Street parking in central Bilbao (OTA) costs €1.30 for 1 hour, €3.35 for 2 hours and €6.35 for the 3-hour maximum. In the central area you pay Monday to Friday 9:00–20:00 and Saturday 9:00–14:00; evenings, Sundays and public holidays are free. In the centre, the Arenal car park by the Casco Viejo starts at €2.57 an hour on Parclick. Abando, the district around the museum, is a low-emission zone on weekdays, and foreign cars may need to register before driving in.
Do you need a car in Bilbao? Not for the city: the metro, tram and walking cover the Guggenheim, the Casco Viejo and Abando. A car pays off for San Juan de Gaztelugatxe, the Urdaibai coast, San Sebastián or Rioja Alavesa. Bilbao Airport is about 7 km from the centre (around 10 minutes by road): compare car hire at Bilbao Airport on DiscoverCars, or read our Spain car hire guide.
| Option | Price | Limit | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| OTA street parking, central area | €1.30 for 1 h, €3.35 for 2 h, €6.35 for 3 h | 3 hours | Short stops in Abando and Indautxu |
| OTA, residential area (green sector) | €9.95 for 4 h, €13.60 for 5 h | 5 hours | Longer stays outside the centre |
| Arenal (PARKIA) | From €2.57 for 1 hour | Bookable | Casco Viejo, Plaza Nueva |
| INDIGO Instituto | From €3.29 for 1 hour | Bookable | Central Abando, Gran Vía |
| Street parking outside OTA hours | Free | – | Evenings, Sundays, holidays |
OTA tariff from the Bilbao City Council tariff table; Parclick “from” prices as shown on 30 October 2026.
Bilbao’s regulated street parking is called the OTA. The city is split into an intensive (central) area and a residential area, each with blue sectors for rotation and green sectors where residents with a permit have priority. Visitors can park in both, but within the limits below.
| Time | Price (blue and green sectors) |
|---|---|
| 15 minutes | €0.10 |
| 30 minutes | €0.45 |
| 1 hour | €1.30 |
| 2 hours | €3.35 |
| 3 hours | €6.35 |
| 4 hours | €9.95 (residential area, green sector only) |
| 5 hours | €13.60 (residential area, green sector only) |
| Rule | Central (intensive) area | Residential area |
|---|---|---|
| Paid hours | Mon–Fri 9:00–20:00, Sat 9:00–14:00 | Mon–Fri 9:00–13:30 and 15:00–19:00, no Saturday |
| Maximum stay | 3 hours (blue and green) | Blue 3 hours, green 5 hours |
| Free | Evenings, Saturday afternoons, Sundays, public holidays | Lunchtime, evenings, weekends, public holidays |
The OTA is also not charged on Saturdays in July and August, on August afternoons, on a Saturday that follows a Friday holiday, and from 14:00 on 24 and 31 December. In summer 2026 the August timetable ran in the mornings only. The price rises faster after the first hour, so for anything longer than two hours a garage is usually cheaper. Zero-emission and ECO-label cars get 50 % off for the first two hours.
Bilbao’s low-emission zone covers about 2 km²: the Abando district, bounded by the river and the streets Sabino Arana, Avenida del Ferrocarril, Autonomía, San Francisco and Bailén. That includes the Guggenheim side of the river and the shopping streets around Gran Vía. The Casco Viejo is across the river and outside it. Restrictions apply Monday to Friday, 7:00–20:00, on working days; weekends and public holidays are free. Cameras read number plates.
| Your car | What the city says |
|---|---|
| Spanish label 0, ECO or C | Can enter |
| Spanish label B or no label (A) | May not enter, drive or park in the ZBE on weekdays 7:00–20:00 |
| Foreign car | Classified by its Euro standard; if it counts as low-emission you must register it in the Foreign Vehicles Register before entering |
| Foreign car equivalent to label B | May still drive to a rotation car park inside the ZBE that is part of the system (signed at the entrance) until 31 December 2029, without paperwork |
| Hotel guest in the ZBE | The hotel can request access for a car that would otherwise be restricted |
Source: Bilbao City Council ZBE pages. Check your car’s Euro-standard equivalence on the council’s ZBE website before you go; Spanish press reports fines of €200 for driving in without permission.
| Car park | Address | Price (Parclick) | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arenal Bilbao (PARKIA) | Paseo del Arenal 1 | From €2.57 for 1 hour | Casco Viejo, Plaza Nueva |
| INDIGO Instituto | Alameda de Urquijo 14 | From €3.29 for 1 hour | Central Abando, about 1 km from the Guggenheim |
| Pío Baroja (COPARK) | Plaza Pío Baroja | From €17.96 for 2 hours | Riverside, about 800 m from the Guggenheim |
| COPARK Hospital IMQ-Zorrotzaurre | Julio Urquijo 1 | From €14.96 for 9 hours | A long day, Deusto side |
| AENA Bilbao Airport P2 (long stay) | Bilbao Airport, Loiu | From €27 for 1 day | Flying out |
Lowest “from” prices Parclick showed on 30 October 2026; the total depends on your dates. Distances are straight-line estimates. Arenal is the cheapest base for the old town; Pío Baroja is the closest of these to the Guggenheim, a walk along the river. Instituto and Pío Baroja are inside the Abando low-emission zone, so on weekdays check the ZBE rules before you drive there.
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Compare Bilbao car parks on Parclick →Pre-filled with €2.57 an hour, the Parclick “from” price for the Arenal car park on 30 October 2026. On the street the OTA costs €1.30 for 1 hour but rises steeply (€6.35 for 3 hours), so it is not linear.
The OTA costs €1.30 for 1 hour, €3.35 for 2 hours and €6.35 for 3 hours. In the residential area green sectors you can stay up to 5 hours (€13.60).
Up to 3 hours in the central area, in both blue and green sectors. In the residential area the limit is 3 hours in blue and 5 hours in green sectors.
Outside OTA hours: in the centre after 20:00 on weekdays, from 14:00 on Saturdays, and all day on Sundays and public holidays. Saturdays in July and August and August afternoons are also free.
Not in the central (intensive) area, where the OTA runs from 9:00 to 20:00. The residential area stops between 13:30 and 15:00.
The Pío Baroja car park on the riverside is about 800 m away (from €17.96 for 2 hours on Parclick); for up to 3 hours the OTA is cheaper (€6.35). The museum is inside the Abando low-emission zone, which applies on weekdays 7:00–20:00.
Foreign cars are classified by their Euro standard. Those that count as low-emission must be registered in the city’s Foreign Vehicles Register before entering; those equivalent to label B or worse may not enter on weekdays 7:00–20:00, except to reach a participating rotation car park (until the end of 2029).
Disclosure: Auto Jardim earns a commission from DiscoverCars and Parclick bookings made through our links, at no extra cost to you.
Page last fact-checked on 30 October 2026 against the Bilbao City Council OTA tariff and timetable pages and its low-emission zone pages (bilbao.eus, read via archived copies because the site blocked access that day), local press on the 2026 summer OTA timetable (Orain, 1 July 2026), the Parclick Bilbao listing and DiscoverCars. Rates and rules change; the signs and meters on site are what count.
See also: Parking in Spain (all cities)
