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Bilbao is the main city in the northern Basque Country region in Spain and it is accessible by every means of transportation possible. It is at the convergence of several major highways, on the tracks of the Spanish national railway and easily reached by bus. In addition, there is the Bilbao International Airport, which receives flights from all over Spain and many parts of the world.  City of Bilbao located on the world For information on paperwork or visa requirements to enter Spain, check Visa information section.
Bilbao Airport is eight kilometres to the north of Bilbao center and receives many flights a day. Night trains run from Madrid’s Chamartin Station, and there are two trains a day from Barcelona. There are nine buses a day from Madrid, with Continental,
and four buses per day from Barcelona. Taxis are also readily
available. By car, Bilbao is accessible via the A-8/E-80 highway from
France, the E-804/E-90 from Barcelona, and the E-80/E-5 from Madrid. By plane Bilbao has a brand new airport designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. Bilbao International Airport
handles dozens of daily flights from 20 airlines to most destinations
within the country and abroad. It is the main air hub for the Basque
region and services millions of passengers each year. The airlines operating in Bilbao are: Air Lingus
| Air Berlin
| Air Comet
| Air Europa
| Air France
| Air Nostrum
| Alitalia
| Brussels Airlines
| Clickair
| Easyjet
| Futura Internacional | Iberia
| Iberworld
| Lufthansa
| SAS Scandinavian Airlines
| | Spanair | Swiftair | TAP Portugal
| TUIFly
| Vueling Airlines
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By rail
While
trains are not the ideal way to travel around the Basque region, it is
possible to reach Bilbao by direct train from Madrid’s Chamartin
Station.
There are three main RENFE stations in Bilbao:
Abando Station, Santander Station and Atxuri Station. A regional
company called FEVE (tel: +34 94 423 22 66) runs a charming
narrow-gauge train that winds through some lovely countryside between
towns near Bilbao. By bus
Bilbao has an excellent bus service to other cities around Spain and farther afield. The city’s main bus station is the bus terminal Termibus (tel: +34 94 439 5077), which is next door to San Mames exchange station. From Termibus, it’s possible to access RENFE trains, the tramway and San Mames metro station.
Continental Auto (tel: +34 94 427 4200) runs nine daily direct buses to Madrid, from where you can connect to every other city in the country. Alsa Enatcar (tel: +34 902 4222 42) operates long-distance buses between Bilbao and many European cities. Alsa Grupo (tel: +34 902 422 242) runs coaches to many towns in northern Spain.
How to reach the Conference Center From the airport There are mainly three ways to get the city center from the airport: | 1 | There is a bus line from the airport to Gran Via 74 stop from 6:20 AM to 24:00 PM every 20 minutes. It takes around 25 minutes for 1.25 euro. The Palacio Euskalduna conference center is near the mentioned stop as it can be seen in the map below. | | | 2 | There are four major car-rental companies with offices in the terminal, Avis, Europcar, Hertz and National Atesa. Should you rent a car, the most direct driving route into the city center is through one of the two Artxanda tunnels, which lead to the Corredor del Txorrieri
motorway. Once you are on the main motorway, there are plenty of signs
leading the way to Bilbao. The drive should take around 20 minutes. | | 3
| A taxi drive will take 15 minutes for 20-25 euro. | |
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Travelling to Bilbao 
