbao's oldest architecture. The owner and manager offer helpful advice about Bilbao.

The sharp angles and bright colors of this architecturally avant-garde luxury hotel cut a striking contrast to the vernacular architecture surrounding it, and the location—12 km (7 miles) west of Laguardia in the sleepy village of Villabuena de Álava—makes it a good base for exploring La Rioja Alavesa and neighboring Rioja Alta. On the grounds are an upscale restaurant, wine cellar, and rooftop bar and gym.

At the foot of Monte Ogoño in the upper part of the charming and colorful fishing and seafaring village, this amicable inn rents simple, cheery rooms and serves house-cooked Basque cuisine in its diminutive dining room. Rooms with wood beams overhead look directly down into the deepwater harbor below; fourth-floor rooms have the best views. The hotel is a family enterprise, and the staff is unfailingly helpful.

This quirky, cozy hotel occupies a traditional town house in the Casco Viejo. The beamed ceilings, stone floors, and ethnographical and historical objects (including a portable Spanish Civil War combat confessional) convey a sense of place—a welcome trait in a city where bland name-brand hotels dominate the market.

Brightly lit, with clean Scandi-minimal design, this adorable B&B is steps from Plaza de España. Rooms are open and airy, and the continental breakfast, served in the cozy upstairs lounge, is fresh and varied.