Casco Antiguo de Portugalete

Portugalete is one of the most important municipalities of the so-called Left Side of the estuary, a traditionally industrial and mining area to which Sestao, Barakaldo and Santurtzi also pertain. The town of Portugalete is currently an important industrial and commercial centre that is linked to the Right Side by this impressive piece of iron that is the Colgante bridge (Hanging Bridge). Portugalte's old quarter still retains its medieval flavour and among its most noteworthy features is, for example, Santa Maria church, in the Gothic-Renaissance style, which is situated very near the medieval Tower of Salazar, rebuilt in 1958 after a fire years before and dating back to 1379. The town hall, built in 1884, also stands out with its rectangluar form circled by arch-shaped porticos and wrought iron balconies. The visitor is advised to walk along the quay (El Muelle) until coming to what the locals call "The Point" (La Punta), the work of Evaristo de Churruca and opened in 1887 by Queen Maria Cristina and Alfons XIII.