The casco viejo distict lies on a flat riverside location, but the area around it is very hilly which explains why the city expanded over the river. To get up to the Begona area behind involves a long climb up these steps, that go on a good distance past where you can see here. Actually there are two alternatives - the Metro station nearby has a lift to the top of the stairs if you have a ticket and the ascensor behind San Nicolas church takes you up a bit further along for a few cents, although neither are particularly easy to find. These steps have the old cartway beside them, enabling lads on mopeds to make a good deal of racket trying to ascend and attain breakneck speed on descent. A useful tip if you bring a car (not advised) is to park at the top of these steps as there is a fair amount of free parking available, something which definitely cannot be said for the rest of Bilbao. After parking at the top, you have fairly easy access to the casco viejo and hopefully your hotel. Otherwise put your car in an underground garage , if you can find a space, and pay through the nose.