Ordizia Market: a tradition with more than 500 years of history

Since the first mercantile meetings began to be held around the hermitage of San Bartolomé in the 11th-12th centuries, the Ordizia market has been a direct witness to the development of the town itself and numerous anecdotes and events that occurred around it.

One of these events is, without a doubt, the fire that destroyed the town in 1512. As a result of this tragic event, Queen Juana ‘la Loca’ of Castile granted Ordizia “the royal faculty so that it could hold a weekly free market every Wednesday of the year”. It was probably this that gave the market the final push to take hold and continue to this day. With numerous ups and downs in its development, the market was definitively established in the 18th century and the arrival of the train in the 1860s, giving both the market and the municipality a huge boost.

In 1925, in response to numerous needs and requests, the unique concrete structure that still covers the Plaza Mayor was built.

In this way, supported by the weight of its history and tradition, the Ordizia market has become a benchmark for the country’s agricultural products: native fruits, vegetables, Idiazabal cheese and lamb.

Without a visit to the Wednesday Market one cannot say that the very essence of Ordizia has been experienced.

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