Albaola Itsas Kultur Faktoria, Maritime history museum in Pasaia, Spain.

La Factoría Marítima Vasca, also called Albaola Itsas Kultur Faktoria, occupies the former Astilleros Ascorreta building in Pasajes San Pedro. It combines a public museum with a working shipyard where shipwrights build a replica of the 16th-century whaler San Juan using oak from Navarre and firs from the Irati forest. Visitors can also watch the restoration of the Ozentziyo, the last wooden fishing boat from Donostia's port.

The site was a center for shipbuilding in the 16th century, where craftsmen built ocean-going vessels for whaling and trade. This tradition of craftsmanship shapes the place to this day.

The visit includes the exhibition Basque Whalers, on the history of Basque ocean expansion and whaling, told through the transoceanic whaler San Juan. Panels are in Basque, Spanish, French and English, and can be read or heard in about 20 more languages on your own phone. The shipwright's workshop prepares all the wooden pieces of the replica in public view.

The location is easy to reach on foot and sits right by the water where you can watch the work happening. It helps to check beforehand when craftsmen are active so you find the best time to visit.

The replica San Juan measures 28 metres long and 7.5 metres wide. Its hull uses oaks from Navarran forests, grown with branches guided into curved shapes so no joining was needed, and masts come from firs over 35 metres tall from the Irati forest. Tar for caulking was distilled again in Quintanar de la Sierra, Burgos, and hauled to Pasaia on an ox cart.