Cantabria is known as "Green Spain" with its natural landscapes, caves and over 60 beaches! Picos de Europa National Park was a particularly fabulous find!

1. How to See the Best of Cantabria, Spain in a Long Weekend
monkeysandmountains.com /travel-cantabria-spain
Cantabria is known as “Green Spain” with its natural landscapes, caves and over
60 beaches! Picos de Europa National Park in the Cantabrian Mountains was a
particularly fabulous find!
You could easily spend several weeks traveling around Cantabria, and I highly recommend that you do, but here are
the highlights if you’ve only got a long weekend:
Castro Urdiales
This seaside port on the Bay of Biscay is a modern town but still retains a medieval centre. The gothic style Church
of Santa Maria de la Asunción and the Castle of Santa Ana, which served as a lighthouse in later years, are
especially worth checking out. I also enjoyed walking around the port. In nice weather, watch (or join), local dare
devils as they jump off a bridge into a sheltered enclave. You’ll find more things to do in Castro Urdiales here.
The modern port city of Castro Urdiales still has a medieval centre and overlooks the Bay of Biscay.
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2. Walk a Small Section of the Northern Way of the Camino de Santiago
The Northern Way of St. James is not nearly as popular as the regular Way of Saint James, and that’s a bonus in my
books. On the short 5km section from Castro Urdiales to Guriezo that I walked, I met more goats than people! The
Northern Way clings to the northern shore of Spain and offers spectacular sea views over rugged cliffs! It normally
takes over a month to walk the entire Way of Saint James, so pick a small section to get a glimpse of what you’d be
in for, should you choose to return and walk the entire camino. I also recommend these sections of the Northern Way
in Asturias, and the section between Getaria to Zumaia in Basque Country.
Visit Altamira Museum
The Cave of Altamira is a UNESCO World Heritage Site featuring prehistoric murals. It’s so impressive that it’s often
called the Sistine Chapel of Palaeolithic Art . You can find out more about Altamira from my friend archeologist
Thomas Dawson, who provides his expertise on this special place.
Most visitors, except for a very lucky few, will visit a replica of the Cave of Altamira. At the time of my visit (June
2016), the real cave itself can only be visited on Fridays. It’s done via a lottery where 20 names are randomly drawn.
If you are feeling lucky, you’ll want to go when the museum first opens and let them know you want to be entered into
the lottery. You can increase your chances of being chosen, by going off-season when there aren’t as many people.
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3. Walking a short section of the Northern Way from Castro Urdiales to Guriezo
Check with Alamira Museum before your visit to make sure that the same procedure is still in place so that you won’t
be disappointed.
Wander the Cobblestone Streets of Santillana del Mar
Santillana del Mar, not far from Altamira Cave, is often described as one of the prettiest villages in Spain. It’s also
known as the Town of Three Lies. A rumor perhaps started by other villagers who live in a less picturesque village?
;). So what are the three lies? 1) It’s not a saint (Santo), 2) nor is it flat (llana) and 3), it’s not by the sea (Mar) as
implied by its name.
Don’t let the lies put you off. Santillana del Mar was my favourite village that I visited in all of northern Spain! I loved
walking along the cobblestone streets lined with historic stone buildings and balconies filled with cheery flowers. I
easily could have spent several hours just wandering and soaking up the medieval atmosphere. For pilgrims,
Santillana del Mar is an important stop since the Collegiate Church of Santillana is found there. This Romanesque
monastery turned church is the largest on the Cantabrian coast and home to Saint Juliana’s relics.
Hit the Beach(es)
More than 60 beaches line the Cantabrian coast. You won’t have to look hard to find a beach, now choosing which
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4. Views from the Northern Camino between Castro Urdiales and Guriezo.
ones to visit? That’s another story!
Hike the Camino Lebaniego
I had never heard of the Camino Lebaniego until my visit to Cantabria. That’s in spite of the fact that it has a 500
yearlong pilgrimage history. Unlike the 791 km long Camino del Santiago, the Camino Lebaniego is just 66km long
and is done in 3 stages (a good reason to return to Cantabria for another long weekend!). That doesn’t mean it’s
easy though. It’s rugged mountainous terrain through Picos de Europa National Park in the Cantabrian Mountains. I
just walked a short section of the Camino Lebaniego, but this pilgrimage is calling me back and is at the top of my
Must Hike List!
