A.6 THE TOUR: GETTING TO KNOW THE GALLERIES

We are fortunate to be able to provide specialist guides who are familiar with the structure and the work ongoing in it. They are the visible face of the team working on the restoration project to showcase this unique heritage site.

The system for signing up for guided tours is the same as in previous years: via the website of the municipal council, via the Getxo Tourist Information Office (94 491 08 00) or via our own website. This year we have also opened our own visitor centre on the seafront promenade at Paseo del Marqués de Arriluce e Ibarra, where there is an information point.

Your guide can explain the details of the project and tell you about some of the surprising historical finds at the galleries. However, work is still ongoing so the tour itineraries and explanations change as investigations and restoration work progress. This makes the tour a living experience that should not be missed.

If the times of the guided tours do not suit you, or if they are fully booked and you cannot come back another day, you can visit the site on your own.

To ensure that you do not miss anything we have designed the CULTUR-ID system, to guide you through the history of Punta Begoña and the halls and balconies that make up the complex, i.e. the main hall, the north-west gallery, the south-west gallery (which will be incorporated as soon as the progress of work permits), the garden on top of the structure, the terrace of the south-west gallery and the under-hall area.

The information is organised thematically, so you can take different itineraries depending on what type of content you wish to access.

• The History of the galleries itinerary
• The Punta Begoña Landscape itinerary
• The Scientific Investigation itinerary
• The Restoration Work itinerary

There are also information panels outside the galleries that can help answer any questions about the reasons for the restoration project.

These itineraries are designed so that they can be followed separately or combined. Each panel indicates the other points with which its information is linked. We recommend that you go first to the visitor centre, where the Punta Begoña Galleries staff can explain how to use this system.