Santander

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• Herr Bert (70%)
  from A Dutchman in Madrid
• Utrecht (30%)
  from http://utrecht.travellerspoint.com

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Introduction

Santander, Banco de Santander

© All Rights Reserved Herr Bert

Santander (website in Spanish) is the capital of Cantabria, in between Asturias and Basque Country. It is located on the central northern coastline and has just over 180.000 inhabitants. The city itself is situated on a peninsula that on one side is bordered by the Cantabrian Sea, which is part of the Atlantic ocean and on the otherside by the Bahia de Santander (Bay of Santander.) The visitor is likely to switch regularly between the Old City that is located near the Cathedral and the Town Hall, and the area that is called Sardinero, where most of the beaches can be found. The parts are connected by the Avenida de la Reina Victoria.

Neighbourhoods

Sights and Activities

Beaches

Santander, Playa de Sardinero

© All Rights Reserved Herr Bert

Santander holds a couple of beautiful beaches. All of them can be found on the eastern side of the peninsuala. The Playa de Sardinero is the most famous, and biggest of them all. Nearby you will find pletty of bars and restaurants, and also the Casino. Besides this beach there are a couple more. The Playa de Peligros, lies on the beautiful Bay of Santander, where the water is a bit calmer then on Sardinero. Along the Camino Peatonal you can find a couple of small beaches, which you don't need to share with a lot of people.

Parque de la Magdelena

The Parque is a small peninsula, that has the Atlantic coast on one side, and the Bahia de Santander on the otherside. On the peninsula you will find the Palacio de la Magdelena, built here for one of the former Kings that liked to reside in Santander. You will also find a little zoo, with some sea lions, seals and penguins. There is also a little train running around the place.

Faro de Cabo Mayor

A little bit out of the town on the Major Cape (Cabo Mayor) stands a lighthouse. It is a nice destination for walk along the Camino Peatonal. (which starts are the end of Sardinero beach. go up the steps on the right of Cafetaria Corona.) The lighthouse now serves as an artmuseum. From the lighthouse a path leads to the actual cape. From here you have some nice views towards Santander, the cliffs and to the Atlantic Ocean.

Cathedral

Santander, Cathedral

© All Rights Reserved Herr Bert

The Cathedral of Santander are two churches on top op eachother. First you will find the entrance to the Church, and when you climb the stairs on the rightside of the Church entrance you go to the very nice courtyard, that grants you access to the Cathedral.

Museum of Prehistory and Archaeology

The museum of Prehistory and Archaeology is a museum with some highlights, including Roman finds from and around Santander, and copies of Prehistoric art, as it can be found in the many caves in the region.

Maritime museum

As the name suggest it is a museum about all the things connected to the sea. It also includes an aquarium.

Events and Festivals

Weather

Summers are usually quite warm and sunny though this area sees more rain in summer compared to most of Spain. Temperatures from June to September are generally averaging around 26 degrees Celsius during the day and around 16 degrees at night. Winters last from December to March with days of around 10 to 13 degrees and nights between 6 and 9 degrees. Most of the rain falls during the wintermonths, July and August are the driest months with still around 50mm of rain.

Getting There

Santander, Faro de Cabo Mayor

© All Rights Reserved Herr Bert

By Plane

Santander Airport serves a number of European destinations, including Brussels - South, Dublin, Frankfurt-Hahn, London Stansted, Bergamo (near Milan), Weeze (near Düsseldorf and Rome with Ryanair. Ryanair also has a couple of inland flights to Madrid, Alicante and Reus (in between Barcelona and Valencia. Iberia serves domestic destinations including Madrid, Málaga, Seville, Valencia and the Canary Islands of Tenerife and Gran Canaria.

From the airport there are Alsa busses that take you to the bus station, which is in front of the train station in 10 minutes. The bus stop is on the rightside, when you leave the airport. A ride costs 2 euros, and busses run approximately every 10 to 15 minutes. The same is true for the other direction.

By Train

RENFE, the Spanish railway company, has trains to Madrid via Avila. There are also trains to Valladolid. FEVE, another railway company, has trains to Oviedo and Bilbao. And makes many stops on the Camino del Norte, one the pilgramroutes to Santiago de Compostela. For more information and timetables, check the website of Renfe.

By Car

The main road in Cantabria is the coastal highway, A-8 that runs from Bilbao in Basque Country to Gijon and beyond. When coming from the south the A-67 is the best choice. It starts near Palencia, as a split from the A-62. When driving into the mountains in the winter, it is more than advisable to have snow chains with you.

By Bus

Eurolines has connections to and from other bigger and smaller European cities, and has a stop in Santander. Other buslines that connect Cantabria with other parts of Spain, are Alsa and Avanza. Frequent buses travel to Madrid (5 hours) and Burgos (3 hours) as well as Bilbao (1,5 hours) and Donostia-San Sebastian (3 hours).

By Boat

Brittany Ferries carries out a direct connection with Plymouth and Portsmouth in the United Kingdom and Santander.

Getting Around

By Car

By Public Transport

By Foot

By Bike

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Budget

Mid-Range

Upscale

Work

Learn

• University of Cantabria

Keep Connected

Internet

Phone

See also International Telephone Calls

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