The architectonic dream of a car fanatic
Torre Loizaga is a spectacular, reconstructed medieval castle, surrounded by nature, which houses the most important Rolls-Royce collection in Europe.
Visitors can travel through beautiful countryside, surrounded by mountains, until they come to a halt in the district of Galdames, in the province of Vizcaya. There, suddenly an important tower, whose origins date back to the 14th century rises before them. But it holds another surprise: inside, we find the truly impressive Museum of Classic and Old Cars, which has the most complete collection of Rolls-Royce cars on the European continent.
A dream come true
As María López-Tapia de la Vía the person in charge of Communications for Torre Loizaga and niece of its founder states, “this was my uncle’s great dream, his particular fantasy.” Miguel de la Vía, a businessman and collector from Galdames, proposed restoring this ancient defensive stronghold belonging to the Ochoa García de Loyzaga lineage, which at that time had become a ruin.
Del a Vía “started to rebuild the tower in 1985, virtually from scratch,” according to López-Tapia. For decades he continued with this herculean task: “An artisanal labour that led him first to build the four walls and then to build a terrace over the ceiling of the rooms. His idea was to recreate a castle, which is why he added a moat and the ramparts.”
“From his early childhood, De la Vía was a car enthusiast. His business went well. This allowed him “to buy his first Silver Shadow Rolls-Royce. He then acquired a second one, a Silver Cloud. With the third, he decided to make the complete collection of the vehicles produced under the British brand name,” López-Tapia explains. The jewel of the crown was obtaining the six models of the Phantom series, the brand’s most iconic series, which were only produced until 1972. Today, there are only three places in the world where this complete series can be seen and Torre Loizaga is one of them.
The history of the automobile
The tour through the museum’s six halls allows visitors to enjoy some of the great jewels of the car industry. At the same time, it offers an extensive selection showing the evolution in the design of these cars, passing through almost one hundred years of history, from the oldest model, the 1910 Silver Ghost, to a Silver Spur from the nineteen nineties.
The 45 units that make up the Rolls-Royce collection are complemented with around thirty American and European vehicles that show the technological advances and the impact that cars have had on culture and society over the last two centuries. Therefore, as an example, in the first room, nick-named “The Veterans”, we can find the models that competed with Rolls-Royce, such as the Italian Isotta Fraschini, the French Delaunay Belleville and the Spanish Hispano-Suiza. And in the second room, we can find other gems such as a Mercedes 190 SL, a BMW 635 CSI, a Lancia Aprilia or a Porsche 911, which live alongside an imposing Merryweather fire engine from 1939.
A unique setting for celebrations
Since the year 2000, the museum may be visited on Sundays without booking and the rest of the week on request. Additionally, Torre Loizaga, with its beautiful natural surroundings, medieval architecture, extensive gardens filled with 100-year-old olive trees and its interior rooms, which cover over 1,500 m2 , is the ideal setting for holding weddings, gala dinners and other events. This was confirmed by the inauguration dinner of the Guggenheim museum which was held here in 1997, the spectacular great Indian wedding in 2015 or the High Motors Show, which takes place every year.
Surrounded by nature
López-Tapia is very clear that Torre Loizaga is much more than a collection of unique cars. “The county of Las Encartaciones is probably the least known in Vizcaya. Everyone who visits us is surprised that such an incredible place as this is located in the middle of the countryside and just thirty kilometres from Bilbao.”
Today, Torre Loizaga is unanimously renowned as one of the treasures of Basque cultural heritage. Here, the medieval legacy merges with the great symbols of mechanics and progress, managing to make nature, architecture and technology live together in harmony. And all of this thanks to the inspiration of a visionary who knew how to envisage the potential that the ruins had to become a majestic architectonic complex that houses a collection of classic cars to which he devoted his whole life.
