Car rental at Bilbao : Discover all our stations

Located on the northern coast of Spain, 400 kilometers from Madrid, Bilbao is an iconic Basque city. If you want a great urban getaway, in Bilbao you can enjoy modern art and design at the world-famous Guggenheim Museum or try delicious food at the numerous pintxos bars.

Its coastal location is ideal for exploring the surroundings. Choose a rental vehicle and don't miss anything, including a trip to San Sebastián, a stunning coastal city with a renowned gastronomic scene.

With three stations spread throughout the city, at the airport, at the train station and near the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, you are sure to find the ideal place to rent a car in Bilbao.

Explore downtown Bilbao with our range of cheap car rentals: a Volkswagen Polo or a Seat León are ideal. If you are traveling with a larger group or simply need a bit more space, the 7-seater Seat Alhambra and the 9-seater Mercedes Vito Tourer are perfect.

Europcar Bilbao also specializes in van rentals. In our fleet, you will surely find a rental van to suit your needs.

If you need to rent a car or a van for a day, a week, or more, Europcar Bilbao offers the most flexible car rental available.

On main roads, like in Bilbao, the speed limit is limited to 50 km/h, while on national roads the speed limit is 90 km/h and 120 km/h on highways. In residential areas or near schools, the speed limit drops to 20 km/h.

Due to its size and design, there is a lot of traffic in and around Bilbao. Paid parking applies from Monday to Friday, from 9:00 to 13:30 and from 15:00 to 20:00.

On Saturday it applies from 9:00 to 15:00. It is easier to park in parking lots than on the streets, and there are several large and secure parking lots near the main tourist attractions.

If you are traveling by car, there are several tolls to pay on Spanish roads. You can pay them in cash, credit/debit cards, or through an electronic system called Telepeaje or Via T. Banks and gas stations sell these small transmitters that can be placed on the top of the windshield.

Fifty minutes by car north of Bilbao, you will find San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, an island in the Bay of Biscay. With only a narrow bridge connecting the mainland to the island, a challenging path of 241 steps will take you to its only building: a 10th-century church dedicated to John the Baptist. The setting may seem familiar: it was used in several scenes of Game of Thrones.

A little over an hour east of Bilbao is San Sebastián, the gastronomic capital of the Basque Country. This coastal city is home to Michelin-starred restaurants and traditional pintxos bars. La Concha Beach, with its golden sand, is one of the most beautiful urban coasts in Europe. This diverse and tranquil Basque city is definitely worth a stay of one or two days.

You can also use your rental car to go further and discover the cities of Pamplona (155 kilometers) and Biarritz (144 kilometers) across the border.

An hour's drive south of Bilbao is the Gorbea Natural Park. With over 20,000 hectares, it is the largest natural park in the Basque Country. Created around Mount Gorbea, with its summit at 1482 meters altitude, it is the ideal place for walking, hiking, and mountaineering. Among the numerous caves that can be visited in Gorbea, Mairuelegorreta is the most popular. The Gujuli waterfall and the magical forest of Otzarreta are also worth the trip.

With one of the most iconic buildings in the world, Canadian architect Frank Gehry and his Guggenheim Museum put Bilbao on the map. Designed with the city's shipbuilding influences in mind, the brilliant titanium assemblies seem real, moving like a fish. Its exterior is also a playground for other artists: look for "Puppy" by Jeff Koons and "Maman" the giant spider sculpture by Louise Bourgeois. Most of the world's most impressive temporary exhibitions have been here, and the main collection remains important, including works by Basquiat, Rothko, and Rauschenberg. The use of audio guides available in several languages is definitely recommended.

With architecture influenced by its industrial heritage, Bilbao's unique landscape really took off with the arrival of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. Since then, it has attracted lovers of modern and contemporary art from all over the world and remains largely an artistic city with its Museum of Fine Arts featuring a wide range of Basque art, Pop Art, and classical art. Additionally, Euskal Museoa, the Basque Museum of Bilbao, offers the most comprehensive collection of Basque history in Spain, ideal for learning more about the region. Apart from art, there is much more to see, such as Las Siete Calles or the Old Town, the oldest neighborhood in the city, and the Bilbao Bullfighting Museum, about Spain's bullfighting past. Don't forget to enjoy several pintxos dishes in Plaza Nueva, the main square of Bilbao.

We are proud to be the European leader in car rental. For more information about the experience of renting a vehicle with Europcar, visit our dedicated car rental page.