Shopping
As an industrial port, Bilbao has more than enough shopping places to satisfy shopping sprees.  Mercado de La Ribera is Spain's biggest covered market where every kind of fresh produce imaginable and beyond can be bargained over.  For exclusive souvenirs browsing, head to Sofiartx which carries interesting and unique contents of memorabilia such as pen, candles, boxes, lamps, frames and more.  Centro Comercial Max Center is the pioneer shopping center with 150 shops as well as restaurants and a cinema.  Centro Comercial Bidarte is an American-style shopping mall which houses all the well-known shops both domestically and internationally.  Centro Comercial Artea is one of Bilbao's biggest shopping center on the outskirts of the city.  And, of course, the renowned national chain of El Corte Inglés department store also has a branch located in Bilbao.  The exceptional feature is this one houses the country's biggest bowling alley!

Dining
If you decide to dine out of your hotel's restaurants, Casco Viejo is undoubtedly the best place to head for pintxos (tapas) and evening drinking, the best areas being the Plaza Nueva and around the Siete Calles.  Another amicable agglomeration of eateries and bars can be found on Avenida Licenciado Poza as well as the smaller García Rivero off it. The narrow Calle Ledesma, a street back from Gran Vía, is also a locals' favorite area to loiter for after-work snacks and drinks.  In addition to some good restaurants in the Casco Viejo, there are also plenty of options scattered through the New Town and Deusto.  The legendary Basque cuisine is of course not to be missed in Bilbao, but if your taste buds desire something closer to the flavor at home, there is a wide range of international cuisines serving French, Chinese, German, Mexican, BBQ, Turkish, Italian and many more to suit your palates throughout the city.   

Nightlife
The number of pubs in Bilbao may not be as overwhelming as Madrid or Barcelona, but what the city does have are generally steeped in quality.  Abandoning the Casco Viejo after 10 p.m., nightbirds flood the tiny bars along Calle Licenciado Poza—such as Bar Juantxu —to munch on scrumptious pintxos and sip chiquitos (mini glasses of wine or beer).  By midnight, the energy gets pumped up and the action starts to flow to the clubs and strobe-lit discos in the jumping areas of Ripa, Estraunza, and the Galerías Urquijo. The local's favorites are the salsa pub Jaragua at 9 Calle Ibáñez de Bilbao, Caos at 10 Calle Simon Bolívar, Chicago where you can play pool and El Tres at Galerías Urquijo.  For mellow live jazz, Cotton Club at 25 Gregorio de la Revilla which opens until 3 am is the place to go.