Land at Bilbao airport and the biggest fishing port in Biscay is closer than your hotel. Bermeo sits 27 kilometres from the runway and 35 from the city centre, which reverses the usual order of a Basque coast trip.
How far is Bermeo from Bilbao? Bermeo lies 35 kilometres from central Bilbao and 27 from the airport at Loiu, or 84 minutes on Euskotren line E4 from Matiko. Its Gaztelugatxe Centre opens only from 23 June to 30 September, weekdays 10am to 3pm and 4pm to 6pm, and never on Mondays.
Bermeo is the largest fishing port in Bizkaia, at the northern edge of the Urdaibai biosphere reserve.
The distances that reorder a trip
The distance table published by Bermeo town council argues against the standard itinerary, as published by Bermeo itself. The airport at Loiu is 27 kilometres away, closer than central Bilbao at 35, so a first afternoon on the coast is a real option rather than a detour.
The rest of the table sets the wider frame: the cruise terminal at Getxo is 42 kilometres away, the Santurtzi ferry port 46, Donostia 109, Vitoria-Gasteiz 99.5, Biarritz 155 and Iruña 173.
For anyone arriving by air with luggage, the practical question is the transfer rather than the distance, and that is set out in the guide to Bilbao airport to the city centre.
A centre about Gaztelugatxe, open three months a year
Inside the old town, a few metres from the arch of San Juan where the old path to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe began, Bermeo runs the Gaztelugatxe Centre, an interpretation space rather than a collection museum.
Its calendar is narrow. The centre opens, according to Bermeo town council, from 23 June to 30 September, on weekdays from 10am to 3pm and 4pm to 6pm, and on Sundays and public holidays from 10am to 2pm. It closes on Mondays and on 9 September.
The content runs on three lines: the natural values of the monument, from the bird sanctuary on the island of Akatx to the underwater kelp forests and coastal species such as Armeria euskadiensis and the European storm petrel; the beliefs, rites and legends tying the islet to the surrounding towns; and the pressures tourism places on the site.
Enquiries go to +34 94 617 91 77 or gaztelugatxe@bermeo.eus. The access rules for the rock itself, including the free ticket on controlled days and the cap of 1,462 visitors, are covered in the guide to Gaztelugatxe from Bilbao.
Buses that change number with the season
Bermeo has two rail-and-road options from Bilbao. The E4 Euskotren line takes about 84 minutes from Matiko and ends in the town, with times and frequencies in the guide to the Bilbao to Mundaka and Bermeo train.
By road, the town council lists the Bizkaibus lines serving the port, and one connection is renumbered twice a year.
| Line | Route | When it runs |
|---|---|---|
| A3527 | Bermeo - Mungia - Bilbao by motorway | All year |
| A3515 | Bermeo - Amorebieta - Gernika - Bilbao | All year |
| A3528 | Bermeo - Mungia - Derio - Cruces and the university | Academic year |
| A3524 | Bermeo - Bakio | Winter |
| A3517 | Bermeo - Bakio | Summer |
That swap between the A3524 and the A3517 matters for anyone planning the Gaztelugatxe leg: the route is unchanged, the number is not. Customer lines are 946 125 555 for Bizkaibus and 944 333 333 for Euskotren.
Five things that hold the old town together
Everything the council flags as essential sits inside the old town and is walkable without any local transport.
- The Old Port, Portuzarra, the traditional fishing harbour, where the fishermen’s houses keep their medieval layout
- The cloister and church of San Francisco, the oldest convent in Bizkaia, founded on 30 January 1357
- Torre Ercilla, built in the late 15th century and now home to the Fishermen’s Museum
- The arch of San Juan, tied to the legend of three strides between the port and the Gaztelugatxe hermitage
- The watchtower, part of the coastal lookout system the town maintained for centuries
The walls of 1334 and the churches above them
One date explains the shape of the streets. In 1334, while besieging Gaztelugatxe, Alfonso XI ordered Bermeo walled and assigned 2,000 maravedís a year for five years to build it. The gates of that wall are still traceable on foot, and the arch of San Juan is one of them.
Two churches mark the skyline above the port. Santa Eufemia was listed as a historic artistic monument in 1995, and Santa María is among the most significant neoclassical buildings in Bizkaia. The lookout points of Gaztelu and Baztarre completed the control of the harbour mouth alongside the watchtower.
Building the day
- Coming for the Gaztelugatxe Centre → 23 June to 30 September, never a Monday
- Arriving by train → 84 minutes from Matiko, straight into town
- Connecting to Bakio → A3524 in winter, A3517 in summer
- Straight off a flight → 27 kilometres, closer than central Bilbao
- Half a day only → Old Port, San Francisco, Torre Ercilla and the watchtower
- Visiting on a Sunday → the centre shuts at 2pm
Where Bermeo fits in an Urdaibai day
The town works as both an end of the line and an interchange, and that is what makes a loop possible. Southwards the same railway passes Mundaka and Gernika-Lumo, where the Peace Museum is free on Saturday afternoons, as covered in the guide to a Gernika day trip.
Westwards the buses head for Bakio and the Gaztelugatxe access between the two towns. Train out, bus back, and the day closes without repeating a stretch of road or renting anything.
Frequently asked questions about Bermeo
How far is Bermeo from Bilbao airport?
27 kilometres, which is eight fewer than the 35 kilometres to central Bilbao. That makes the fishing port a workable first stop straight off a flight rather than a second-day excursion.
When does the Gaztelugatxe Centre in Bermeo open?
From 23 June to 30 September only. Weekdays it opens 10am to 3pm and 4pm to 6pm, Sundays and public holidays 10am to 2pm, and it closes on Mondays and on 9 September.
How do you get from Bilbao to Bermeo without a car?
Euskotren line E4 takes about 84 minutes from Matiko into the town itself, calling at Zazpikaleak three minutes after departure. By bus, Bizkaibus runs the A3527 by motorway and the A3515 through Amorebieta and Gernika, both ending in the port.
Which bus connects Bermeo with Bakio?
The A3524 in winter and the A3517 in summer, according to Bermeo town council. The route is the same but the line number changes with the season, which catches out anyone planning the Gaztelugatxe connection.
What is there to see in Bermeo?
The Old Port, the cloister of San Francisco founded in 1357, the 15th-century Torre Ercilla housing the Fishermen’s Museum, the arch of San Juan and the watchtower. All of it sits inside the old town.
A fishing port that sits nearer the runway than the city makes a strange first stop, and a better one than it sounds.