From Bilbao to Portugalete Viajes Camino de Santiago

Information

This is undoubtedly the most urban stage of the entire Northern route. Mainly because the urban area of Bilbao forms an urban continuum up to the mouth of the River Nervión, which is exactly the stretch we are going to cover in this stage up to Portugalete. So yes, dear pilgrims, today we meet again the Cantabrian Sea!

There are two possible ways to get to Portugalete: the first is the one that marks the official route of the route, which takes us from the exit of Bilbao along the left bank of the Nervión estuary, passing through the towns of Zorrotxa and Barakaldo, to Portugalete. This first option accumulates a total of 19.2 kilometers.

On the other hand, we have the option of doing this stage by an alternative route that runs along the right bank of the Nervión estuary. In this section, we cross the towns of Erandio and Getxo. At the height of Getxo, we cross the estuary and arrive at Portugalete. This option is much shorter, with a total distance of 13.3 kilometers.

To consider

Some pilgrims decide to take the metro line 2 to Portugalete to avoid the urban section. However, we do not recommend this option, as the urban area of Bilbao also has some interesting elements.