Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

Discover the history and maritime industry of this town through the Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum.

This museum keeps alive the history of the Bilbao estuary and its town. Two spaces, sea and land, which have been radically transformed over time. The Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum offers us, through its 23,500 m², a journey through the history of the great Bilbao, in which we will undoubtedly appreciate the impact that the estuary had on the city and its development.

Transformation of the Bilbao Estuary, Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

Since its inauguration on November 20, 2003, the maritime museum has tried to make known the history, culture and tradition that the people of Bizkaia maintain with the sea. To do so, it has used two different but complementary spaces, the inside of the museum and the outside of the museum, a large esplanade in which the Carola crane, the pump house and the old dock of the Euskalduna shipyards take center stage.

Interior space of the Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

The interior space of the museum is divided into 3 permanent spaces/exhibitions that show the evolution of the estuary throughout history and the functions it fulfilled:

-The estuary as a seaport.

-The estuary as a market and factory.

-The estuary as a naval shipyard.

The estuary today, Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum

All of them aimed at promoting the maritime heritage of the Bilbao estuary and its surroundings. As a complement to these 3 spaces, the Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum adds to its collection temporary exhibitions of great value linked to the maritime history of the Basque people.

The bed of the Bilbao estuary: The estuary has facilitated the industrial development of the entire province of Bizkaia, facilitating the exit by sea of the products produced by our industry. A clear example of this is the iron from the forges of Bizkaia or the wool that came from Castile.

Bilbao estuary, Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum, Bilbao estuary

Underwater currents, tides and many other climatological elements were a major headache for the engineers who tried to turn an unnavigable estuary into a great commercial highway.

All the changes made to the riverbed of the Bilbao estuary, their authors and reasons, you will find them in the permanent exhibition of the Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum. Are you up for it?

The navigation of the Bilbao estuary: In this exhibition you will discover all the types of boats that have been used in these waters since the twelfth century. Among all of them we highlight the barges and trawlers as the most popular vessels of our culture and history.

Aerial photo of the Bilbao estuary, Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum

At the same time that the estuary was adapting to the navigation of the vessels, the crews did the same for the new positions that arose, moorers, pilots and a long list of nautical professions in which each member of the crew had to specialize.

Commercial ports: The navigability of the Bilbao estuary created large commercial ports on both banks. On the one hand, in the middle of the capital of Bizkaia, the port of Arenal and on the other hand, in the last stretch of the estuary before its exit to the sea, the port of Portugalete.

Shipbuilding: Both banks of the estuary served since the thirteenth century as a settlement of wooden shipyards, also called riverside shipyards. These shipyards were the basis for the steel shipyards that occupied a large part of the coast of Biscay during the following years. Wood was replaced by iron and sails by steam engines, giving way to more stable, more precise and faster vessels.

Shipyard, Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

If you want to observe and enjoy the traditional riverside shipyards, we recommend a visit to Albaola and its project for the reconstruction of the Nao San Juan.

From TurismoVasco.com we want to highlight the effort of the Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum to make the visit as enjoyable as possible for the little ones of the house. For this, the museum has PlayMovil dioramas in each of the pieces of its permanent collection, showing the museum in a didactic and fun way. These dioramas are complemented by small games scattered throughout its 3,500 m². A nice example of this is the panel shown below where you can learn how to tie knots.

A fun and educational visit, Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum.

Outdoor space of the Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

The Euskalduna Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Company, better known as Euskalduna Shipyards, was created in 1990 as a pioneering center for civil shipbuilding in the Basque Country.

Euskalduna Shipyards Dock, Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

In 1984 the company announced its closure, which materialized in 1985, thus closing a golden age of the Basque shipbuilding industry.

The Euskalduna shipyards have closed their doors, but their history lives on in the same location where they once stood. The Carola crane, the docks of the Euskalduna Shipyards, the boats, the estuary and all the exterior elements of the Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum are in charge of it.

Vicinay Chains, Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum

The passage of time is evident in each of them, one of the issues that most concern most of its visitors, the only “but” of this great museum of the Basque coast.

Each and every one of these elements together with the estuary of Bilbao make the Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum is not only located in a historic setting but is located in the center of Bilbao. We recommend reading our article on walks in Bilbao to explore and enjoy the entire shore of the estuary.

Interesting facts about the Bilbao Maritime Museum

The Ria de Bilbao Maritime Museum, has our exclusive accreditation “TurismoVasco Tiketa” thanks to its great work to transmit the maritime legacy of the Basque people. If you don’t know it …. what are you waiting for?

TurismoVasco tiketa in the Ría de Bilbao Maritime Museum