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  • DISCOVER GETXO

    Getxo, a unique visit

    • Wellcome to Getxo
    • Getxo Safe Destination
    • How to get to Getxo
    • Tourist Office Getxo
    • Maps and guides
    • Where to sleep
    • Where to eat
    • History of Getxo
    • Visiting around
    • Souvenirs
    • Interactive map
    • Getxo with your dog
    • What do you think of Getxo?
    We recommend you:Where to sleep Where to eat
    Back to homepage:
  • WHAT TO SEE

    Do not miss the Top 5 of Getxo- Discover the tourist spots that conquer our visitors!

    Getxo beaches 20 mitutes to Bilbao
    Bizkaia Bridge
    Algorta Old Port
    Puerto Deportivo Getxo Marina
    Cliffs route
  • WHAT TO DO
    New!
    In Getxo you can enjoy many activities, routes and experiences that we have designed to make your stay a unique one. BOOK ONLINE for your convenience.
    Flysch Bizkaia
    Getxo coast Activities
    Getxo Monuments and Culture
    Getxo active
    Getxo Gastronomic
    Getxo with children
    Shopping in Getxo
  • CRUISES
    We offer all the information necessary to perform the departure or arrival of a cruise from the Port of Bilbao!
    The port of Bilbao
    Directions and parking
    Useful information
    Getxo Taxi Tour 1 hour
    Half a day in Getxo
    Special taxi services
  • SPECIAL OFFERS

    Find out about all the special offers and discounts available to you on your trip to Getxo.

    Getxohotel Promotion
    BBCard discount cardBBCard discount card
    Getxo bono 2023Getxo bono 2023
  • GROUPS
    We offer you all the information you need for your tailored group trip and customised service for companies in organising events and conventions.
    Experiences for groups
    Organizing events Venues
    Receptive Companies
  • Agenda
    Upcoming events:

    Events that you can not miss in Getxo:

    Getxophoto
    Getxo Comic Fair
    GetxoJazz
    Popular Festivities in Getxo
    Agenda: View the full agenda
Home  DISCOVER GETXO  The History of Getxo

The History of Getxo

getxo

The Municipality of Getxo lies 20 kilometres from Bilbao, in a privileged spot because of its beautiful beaches and exceptional cliffs. Getxo officially comprises the Las Arenas, Algorta, Romo, Neguri and Andra Mari districts.

Getxo was erected in the 12th century around the Andra Mari church (located in Andra Mari), thus forming the first urban hub, inhabited almost exclusively by farmers, shepherds, millers and fishermen. These fishermen built their homes in the high part of the tiny port of the Algorta district at the entrance to the estuary, converting this place into a tiny but picturesque spot, frequently visited by tourists today because it retains its seafaring village charm.

The tiny houses and steeply sloping streets, which can only be traversed on foot, jealously maintain its ancient character as a village which, like many others in the Basque Country, was also devoted to the harsh work of seafaring.

The boom in shipping and commerce in the port of Bilbao had direct repercussions on the Algorta district, which slowly flourished. In 1742 the Prince’s Castle was built (currently called La Galea Fort), as a prime site for defending the Bilbao estuary and, above all, the trade routes which departed from our municipality.

But it was in the second half of the 19th century when Getxo had its age of utmost splendour and became a tourist resort, which is today what best defines this town in Bizkaia.

Due to its exceptional setting and its beaches, grand villas began to be built, which initially led Las Arenas to become one of the summer holidaying resorts for the aristocracy and upper middle classes from the inland provinces and also from Bilbao. The birth of the new Areeta district (between 1868 and 1870) represented the municipality’s blossoming, which soon managed to improve its communications. 1893 saw the inauguration of the majestic Hanging Bridge which joins the two banks of the estuary between Portugalete and Getxo, a unique work of engineering and an icon of the Industrial Revolution.

Neguri was born well into the 20th century to become the quintessential luxury residential district.

 

Download:

Heritage routes through Getxo QR Tour brochure

 Further information

Go to Wikipedia
Go to the Getxo Town Hall website

el-txo Txo
grandesvillas Grand Villas
kalimotxo The History of the Kalimotxo

You may also be interested in:

Getxo beaches
The History of the Grand Villas
Bizkaia Bridge, World Heritage
Algorta Old Port
Visiting around

DISCOVER GETXO

  • Wellcome to Getxo
  • Getxo Safe Destination
  • How to get to Getxo
  • Tourist Office Getxo
  • Maps and guides
  • Where to sleep
  • Where to eat
  • History of Getxo
  • Visiting around
  • Souvenirs
  • Interactive map
  • Getxo with your dog
  • What do you think of Getxo?

WHAT TO SEE

  • Bizkaia Bridge
  • Algorta Old Port
  • Puerto Deportivo Getxo Marina
  • Getxo beaches 20 mitutes to Bilbao
  • Cliffs route

WHAT TO DO

  • Getxo Coast Activities
  • Getxo Monuments and Culture
  • Getxo active
  • Getxo Gastronomic
  • Getxo with children
  • Shopping in Getxo

CRUISES

  • The port of Bilbao
  • Directions and parking
  • Useful information
  • Getxo Taxi Tour 1 hour
  • Half a day in Getxo
  • Special taxi services

SPECIAL OFFERS

  • Getxohotel Promotion
  • BBCard discount card

GROUPS

  • Experiences for groups
  • Organizing events Venues
  • Receptive Companies

EVENTS

(+34)94 491 08 00 Playa de Ereaga, s/n. | 48992 Getxo | Tourist information officeturismo@getxo.eus
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