Explore Picos de Europa National Park in the Cantabrian Mountains
Picos de Europa was my biggest surprise while travelling in northern Spain. I had no idea that such a park existed,
let alone the scale of it! The UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in the Cantabrian Mountains is one of the two first
national parks in Spain, founded in 1918. You can find over 200 spots in the park where mountains peaks are over
2000 metres high! The highest is Torre de Cerredo at 2648 metres.
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5. You get to see how real people live, even when walking a short section of the Northern Way in Cantabria.
Picos de Europa is also home to a variety of protected species that I was surprised to find exist in Spain – like
bearded vultures, Cantabrian brown bears and the Iberian wolves! And keep your eyes peeled for Picos de Europa’s
most representative animal, the Pyrenean Chamois, a type of antelope goat!
Despite that it rained while I was there and cloud covered – a common occurrence since Picos de Europa is just
20km away from the sea, it was still stunning, even when partly covered. I’m taking it as a sign to return when Picos
de Europa will show itself from beneath the clouds.
Picos de Europa is still worth a visit even if hiking mountains isn’t your thing. The drive along the Cares River
through the Garganta Divina Ravine is simply stunning. That’s even truer when viewed from a high vantage point
like the one pictured below which we drove to:
You can also take the Fuente Dé cable car, which takes you up to 1800 metres! I’m sure the views are spectacular,
but all we saw was clouds the day I was there. Still, there are two cafeterias at the top, so you can always try to wait
out the weather.
To best explore Pico de Europa National Park, you’ll need a car. I LOVED this park and can’t wait to come back and
explore. I could easily spend a couple of weeks here alone!
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6. Rock paintings in UNESCO site Altamira Cave
See an Ancient Relic in Santo Toribio Monastery
This Roman Catholic Monastery in the Cantabrian Mountains dates back prior to the 6th century. Perhaps even
more impressive, it’s just one of the five places of Christianity that, together with Rome, Jerusalem, Santiago de
Compostela and Caravaca de la Cruz, has the privilege of perpetual indulgences.(way to cut the amount of
punishment one has to undergo for sins) (Wikipedia). It’s also home to the relic of the left arm of the True Cross.
You can probably see by now, a long weekend in Cantabria is only a small glimpse into
Green Spain. There’s so much to see and do, but it will be enough for you to realize that
you’ll want to come back. Who wants to search the Cantabrian mountains with me for the
Pyrenean Chamois?
Where to Stay in Cantabria:
I stayed in Santander, the capital of Cantabria for one night. It makes a good base for exploring, but I would also
recommend staying in one of the smaller villages. Santillana de Mar or Comillas are good choices. I highly
recommend the boutique hotel Pasada Torres del Milano just a few kilometres away from Comillas and love the
personality of the place. It was one of my favourite stays the entire trip!
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7. Santillana del Mar is often referred to as one of the most beautiful villages in all of Spain!
What to Eat in Cantabria:
It’s no surprise that seafood and fish are daily staples as a result of Cantabria being located right on the coast. Be
sure to try seafood tapas. My foodie friend Lauren also recommends Cantabrian cheesecake (quesada pasiega) for
dessert!
Disclosure: Many thanks to Cantabria Tourism Board, the Spain Tourism Board for the UK and The Travel Mob for
making my visit possible. As always, all opinions expressed are my own.
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8. One of the 60 beaches you can find in Cantabria.
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9. Walking a short section of the Camino Lebaniego.
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10. The village of Cicera was our end point for walking a short section of the Camino Lebaniego.
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11. Looking down at the Cares River in the Garganta Divina Ravine in Picos de Europa National Park.
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12. Fuente Dé cable car takes you up to 1800 metres and offers what I’m assuming are stunning views of
Picos de Europa.
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13. Santo Toribio Monastery is the end point of the Camino Lebaniego.
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15. Definitely try seafood and fish while in Cantabria.
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