TL;DR Larrabetzu is a village of ~1,900 people with no conference infrastructure — don’t go there for a tech event. The nearest tech hub is Zamudio/Derio Technology Park [1] (5 km away, Spain’s first tech park, founded 1985). Bilbao (~20 km) hosts the region’s main events: BilboStack (developers, January), Euskal Encounter (LAN/gaming, July), and DOK Summit (AI/data, November). If you’re combining an Azurmendi dinner with a conference, your most realistic targets are Euskal Encounter (Jul 23–26) or DOK Summit (Nov 23–24).
Larrabetzu: no tech events, close to everything
Larrabetzu sits in a rural valley in Bizkaia, 20 km northeast of Bilbao. It has no event venues, no convention spaces, and no record of hosting tech conferences [2]. What it does have is proximity: Zamudio Technology Park — Spain’s first, founded in 1985, home to hundreds of R&D companies — is a 10-minute drive away [1].
Basque Country tech events in 2026
The region’s conference calendar runs through two venues: Palacio Euskalduna in Bilbao and BEC (Bilbao Exhibition Centre) in Barakaldo. Both are ~20–25 km from Larrabetzu by car.
| Event | Date | Venue | Focus | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BilboStack [3] | Jan 31, 2026 (past) | Palacio Euskalduna, Bilbao | Software, cloud, AI, agile — generalist dev | ~900 attendees, 14th ed. |
| BIEMH [4] | Mar 2–6, 2026 (past) | BEC, Barakaldo | Advanced manufacturing, robotics, Industry 4.0 | ~38,000 visitors |
| Energy Tech Summit [5] | Apr 15–16, 2026 (past) | Palacio Euskalduna, Bilbao | Hydrogen, EVs, battery innovation | Industry-focused |
| Technarte [6] | May 15, 2026 (past) | Palacio Euskalduna, Bilbao | Art × technology (designers, researchers) | International, since 2006 |
| Euskal Encounter 34 [7] | Jul 23–26, 2026 | BEC, Barakaldo | LAN party — gaming, modding, demoscene, workshops | ~4,000 participants + free public zone |
| DOK Summit [8] | Nov 23–24, 2026 | Bilbao (TBC) | AI, cybersecurity, DevOps, data economy | 1,100+ professionals (2024 baseline) |
| BIG Conference [9] | Dec 2026 (TBC) | Palacio Euskalduna, Bilbao | Video game industry, indie dev, publishers | Europe-scale industry event |
The two upcoming events worth planning around
Euskal Encounter 34 — Jul 23–26, 2026
One of Europe’s oldest LAN parties [7], running since 1994 [10]. The 2026 edition at BEC Barakaldo has 5,024 participant workstation spots and an Opengune — a free-access public zone with workshops, 3D printing, gaming arenas, and company stands. If you’re visiting Larrabetzu for Azurmendi and want to pair it with a tech-culture event (not a formal conference), this is the best logistical fit: the BEC is 25 km from Larrabetzu, and the event runs all day for four days [7].
DOK Summit — Nov 23–24, 2026
DOK positions itself as Euskadi’s digital-transformation summit, integrating AI, cybersecurity, DevOps, and the data economy into a two-day professional programme [8]. The 2024 edition drew 1,100+ professionals and industry leaders. It also absorbed LibreCon (open-source track), so both open and proprietary stacks are represented [8]. Good fit if your Larrabetzu weekend is in late November.
Zamudio Technology Park: the proximate tech hub
Zamudio/Derio Technology Park [1] is 5 km from Larrabetzu and houses hundreds of R&D and tech companies. The park runs its own events — including an auditorium (225-seat capacity) used for smaller conferences and workshops [1]. There are no major annual public tech conferences anchored there, but it is the physical home of Basque tech industry clusters and Basque Research & Technology Alliance (BRTA) member centres [11].
Ongoing tech community (Bilbao)
If you’re in the area regularly, the Bilbao tech meetup scene includes [12]:
- GDG Bilbao — Google Developer Group, events on Android, cloud, AI
- Bilbao Tech — AI, ML, and data science meetups
- Bilbao Python Meetup — monthly sessions
- TheThingsNetwork Bilbao — IoT and LoRa
All activity is in Bilbao city; none in Larrabetzu [13].
Bottom line
Larrabetzu is not a tech-event destination. Plan any conference attendance around Bilbao, then drive the 20 km back for dinner. The most natural calendar combos for a Larrabetzu weekend are:
- July: Euskal Encounter (Jul 23–26) + Azurmendi dinner in the same trip [7]
- November: DOK Summit (Nov 23–24) + Azurmendi dinner the same or prior evening [8]
- January (future planning): BilboStack — the Spanish developer conference benchmark, consistently rated among Spain’s best networking events [3] [14]