Thursday, October 31, 2013 - 16:19 by ce-press
Investment into a new 354m-long pier dedicated to cruise passengers is underway in Bilbao (Getxo). Government investment of E13.8m will ensure that three vessels can moor at the same time once completed, explained Goria Frau, cruise manager Bilbao Port Authority.
On April 16 next year Hurtigruten’s Fram will be the first to call the port with the facility scheduled for completion in May. Calls this year numbered 44 including a first call from Royal Caribbean International’s Adventure of the Seas on November 2 despite poor weather. She will call again next year and in December 2014 Peter Deilmann's Deutchsland will embark passengers for the first time although MSC Cruises and Pullmantur both already embark the Spanish port. Not far from the port is the Vizcaya Transporter Bridge/’Hanging Bridge’ opened in 1893 and declared a Unesco World Heritage site in 2006.
It’s worth taking a gondola or even better walking over the top to see the bridge control room which was in operation until 1999. Just 20 minutes/12km away is Bilbao, a city that has turned itself around in the last two decades. The ‘Guggenheim effect’ has been staggering and the regeneration of a city that was in decline is evident. There is so much to see and do for passengers either by hopping on the regular 20 minute shuttle buses or taking a tour to one of the nearby attractions, such as Gernika, San Sebastian, the Rioja Wine Cellars or Pamplona to see the bulls run.
The Guggenheim Museum designed by Frank Gehry and the surrounding riverside were once the site of warehouses and a shipyard. Now that has all changed and passengers can stroll along the riverbanks, visit the permanent collection, the ‘puppy’ or one of the changing temporary exhibitions. Pintxos are part of this city’s culture and a stroll around the old city stopping off for these exquisitely detailed small bites and a glass of the local wine, txakoli, along the way is a must. For fine dining Nerua at the Guggenheim could be an option or a trip out to the countryside where Eneko Atxa cooks up a culinary storm at his three-Michelin-star restaurant, Azurmendi, an opportunity not to be missed. Groups can be accommodated in pret a porter downstairs where passengers on Azamara Quest were hosted on one of the Azamazing evenings with the help of destination management company, North Incoming Service.
