Museo de la Policía Vasca

About the museum

The Basque Police Museum opened on 17 December 1998 and is located at the Academia Vasca de Policía y Emergencias in Arkaute, Vitoria-Gasteiz. It offers an educational route through the history of the Basque police, using uniforms, objects, vehicles, weapons, audiovisuals and interactive material.

The permanent collection is spread over two floors. The ground floor, devoted to the foral corps and the 1936 Ertzaña, has four rooms: Miñones de Álava, Mikeletes de Gipuzkoa, Forales de Bizkaia and the Ertzaña of 1936, regarded as the first unified foral police force in the Basque Country, which remained active until the dictatorship was established. On the first floor, the local police forces of the historic territories and the Ertzaintza are presented, with their territorial deployment and their functions in different fields.

Among the exhibits are patrol cars, motorcycles, special vehicles, helicopters and water-based intervention vehicles that the Ertzaintza has used throughout its history, as well as uniforms, documents, souvenirs and weapons. There are also video projections, touchscreens and a computerised documentation archive.

Highlights

• Tour of the history of the Basque police, from the miñones and mikeletes to the Ertzaintza
• Room devoted to the 1936 Ertzaña, the first unified foral police force
• Patrol cars, motorbikes, helicopters and special vehicles
• Uniforms, weapons, documents and historical souvenirs
• Touchscreens, projections and 360° virtual tour on the museum’s website

Permanent exhibition

• Historia de la Policía Vasca – Permanent exhibition over two floors with uniforms, vehicles, weapons, audiovisuals and interactive material, from the miñones and mikeletes to the Ertzaintza.

Founded

1998

Operated by

Gobierno Vasco (Academia Vasca de Policía y Emergencias)

Admission & discounts

Admission is free.

Free admission, by appointment.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The museum is adapted for people with reduced mobility.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

Access is by private car only, via the N-104 (km 356), to the Academia Vasca de Policía y Emergencias in Arkaute.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Visitor information and a bookshop with literature related to the police.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit