BILBAO CATHEDRAL

The Cathedral of Saint James, popularly known as the Bilbao Cathedral, is a Catholic cathedral located in Bilbao, Spain. This is a cathedral dedicated to the apostle St James the great and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The history of this cathedral dates back to the 14th and 15th century when it was built as the city’s main parish church. 

This church was built upon a temple dating back to the Jacobean era of the 1300s when Bilbao was a small fishing hamlet. Although it was built as a church, this was later elevated to a cathedral in 1955 by the Catholic Diocese of Bilbao. Right now, the church boasts different architecture styles, ranging from Gothic to Gothic revival. The facade, bell tower, stone carvings and the bell tower are some of the highlights of the cathedral. Today, this church takes pride in being one of the oldest buildings in Bilbao and continues to attract a lot of tourists. Plan your Europe package and immerse yourself into this magnificent cathedral and it's rich history and architectural splendor.

Highlights

• Attend the daily service to get a spiritual experience and know more about the cathedral and its history.
• Opt for a private guided tour that covers major historical attractions including the Bilbao Cathedral.
• Take the audio guided tour available in different languages to know more about the cathedral and its history.
• Visit the museum of fine arts to know more about the type of artworks in Bilbao dating back to the 19th century.
• Walk through the Parque Casilda Iturrizar- a 100 year old garden loaded with century old trees and birds like ducks and swans.

How To Reach

By Car: The Bilbao Cathedral is located 1.7 kilometres away from the city centre, it will take 5 min via the Colon de Larreategui route.

By Train/ metro: Take a train to San Nicholas station which is 450 metres away from the cathedral. You can reach the cathedral location from the train station with a 7-minute walk

Best Time To Visit

Since the Bilbao Cathedral is open throughout the year, you can plan your visit to the cathedral at any time of the year. 

• The best season to plan your visit will be the summer season from May to August as this is the time when the tourism season is at its best. 
• The best day in the week to plan your visit will be the weekdays as the service does not usually happen on these days and you can explore the place patiently. 
• The best time of the day will be the morning as the crowds are minimal at this time. 

Other Essential Information

• The church is most likely to be crowded during services, so plan your travel accordingly. 
• When the service is going on, please do not disturb by talking but rather observe silence. 
• There is a multilingual audio tour that tourists can make use of to know more about the church. 
• Tourists planning to take the multilingual tour must remember that it is inclusive of the admission fee. 
• Services are held everyday, so plan your visit to the cathedral accordingly. 
• The Cathedral is usually a part of a privately guided history tour that you can be a part of.