The Old Port has always been the heart of Bermeo. Today, the same as yesterday, vessels are sheltered from strong waves there, surrounded by colourful fishermen’s houses and close to the quays on which the freshest fish dishes, cooked with the catch of the day, can be eaten. One of the main attractions of the port is the ‘Tres Cantos’ fountain, the oldest in Biscay, which has been providing fresh water to the people in Bermeo since the 16th century.

Santa Eufemia stands out in the middle of the city's historical centre, next to the port. Rebuilt in Gothic style in the 15th century, the church has the peculiarity of being the third of the Iglesias Juraderas existing in Biscay, together with San Emeterio and San Celedonio in Goikoelexea (Larrabetzu) and the church of Andra Mari in Gernika. In them, the Lords of Biscay reaffirmed their commitment to the fueros of Biscay.

Bermeo’s Old Town still maintains its medieval atmosphere thanks to the humble fishermen’s and artisan’s houses that can be found in it, as well as to imposing buildings that belonged to the nobility at the time. Among the latter, Ercilla Tower is particularly eye-catching. Erected in the 15th century, this solid block was owned by the Ercilla family, who watched the ships enter and leave the town from there. Nowadays, the building accommodates a fishing museum, the Museo del Pescador, where we can learn about local arrantzales, the fishing trade, and many other things related to life at sea.

The cloister and the Church of San Francisco are also steeped in history. Founded under the instructions of Lords of Biscay Count Tello and his wife Juana de Lara in 1357, this was the first friary built in Biscay. Located outside the city walls, the friary has survived a fire and served as a military headquarters, a prison, a courthouse, and even a marketplace. Out of the elements that have been preserved up to the present, the cloister is the most outstanding, having a lovely courtyard bounded by exquisitely decorated columns and statues of friars praying, singing and preaching.

On the highest part of the town, it is worth taking a pause at the Mirador de la Tala, a former lookout post with views over the sea from which weather and maritime conditions were once monitored, and from which the arrival of whales and schools of fish used to be reported. Surrounded by a quiet park, this place offers a picture-postcard seascape of Izaro Island, the harbour, Cape Matxitxako and its lighthouse.

Very close to the town of Bermeo lies one of the gems of the Biscayan coastline: San Juan de Gaztelugatxe. Steeped in maritime tradition, this beautiful island is crowned by a chapel and connected to mainland by 241 steps on which, legend has it, St John the Baptist left his own footprint. The chapel is replete with models of those ships that ask for protection, scuba divers make offerings to the statue of Our Lady of Begoña under its waters, and fishing boats continue making three turns to port and other three to starboard to ask for good health, good weather and a good fishing catch.

Bermeo is, apart from all that, an excellent starting point for a day trip to discover the impressive natural heritage present in the Urdaibai Biosphere Reseve, to admire the wide variety of birds that take rest at the Urdaibai Bird Center during their migrations, to pay a visit to the Assembly House and the Tree–symbols of the Basque freedoms–in Gernika, to ride one of the best left waves in the world in the neighbouring town of Mundaka, to explore Elantxobe and its steep streets, or to trace back our history to prehistoric times in Santimamiñe thanks to its cave paintings.