BILBAO – Spain as the perfect MICE destination for your company
Are you thinking of planning an event for your company, or are you preparing a business trip? Let us help you out by introducing some amazing cities!
As you might have read in our last blog, the upcoming weeks four Spanish cities will be highlighted as the best summer MICE destinations in Spain. Last week it was all about Barcelona, whilst Bilbao is this week’s superstar!
The destinations are selected based on the following criteria and characteristics during summer:
Accessibility
Transportation
Accommodation
Venues
Activities
Bilbao
Discover the treasure of the Basque country: BILBAO. The city is worth a visit for its countless MICE facilities as well as its incredible architecture, fertile landscapes, and sophisticated dining options which can all be found in traditional and modern variants. The guests coming to your event will not only be surprised by the convenience of the city regarding corporate trips, but also by the numerous activities to do in their leisure time.
Bilbao is a great example of urban and economic transformation thanks to the architectural and infrastructure projects that has developed the city to a privileged destination where design is the main topic. Universal architects have set up striking buildings in the city that represents the world’s architecture of the first decades of the 21st century. They are either brand new or built on sites of the past. The most famous one is the masterpiece: The Guggenheim Museum, one of the most admired works of contemporary art. Besides, the city is full of museums, churches, and hotels built in contemporary design, that are perfect additions to your experience.
The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
Furthermore, the city is a cultural paradise where art can be found everywhere. Bilbao is flourished with themed museums, art exhibitions, an ongoing programme of theatre, music, and dance, and has two of Spain’s best art galleries (The Guggenheim Museum & The Fine Arts Museum) where guests can enjoy a spectacular collection of historical, contemporary, and fine arts. Also, in the gastronomic scene art can be found. The city is home to some distinguished restaurants (Zortziko, Azurmendi, and Etxanobe) that offer both traditional- and haute-cuisine plates of art, created by some of the world’s best chefs. The most popular dishes of the city however, are the Pintxos: small dishes that can be eaten hot or cold and are served in almost every bar.
Pintxos
If you are not convinced enough, let us tell you more about the amazing Bilbao. Let’s move on to the more business side of the city.
Bilbao has been the host of many important exhibitions and conferences such as the following:
BIEMH: International Machine Tool exhibition that happens every two years. The last one was in May 2018, which attracted over 42000 visitors, and the next one will be on the 25th – 29th May 2020.
BIME Pro: European fair dedicated to the music and digital industry. It explores new ways of income and collaboration through new technologies, video games, and marketing. A three-day programme full of activities, lectures, networking, special events etc. (25th-27th October 2018)
Rail Live: An exhibition and sponsored conference that will be held together with the Digital Rail Show, the World Metro & Light Rail Congress, and R.A.I.L. It will bring together an all-encompassing rail show with a conference about all that is exciting and innovative in the rail sector. (6th – 7th March 2019)
Not surprising as the city’s facilities are ongoing. Let’s go through them one by one!
Accessibility
Bilbao can be accessed via sea, air, and land. Just 15km. west from the city is the Port of Bilbao, which is the city’s entrance for many ships, cruises, and ferries coming from other parts of Europe or even some from other continents. Also the airport is easily accessible by a direct flight from most European cities, and a one-stop flight from non-European cities. From the airport to the city, it will take you about 20 minutes by bus (Bikzaibus A3247) that services every 20 minutes during summer, or by taxi.
For those who prefer to enter the city by land, there are various roads leading to the city. Paris is just 8 hours away by car, and you will pas some beautiful cities such as; San-Sebastian, Biarritz, or the French Toulouse and Bordeaux. If you come from other parts of Spain, there is a toll road AP-68 that connects Bilbao with the east and south of Spain.
Transportation
Bilbao is excellent for travelling by foot as many destinations are fairly close to one another. Then again, choosing a public or private transportation could save time and have other benefits. Fortunately, Bilbao has a full range of public and private transport services.
There are three forms of public transportation modes available within Bilbao: Underground trains (Metro), local busses (BilboBus), and trams (Euskotran). The Metro covers the main parts of the city, such as the cultural highlights, the beach, and attractive villages within the metropolitan area. The bus will take you to more detailed places in all the city’s districts. It runs at about the same time as the metros (from 6am to 11pm during the week).
Prefer going by private transportation? You can choose to go by taxi, which can be found anywhere in the city at any time of the day. A more convenient option for larger groups is to hire a coach which come in all sizes and styles. As a result, your group will arrive and depart at the same time, meaning that you do not have to worry about your peer’s being late. Contact us for more information and options.
Accommodation
In the past few years, the number of hotels has increased rapidly in Bilbao. To demonstrate, in 2017, 72 hotels were registered while there were only 45 hotel registered in 2009. Bilbao is becoming more and more popular for leisure and business trips, and the city is reacting to this. Not only is growth noticed in numbers, but also in the design. To match the avant-garde transformation of the city, many hotels are fashioned in a modern and unique style, such as; NH Collection Ria de Bilbao, Meliá Bilbao, and Ibis Bilbao Centro.
NH Collection Ria de Bilbao
Looking for a hotel to host a MICE event? The city is home to some large impressive hotels with spacious meeting rooms. The Carlton Bilbao, NH Collection Villa de Bilbao, Silken Indautxu Bilbao all have over 142 bedrooms up to 184, and 5 to 12 meeting rooms. These spaces can be customized as to your wishes with our help.
Hotel Carlton Bilbao – Standard Double
Venues
If you want to impress your guests with your event, Bilbao is the perfect city. As mentioned before, the city is home to many beautiful buildings, such as the Guggenheim and the Fine Arts Museum, which both have exclusive spaces. Furthermore, there are some other unique function spaces that include Euskalduna Conference Centre and Concert Hall, Alhondiga Bilbao, Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, Teatro Arriaga Antzokia, and many more. All spaces come with something special.
The Euskalduna Conference Centre and Concert Hall
The largest conference venue amongst all is the Bilbao Exhibition Centre, with 2,702,330 m2 of space of which 150,000m2 are saved for exhibitions and 18,000m2 for congresses.
Activities
Bilbao is not as hot as many other Spanish cities during Summer. For that reason, adding some outdoor activities to your trip is not exhausting. The city offers various activities with a touch of culture, such as: a gastronomic Pintxos route, discovering the city’s history and gems in a private tour, a Basque cuisine cooking activity, or tasting and making a typical Basque Txakoli.
Especially during summer, we recommend you an outdoor activity in Bilbao with both sea and mountains nearby. Paddle surf around the city and enjoy the beautiful sights, experience deep sea fishing while relaxing on a boat, or join a sailing excursion. Do you prefer the mountains? Take a half or full day to hike and taste the delicious Basque wines in one of the region’s vineyards.
Taxkoli Wine Tour
All in all, Bilbao has pleanty to offer for you next MICE event. Let us design your event and trip! Visit our website for more information, contact us and we will use all our sources to design the best event possible!