Air
Bilbao's airport is Aeropuerto Internacional de Bilbao (BIO) and is located 16 km northeast of the city.  Iberia provides frequent connections between here and many major Spanish cities as well as other European cities such as London, Lisbon, Zurich, Milan and Paris.  The trip from the airport to the city by taxi is roughly 30 minutes and costs around 15-18 €.  Bilbao Airport is also linked with the city center by bus and regional train "Euskotren".  Both stations are situated 1 km from Bilbao Central Bus Station "Termibus" with convenient connections by underground and urban bus.  

Train
Bilbao's train stations are Abando Station, Santander Station and Atxuri Station.  Railway providers that offer services to Bilbao are RENFE, FEVE and Euro tren.  Two trains per day run to and from Madrid (travel time: 7 hr. on the afternoon train, 9 hr. on the night train).  Two trains per day run to and from Barcelona (travel time: 9 1/2 hr.), and one train per day goes to and from Galicia (12 hr.).  There are also two night trains per week to and from the Mediterranean Coast: one toward Alicante and Valencia (daily during the summer months) and the other toward Málaga (three times a week in the summer).  For train schedule or online train booking, check out RENFE's website at http://horarios.renfe.es/hir/ingles.html.  If you are coming from France, it may be worth getting a France 'n Spain pass from Eurail which offers unlimited travel throughout France and Spain under a specific time period. 

Bus
Bus companies that service Bilbao include Continental-Auto (+34 902 33 0400 / http://www.continental-auto.es), Grupo ALSA ( +34 902 42 2242/ http://www.alsa.es ), and Transportes PESA ( +34 902 10 1210/ http://www.pesa.net ).

Car
Major roads to Bilbao include A8, A7, A68, the Autovia de Castilla, the Autovia del Norte, and the Autovia del Cantabrico.  Barcelona and Bilbao are less than six hours apart by taking the A2-A68 freeway (613 km).  Bilbao and San Sebastián are an hour apart (100 km); Vitoria and Bilbao, 40 minutes; Bilbao and Pamplona, 80 minutes; Bilbao and Logroño, 80 minutes.  

Boat & Ferry
Bilbao can be reached year round by ferries operated by providers such as P&O Portsmouth and Ferries Golfo de Vizcaya which travel to and from Portsmouth, England.  The trip takes about 24 hours.  

Getting around

Bilbao is a pleasant city to explore on foot.  However, it is also well-organized in terms of public transportation.  The Metro Bilbao (http://www.metrobilbao.com) offers efficient service to destinations throughout the city.  Bilbaobus also offers ample bus transportation covering all major routes, and you can certainly find taxis in every major avenue and street.