A Perfect Route To Explore Cantabria By Car In A Few Days
Cantabria is a Spanish autonomous community located in the north of the country. Its small size makes it a perfect destination to travel by car. For this reason, below we recommend a route to discover Cantabria by car from west to east and through the most charming towns. A tour that can last about three days.
Comillas, a place with a lot of history
Comillas is the first stop on our route through Cantabria by car and the one to the west. It is a municipality that hides many charming places, a town that will catch you.
One of its great treasures is El Capricho, a building designed by Antonio Gaudí in the 19th century. Its modernist style combines music and architecture; This results in an innovative and quirky building that looks like something out of a story.
It has a mixture of arabesque designs (for example, in brickwork), Neo-Gothic elements, and tree-shaped designs. The cylindrical tower, decorated with sunflower ceramics, stands out. The window panes are also noteworthy. They are references to music and nature: images of animals playing different instruments.
There are other magnificent buildings in Comillas, such as the Palacio de Sobrellano, the Quiosco de Comillas, the Pontifical University or the cemetery, with its impressive sculpture of El Ángel Exterminador . Also noteworthy are both the beach and the promenade, a perfect place to relax and walk while watching the sea.
Cabezón de la Sal, home to the redwood forest
The second stop on our route through Cantabria by car is about 10 km (12 minutes by car) from Comillas. It is Cabezón de la Sal, a town where you can visit, among others, the Museum of Nature of Cantabria and the Regional Costume and Textile Art. In addition to museums, you will find a recreation of a Cantabrian town and the redwood forest.
The redwoods of Monte Cabezón have been declared a Natural Monument. We recommend you take a walk among these huge and majestic trees. Whether you are a nature lover or not, you cannot miss it!
Bárcena Mayor, a town that looks like something out of a postcard
Bárcena Mayor is half an hour’s drive from Cabezón de la Sal (about 30 km). It is a town where you will see a large number of typical houses of the area belonging to mountain architecture. If you like photography, in this place you can take unforgettable photos thanks to the timeless beauty of its sturdy buildings.
Santillana del Mar and the Altamira cave
The fourth stop on our route is Santillana del Mar. This place is located about 50 km from the previous stop, Bárcena Mayor, a distance that takes 1 hour to travel if we go by car. We recommend you visit the Altamira Museum in the morning and eat in the town to be able to visit it later. Among the places of interest are the Collegiate Church of Santa Juliana, the Tower of Don Borja and the Villa.
As for the Altamira cave, it was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1985. It is a natural cavity in which one of the most important pictorial and artistic cycles of prehistory (specifically, the Paleolithic) is preserved. It has also been declared a National Monument. Studies are being carried out on the impact of visits to the cave, which is why it is not accessible to tourists.
Last stop of the route through Cantabria by car: Santander
Santander is the fifth and last stop on this route through Cantabria by car. It is located half an hour from Santillana and it is a city that hides many treasures ; Depending on the time you have, you can visit one or the other.
However, there are some places that we consider essential and that you cannot miss on your visit to Santander. For example, it is inevitable to visit the Magdalena peninsula, both the park and the palace are places of great beauty.
You also have to walk through the Sardinero, a prominent neighborhood and tourist enclave. And, finally, we advise you to take a walk along Paseo de Pereda and contemplate the bay
This has been a route through Cantabria by car that you can do if you have a few days of vacation. Since the distance between the different stops is so short, you won’t be driving for long. You can make the most of the time to soak up the Cantabrian culture and admire the different landscapes.
