Traditional Shipyard of Ondartxo, Pasaia

Time stops when you go through the doors of Albaola, the traditional shipyard of Ondartxo, Pasaia, where replicas of traditional Basque ships are made, following the original techniques.

The Pasaia Bay divides the sea towns of Pasai San Pedro and Pasai Donibane.

One of the peculiarities of Pasai Donibane is that it only has one street. It is the only space possible between the sea and the mountain. Its old area captivates its visitors with its alleys and underground passages. Here we can find the House Museum of Victor Hugo (He describes the sea village with great charm in his work “Los Pirineos” [The Pyrenees]) and close to it, you can find the original shipyard where the Albaola Association started restoring traditional Basque ships with original techniques.

These facilities became too small, so Albaola had to move its activities to the opposite shore, to Pasai San Pedro, the shipyard in Ondartxo. This traditional shipyard has also been restored just like the jewelry in the process of being restored or constructed that it harbors.

The problem that the Albaola Association currently has is the lack of documentation regarding ship building during the Middle Ages. That is why, instead of keeping the ships in some museum, they throw them out to sea to try to understand the way to control them. It is the ship that teaches the sailor the best way to man it.