A history of Bizkaia

It was no coincidence that the industrialist Horacio Echevarrieta chose Punta Begoña as the site for an imposing building designed to showcase his status and achievements to the early 20th-century bourgeoisie.

Today, Punta Begoña stands overlooking the main maritime gateway to Biscay—a strategic location that has played a key role throughout history:

• when the first communities left the caves to settle in places close to essential resources,
• when a site had to be chosen for one of the forts built to defend Bilbao in the 17th century,
• when the Basque Government needed a place to care for soldiers wounded at the front, and later when the Nationalist side sought a base for the Italian forces.
• and also when Getxo Town Council decided to bring this unique monument back to life, transforming it into a space for creativity, learning and exhibitions.
• And today, as the Punta Begoña Foundation continues to use the latest technology to tell this rich story through virtual recreations and educational docudramas incorporated into the tours, allowing visitors not only to learn about history, but to experience it.