The Bilbao Abraabra
is Spanish for a small bay. is a

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

of the

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay ( ) is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Point Penmarc'h to the Spanish border, and along the northern coast of Spain, extending westward ...

, in the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, that is located at the mouth of the

Estuary of Bilbao The Estuary of Bilbao ( Spanish: ''Ría de Bilbao'' / Basque: ''Bilboko Itsasadarra'') lies at the common mouth of the rivers Nervion, Ibaizabal and Cadagua, which drain most of Biscay and part of Alava in the Basque Country, Spain. In this i ...

, in

Biscay Biscay ( ; ; ), is a province of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community, heir of the ancient Lordship of Biscay, lying on the south shore of the Bay of Biscay, eponymous bay. The capital and largest city is Bilb ...

(

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

). The bay is delimited by the capes of

Punta Galea Punta Galea is a cape (geography), cape in Biscay, Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, that stands in the limit of Getxo and Sopelana. Together with Punta Lucero delimits the area of the Abra bay and the Estuary of Bilbao. Pu ...

to the north and Punta Lucero to the south. The inner part of the bay is enclosed by the docks of the

Port of Bilbao The Port of Bilbao is located on the Bilbao Abra bay, and along the Estuary of Bilbao, in Biscay ( Basque Country). The main facilities are in the Santurtzi and Zierbena municipalities, approximately 15 km (9.3 mi) west of Bilbao. Als ...

and in the outer south shores new docks are being built. The shores of the bay are bordered by the municipalities of

Santurtzi Santurtzi (; ) is a port of Bilbao, port town in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, Spain. It is located in the Bilbao Abra bay, near the mouth of the Nervión river, on it ...

and

Zierbena Zierbena is a town and municipality located in the province of Biscay in the autonomous community of Basque Country, northern Spain. Ferry port The ferry port in Zierbena (which is known to some as Bilbao Ferry Port) has two departures and arr ...

to the south and

Getxo Getxo () (Spanish: ''Guecho'') is a town located in the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, in Spain. It is part of Greater Bilbao, and has 75,430 inhabitants (2023). Getxo ...

to the north. The bay has three

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...

es, all in Getxo: ''Las Arenas'', ''Ereaga'' and ''Arrigunaga''.

References

External links

Docks of the port of Bilbao
{{coord missing, Spain Geography of Biscay Bays of Spain Bodies of water of the Basque Country (autonomous community) Estuary of Bilbao Getxo