The two best Basque culture events in July 2025, which also take place every year in this same month, are:

  • The Jazz festivals in the three Basque provinces
  • The San Fermin festival in Pamplona

The Vitoria-Gasteiz Jazz Festival is holding its 48th edition this year from July 14th to 19th. It’s the festival that offers the best options on the international jazz scene due to its high level of artistic quality and a more specialized audience. It’s the one I enjoy most in the Basque Country. Meanwhile, the San Sebastian Jazz Festival is the oldest in Spain (since 1966). And this year marks its 60th edition! It’s the most popular due to the variety of venues available, such as theaters, bars, and open-air venues. And it’s the one that most attracts trendy jazz musicians. If you want to hear jazz by the sea, this is an excellent choice. It starts on the same day the Vitoria-Gasteiz festival ends. Bilbao’s is the youngest of the Basque jazz festivals, and therefore the most daring. Here you can learn about the first steps of jazz musicians who will be famous in the future, or not. The program opens on July 3rd and closes on the 7th.

Except for Picasso’s Guernica or the Bilbao Guggenheim Museum, there is no Basque culture event more famous or universal than the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona. Hemingway visited the city and its surroundings for the third time 100 years ago. The most fascinating thing about these festivals is their strong recreational nature and the wide international variety of their fans. And of course, for their most famous activity, the release or running of the bulls. The transfer of the bulls to the bullring is used by young (and not so young) people to demonstrate their courage and physical fitness by running of the bulls. In 2025, you can run the bulls and enjoy the “Fiesta” between July 6th and 14th. You can go to the jazz festival in Bilbao, then to San Fermines, and close your stay in the Basque Country at the jazz festivals in Vitoria-Gasteiz and San Sebastián. Don’t forget to experience the ancient culture and taste exquisite Basque cuisine with Aitor Delgado Tours.

We’re celebrating the 135th anniversary of the annexation of the Anteiglesia de Abando to Bilbao. The town where Sabino Arana, the driving force behind Basque nationalism, was born. This politician was instrumental in the founding of the Basque Nationalist Party. He was its first president in July 130 years ago. He also designed, along with his brother, the ikurriña (Basque flag), which was raised by Ciriaco de Iturri on July 14th at the Arenal in Bilbao. This party has governed the Basque Country for the longest time since the establishment of the Autonomous Communities in Spain. On July 11th, 1920, 105 years ago, Eugenia de Montijo died in Madrid. She was the wife of Napoleon III and Empress consort from 1853 to 1871. Her mother was descended from Basque nobility. Her music teacher, the Basque Sebastian Iradier, composed a habanera that Bizet partially copied for his aria “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle” in the opera Carmen. Some say it was Eugenia who suggested Bizet use Iradier’s music to enhance his work.

And you? When are you going to begin your journey through Basque music and culture? I’ll show you the best Basque culture activities in July 2025 that might inspire you to take your Basque cultural trip:

Basque culture events in Vitoria-Gasteiz and Álava

  • A story of Judith and Holofernes. Exhibition of Peeter Sion (Antwerp, Belgium, 1624 – 1695), Flemish Baroque painter. Museum of Fine Arts of Alava. From February 20th to September 14th.
  • Exhibition “Musikarta. Card Music. Music in Playing Cards.” More than 60 cards related to musical themes or content from the 18th to the 21st century. BIBAT Museum. Fournier Playing Card Museum. From March 23rd to October 31st.
  • Asins, Oteiza, and Palazuelo. Giving Shape to the Transcendent. Three pioneering figures challenging the principle of abstraction through diverse and sometimes converging formal choices. Museum of Contemporary Art of the Basque Country – Artium Museoa. Opening March 28th, closing date not yet set.
  • 8th Valdegovía/Gaubea Schubertía. German tenor Christoph Prégardien, mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor, the Trio da Vinci, among others. Five concerts at the Church of San Martín de Bachicabo, the Church of Nuestra Señora de Tuesta, and the Church of El Salvador de Espejo. From July 4th to 26th.
  • Open-air. Municipal Band Concerts. Secret Water Garden. “Effect and Affection” on July 4th; “There Is No Road That Has No End” on July 11th; and “Jazz in the Garden” on July 18th.
  • Street-level wineries 2.0. Set in the 18th century. Various activities: film screening, wine tasting in the Plaza de la Paz, & from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m., winery stands open with music, food, & wine. Labastida. July 5th.
  • IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz. 100 slots will be awarded for the 2025 IRONMAN World Championships. A triathlon recognized by athletes and citizens for over 10 years. July 11th-14th. Official race: July 13th.
  • 48th edition of the Vitoria-Gasteiz Jazz Festival. Concerts at the Mendizorrotza Sports Center, the María de Maeztu Auditorium at the Europa Conference Center, the Falerina Garden, and other venues. From July 14th to 19th.
  • Fair celebrating the patron saint’s day of the Virgen Blanca. Santa Bárbara Plaza. Jewelry, textiles, decorations, gifts, toys, etc. From July 24th to August 9th.

