Plentzia () is a town and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

located in the province of

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 ...

, in the

autonomous community The autonomous communities () are the first-level administrative divisions of Spain, created in accordance with the Spanish Constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy to the nationalities and regions that make up Sp ...

of the Basque Country. The town has 4,459 inhabitants (2023). Plentzia is located 25 km north-east of

Bilbao Bilbao is a city in northern Spain, the largest city in the Provinces of Spain, province of Biscay and in the Basque Country (greater region), Basque Country as a whole. It is also the largest city proper in northern Spain. Bilbao is the List o ...

. It is part of the

Bilbao metropolitan area The Bilbao Metropolitan Area (in Basque language, Basque: ''Bilbo Handia'', in Spanish language, Spanish: ''Área metropolitana de Bilbao'') is the metropolitan area or continuous urban area based around the city of Bilbao, in the Basque Country ...

, as well as being the terminus of the first line of the city's Metro. In addition to the Metro, two BizkaiBus bus routes serve the town, with further destinations served from Urduliz, the next stop on the Metro. Plentzia is approximately 30 min by car from Bilbao and Bilbao airport. Coming from Bilbao, take the BI-634 from Bilbao to Sopelana and then follow the signposts along the BI-2122 to Plentzia. From the airport, take the BI-631 as far as Mungia, and from there the BI-2120 to Plentzia. Plentzia is a resort town with a large beach beside the Plentzia River

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

, in the round, shell-shaped Bay of Plentzia, shared with neighbouring Gorliz and Barrika. The beach is very popular as it is clean and the sea is calm due to the shelter of the bay and the town has many amenities for visitors. Plentzia and its neighbouring municipalities are popular locations for better-off families from Bilbao to buy weekend–holiday homes and during the summer months the town's beach and bars and restaurants become much busier thanks to these residents and other visitors from Bilbao. As in most Basque towns, Plentzia has a number of restaurants and bars ranging from small bars offering '' pintxos'' to restaurants with formal dining. There is also a small Council-run

museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...

telling the town's history and in particular dealing with its history as a merchant marine port. The town also has an indoor municipal Jai Alai Fronton where the traditional Basque sport of pelota is played and competitive matches can often be seen.

History

The origins of Plentzia goes back to the beginning of the 13th century, when the Lord of Vizcaya Lope Díaz II of Haro define the maritime term of the district of Gorliz, focused on whale hunting. However, the villa was not founded until the year 1299 by Diego López V of Haro. It stood in the area coastal Gaminiz, belonging to the community of Gorliz, which would separate the whole which would constitute the town of Plentzia. The original name of the new town was Placencia of Butron or Plasencia of Butron, but with the passage of years the use will short it giving rise to the current "Plencia". The “plencianos” were governed by the jurisdiction of Logroño. Subsequent Lords of Vizcaya and Kings of Castile would confirm the privileges of the town.

Image gallery

Image:Gorlizko badia kamaraz.JPG, The Bay of Plentzia and the beach Image:Plentzia1.JPG, The Plentzia River Image:Plentzia2.JPG, The estuary and the town Image:Plentzia3.JPG, The port

References

External links

Plentzia Town Council

PLENTZIA in the Bernardo Estornés Lasa - Auñamendi Encyclopedia (Euskomedia Fundazioa)
{{authority control Municipalities in Biscay Fishing communities in Spain Populated coastal places in Spain