Spotlight on Basque Country, Spain

Spotlight on Basque Country: What It's Really Like to Live in Bilbao, Spain

Basque Country has a way of surprising people. A few decades ago, Bilbao was an industrial port city, with ships moving goods up and down the Nervión River. Today, it's one of Spain's most walkable, food-obsessed, and quietly confident cities: a place where a 700-year-old Old Town sits a short stroll from the Guggenheim, and where even a simple pintxo at the corner bar is made with Michelin-level care.

In our recent Spotlight on Bilbao webinar, founder Andrew Motiwalla sat down with Asier Perez, our Bilbao Community Manager, to share what it's like to live in the heart of Basque Country with The Good Life Abroad. Here's what they covered.

Meet Asier: As Local as It Gets

Asier was born in Bilbao, and Basque is his first language. After earning a master's in fine arts, he lived in Nantes and Paris, then came home just as the Guggenheim was opening and the city was beginning its transformation from industrial hub to cultural destination. He's spent more than a decade working in Basque tourism and hospitality since, with a particular love for art, architecture, food, and wine.

As Andrew put it, walking through Bilbao with Asier feels like walking with the mayor. He stops every few steps to greet a friend or point out where his father lives. He's also an open-water swimmer who heads into the sea every week, so if you want to know exactly how cold the water is during your stay, he's your person.

How The Good Life Abroad Works in Bilbao

Like all of our destinations, the Bilbao program pairs independent living with a built-in community. You'll have your own vetted apartment designed with adults 55 and older in mind (think walk-in showers, real living space, and an elevator rather than five flights of stairs), plus a calendar of activities that connect you to fellow travelers and to local culture. Asier is there to offer personal recommendations, and every participant is covered by travel medical insurance.

Bilbao is offered in two formats: our Month-Long Signature Program (30 nights) and a Two-Week Short Stay (14 nights).

Why Bilbao? Old and New, Side by Side

For Andrew, Bilbao's appeal is its energy: a city that kept its deep roots while reinventing itself. Asier pointed to the essentials of daily life. The city center is flat and easy to walk. Public transit is excellent, including the metro designed by Sir Norman Foster, which opened in 1995 and was built to connect the city center with the beach. A single transit pass covers the metro, tram, funicular, and even the small public ferry that crosses the river estuary near the famous hanging bridge.

And then there's the food. The Basque Country has one of the highest concentrations of Michelin stars in the world, but as Asier explained, you don't need a reservation to understand why. Food matters here on every corner, even in the supermarket. Basque cuisine tends to use few ingredients, treated with great respect, and very little spice.

Your Home in the Abando Neighborhood

Our apartments are on Calle Ledesma, a lively pedestrian street in Abando, the modern heart of the city. Pintxos bars and restaurants are right downstairs. The Guggenheim and Fine Arts Museum are about a 15-minute walk away, or you can take the scenic route along the river promenade. The Abando metro station is a minute from the door, with an elevator entrance just a few minutes farther, and the airport is roughly 15–20 minutes by taxi.

Choose from studios and one-bedroom apartments, all recently renovated within a historic building. Layouts vary a little, but every apartment shares the same standard: a fully equipped kitchen, dishwasher, washing machine, Wi-Fi, and weekly cleaning. Double-pane windows keep street noise out, and keypad entry at both the building and apartment doors adds peace of mind.

Pintxos, Txakoli, and a Day in Rioja

The included activities offer a wide-angle introduction to Basque Country:

• A day trip to San Sebastián, with time along La Concha Bay and a chance to settle the friendly rivalry over whose pintxos are better

• A pintxos walking tour through Bilbao's Old Town

• A Basque cooking class

• An introduction to Euskera, the Basque language, a unique language unrelated to any other. A few greetings go a long way.

• A day in the Rioja wine region, including the hilltop town of Laguardia, built as a lookout in the 10th century

Asier also introduced Txakoli, a crisp local white wine grown close to the coast. Depending on timing, your Rioja visit may even overlap with the harvest, which means time with winemakers at small family wineries.

Living Bilbao at Your Own Pace

What Andrew emphasized most is that no two experiences look the same. At the start of the program, Asier meets with each participant one-on-one to understand what you'd like from your time. That could mean history, food, art, swimming, or simply settling into a new rhythm. He's available weekdays for questions and recommendations, and is on hand for emergencies.

For history lovers, the town of Guernica is an easy train ride away. Asier suggests continuing along the same line to the coastal towns of Mundaka or Bermeo for lunch. Vitoria-Gasteiz, the Basque capital, with its beautifully preserved medieval center, is about an hour away. Those planning to walk the Camino de Santiago will find that two weeks in Bilbao makes a natural pairing, before or after.

Andrew also shared one of his favorite discoveries: the cuadrilla, a group of lifelong friends who gather for birthdays, celebrations, and often just after work. They move from bar to bar, with one pintxo and a glass of wine at each stop, and someone different picking up the tab. That rhythm, more than any checklist of sights, is what he hopes participants experience.

When to Go

Our Bilbao programs run in spring (April–May) and fall (September–October), which Andrew and Asier both called the best times of year to visit. Daytime highs tend to reach the 70s, with cooler evenings that call for a light jacket. It's comfortable, less crowded than summer, and outside the rainier months of January and February.

Questions from the Audience

Are two-bedroom apartments available? Not in our Bilbao building, which offers studios and one-bedrooms. If you need more space, our Bring Your Own Housing option includes all community activities, Asier's support, and travel medical insurance, and your program coordinator can help you look at nearby options in Abando.

What about gluten-free travelers? Gluten-free is easy in Bilbao, and bars and restaurants are increasingly aware of dietary needs. Vegan and vegetarian options exist too, though they take a little more seeking out. Asier can point you in the right direction.

Is there a live music scene? Yes. Folk, jazz, rock, and everything in between. On many Sunday mornings, the city's public band plays a free open-air concert at the kiosk in the Arenal, next to the Old Town.

Can visitors join me? Guests are welcome to stay in your apartment, but official community activities are reserved for program members. That said, the community quickly creates its own plans through the group WhatsApp chat, and guests are welcome at those.

Ready to Experience Bilbao?

Our first Bilbao programs begin in fall 2027, and 2028 dates are already open. A $495 deposit per person holds your spot. If you cancel 120 days or more before your program begins, your payments are fully refunded and your deposit converts to a credit for a future program that never expires.

🎥 Watch the full webinar to hear directly from Andrew and Asier.

👉 Explore our Bilbao destination page for dates, pricing, and apartment details, or sign up for an upcoming webinar.