Basque culture activities in Bilbao and Biscay in July 2025

  • in situ: Refik Anadol. Exhibition of the immersive, architectural & multisensory work of Turkish video artist Refik Anadol. Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. From March 7th to October 19th.
  • From Greco to Zuloaga: Masterpieces of Spanish Art. 30 paintings and two representative sculptures. Museum of Fine Arts of Bilbao. From April 1st to September 25th.
  • Helen Frankenthaler: Painting without rules. New ways of abstraction from the 1950s to the first decade of the 21st century. Organized by the Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi (Florence) and the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation (New York). Guggenheim Museum. From April 11th to September 28th.
  • Barbara Kruger exhibition. Where language occupies a central place. First anthological exhibition of the artist in Spain. Guggenheim Museum Bilbao. From June 24th to November 9th.
  • 47th Getxo Jazz International Festival. Muxikebarri – Getxo Art, Culture and Congress Center. From July 3rd to 7th.
  • Masters of Magic. With Jammes Garibo (National Magic Prize winner) and prestigious magic professionals Javi Martín, Nuel Galán, and Marina. Campos Elíseos Theater. July 4th-6th.
  • Dance performances and a parade of giants through the city streets. Plaza Arriaga, San Inazio, Plaza Karmelo (Santutxu)… July 6th, 12th, 14th, 19th, and 26th.
  • 19th Bilbao BBK Live. The most exciting pop and electronic concert festival on the international music scene. Kobetamendi. July 10th-12th.
  • Jennifer Lopez – Up All Night Live 2025. The “ultimate triple threat”: singer, dancer, and actress. Bilbao Exhibition Centre. July 16th.
  • 4th Bilbao Blues Festival. The Kings of Blues, Blackburn Brothers, Delanie Pickering, Terrence Simien, Vanessa Collier, Ray Collin’s Hot Club and Chicago Blues Summer Tour. El Arenal Square. From July 25th to 27th.

Basque culture proposals in San Sebastian and Gipuzkoa in July 2025

  • “Mare Clausum: Whose is the sea? “. Collection of historical pieces, from weapons and banners of naval battles to maps and exotic objects. Basque Maritime Museum From July 5th, 2024 to November 2nd, 2025.
  • Cristobal Balenciaga: Technique, Material, and Form. An exhibition offering an in-depth and educational look at the couturier’s work, influence, and legacy. Cristobal Balenciaga Museum. From March 7th to January 11th, 2026.
  • Temporary Exhibition: Girovago and Rondella. An Italian puppet company with thirty-nine years of experience. Tolosa International Puppet Center. From March 22nd to September 21st.
  • “The Subtleties of a Dialogue” Balenciaga’s first museum exhibition. A selection of dresses designed by Basque couturier Balenciaga and Georgian creative director Demna. Documents from the Balenciaga archive. Cristóbal Balenciaga Museum. From May 23rd to January 11th, 2026.
  • European tour “Agenda 1999”. Andrés Calamaro and his band. Spanish rock. Kursaal Palace. July 2nd.
  • Giacomo Puccini’s opera “Tosca” Love, intrigue, violence, passion, and death. Kursaal Palace. July 13th.
  • Mood Swings, 2024 album. Marcus King Band. 2025 European Tour. Guest artist: Fiend Without A Face. Victoria Eugenia Theatre. July 16th.
  • Bascolombia. The bands Oreka TX and Phonoclórica, respectively, fuse Basque and Colombian music. Chillida Leku Museum grounds. July 19th.
  • 60th Jazzaldia San Sebastian Jazz Festival. Keler Gunea (on the beach), Chillida Leku Museum, Kursaal Auditorium, Victoria Eugenia Theatre, Sal Telmo Museum, and others. July 19th–27th.
  • The Seasons. Malandain Ballet, Biarritz. Blends Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons” with Giovanni Antonio Guido’s “The Four Seasons of the Year.” Victoria Eugenia Theatre. July 31rd – August 3rd.

Basque culture in July 2025 offers a wide variety of experiences. Painting, music, sculpture, local traditions, food and wine culture, magic, dance, fashion, puppetry, and more. Discover our Basque culture through its shows and traditions. You can also join us on the private and personalized tours we design together. For your trip to the land of the Basques, count on Aitor Delgado Tours.

June 3, 2025