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Guernica, half an hour from Bilbao, may have a familiar ring to many; in a painting named for the town, Pablo Picasso memorialized the bombing by the Germans that took place on its outdoor-market day during the Spanish Civil War. You can shop at the market on Mondays.

Bermeo, a fishing village an hour from Bilbao, has striking architecture and many seafood restaurants, such as Jokin (13 Eupeme Deuna; 011-34-94-68-84-089), with a view of the water.

Mundaka, a smaller village near Bermeo, is renowned for its beaches with long, rolling waves, which attract surfers and sunbathers.

Laguardia, an hour and a half from Bilbao, is a walled, pedestrians-only village that's home to Santa María de los Reyes, a church with a 14th-century stone carving of the saint. Her painted robes are still vivid--a rarity for sculpture that's been exposed to the elements.