While Bilbao punctuates the Basque Country, the port city of Castro Urdiales marks the gateway to Cantabria. This coastal crossing borrows limestone reliefs standing proudly several hundred meters above the waves. Mid-ocean, mid-mountain, this journey offers surprising and spectacular landscapes: panoramic balcony balcony course, lighthouse lost in the depths of a maze of woods and cliffs, hermitages, heaths or green meadows …
Santander Airport(Google Map)
3 Hours Before Flight Time
It is impossible to find a single paragraph that defines Cantabria, because Cantabria is many things. Cantabria is green, it is mountain, it is valley, it is gorge, it is fog, it is nature, it is water, it is rain, it is grass. It is made of its people, cattle, customs, festivals and tradition. Cantabria tastes of quesada, sobaos, anchovies, quesucos, cocido and pomace. But Cantabria is also a beach, it is a coast, it is cliffs, it is a port, coastal towns and fishing. Cantabria is elegant like Santander. Cantabria is one of those places that we like about Cantabria.
You will be picked up from the airport (Santander or Bilbao) and
accommodated in your hotel in Somo or Santander. Depending on
the time of arrival to Santander, you will have the opportunity to
enjoy a guided visit to the city. Dinner at the hotel.
During this day you will discover the village of Santillana del Mar,
an historical village of the Middle Ages and one of the nicest
villages in Spain. In Santillana, you will also visit the Neocave in
the Museum of Altamira. After lunch you will visit Comillas, the
only modernist city in Cantabria. You will visit here the « Capricho
de Gaudí », one of the few constructions of Gaudí out of Catalonia.
Dinner at the hotel.
San Vicente de la Barquera is one of the most beautiful fishing
villages in Cantabria. Another must visit in the area is the Cave of
“El Soplao” for its geological value. After this visit, we will stop for
lunch in a nice local restaurant. On our way back to our hotel we
will stop to visit a local gin & spirits company that has been
awarded with several prizes for the quality of their spirits.
You will have the opportunity to take the cable car up to Picos de
Europa in the morning and enjoy the impressive views for the
upper cable-car station. You will also visit the Monastery of Santo
Toribio and the village of Potes, one of the most beautiful villages
in Spain. We will stop for lunch in this lovely village prior
departing back to our hotel.
You will discover Cabarceno Nature Park in the morning. This is one of the largest nature parks in the world with over 1000 animals from the five continents. Lunch in a restaurant in the park. In the afternoon you will visit the village of Liérganes, one of the most beautiful in Cantabria, declared of national historical- artistic interest in 1978.
We will also visit an anchovy factory in the fishing village of Santoña, and after nearby marshes, an important stop for the migratory birds. Visit and walk across a local vineyard. Lunch in local restaurant in the Pasiego Valleys. Scenic drive around the beautiful and authentic Pasiego villages, and visit the largest
Sobaos and Quesadas Factory in the area, Sobaos Joselin.
Discover the city of Bilbao and its history. This is one of the most fascinating cities in north of Spain. You will also enjoy a Tapas tour in Bilbao. Visit the harbour and old town of Castro Urdiales in
the afternoon.
Castro Urdiales is a fishing village located in the limits of Cantabria and the Basque Country. Its gothic church of the XIII century, its old town and its beautiful port area are a worthwhile visit.
Bilbao is one of the most fascinating cities in north of Spain and part of the Basque Country. It is also one of the most visited. You will visit the so-called the Old Quarter (Casco Viejo), a pedestrian precinct, effectively one of the leading tourist and commercial areas of the city. You will also see the
Guggenheim Museum which is by itself a piece of art.
departure
