The Open House festival in Bilbao, OPEN Bilbao, returns for its ninth edition with an extensive programme of visits and activities that invite the public to discover the city’s architectural heritage while highlighting new ways of understanding and practising architecture. Taking place from September 29 to October 5, the festival not only explores some of Bilbao’s most emblematic buildings but also highlights alternative approaches to the profession, offering a broader perspective on what architecture can mean today.

The festival is guided by a clear ambition: to bring architecture closer to the people. By promoting an open, multidirectional, and honest dialogue, OPEN Bilbao seeks to take architecture off its pedestal and reconnect it with the daily lives of those it serves. In this spirit, the programme encourages collective reflection on both heritage and the future—understanding architecture not only as a legacy but as a living, evolving tool for shaping the world we want to inhabit.

In 2025, OPEN Bilbao joins the continent-wide programme of Open House Europe with the shared theme Future Heritage. The theme invites reflection on how architecture connects the past, present, and future of European cities. It emphasises the importance of preserving and reinterpreting architectural heritage in a rapidly changing world, shaped by challenges such as urbanisation, social transformation, and shifting ways of designing and inhabiting spaces. Through the festival’s diverse programme, visitors will encounter contemporary practices that balance tradition and innovation, opening up a dialogue about which elements of the built environment should be preserved and how the decisions we make today will shape the legacy we leave for future generations. With this perspective, the festival broadens the traditional concept of heritage to include not only historical buildings but also contemporary architecture, local knowledge, and emerging ways of designing and inhabiting the city.

At the heart of the festival’s week-long programme are guided tours. 89 buildings and emblematic spaces will open their doors to the public, many of them usually inaccessible. More than 450 volunteers will accompany visitors, sharing their knowledge and enthusiasm while offering new perspectives on the city.

Throughout the week, a full line-up of talks, workshops, panel discussions, and urban tours will complement the main programme. These activities aim to spark dialogue and critical thinking around architecture and urban design, encouraging participants to reflect on the role of architecture in shaping inclusive, resilient, and sustainable cities.

Accessibility and inclusion remain defining commitments of OPEN Bilbao. More than 80% of participating buildings are accessible to people with reduced mobility, and the festival provides specific resources to ensure that everyone can engage fully in the experience.

In search of a language that brings architecture closer to people, the OPEN Bilbao programme promotes open, multidirectional, and honest dialogue. The festival aims to take architecture off its pedestal and bring it back to the street — reconnecting it with the people it serves. In 2025, OPEN Bilbao encourages collective reflection on both heritage and the future — understanding architecture not only as a legacy but as a living, evolving tool for shaping the world we want to inhabit.

We invite all visitors of OPEN Bilbao to participate in the Open Call for Visual Stories—an opportunity to creatively interpret the festival experience and this year’s Open House Europe theme, “Future Heritage”. Submissions can take any visual form, including photography, short film, drawing, or other artistic expressions.