19 Sights in Santander, Spain (with Map and Images)

Legend

Churches & Art
Nature
Water & Wind
Historical
Heritage & Space
Tourism
Paid Tours & Activities

Welcome to your journey through the most beautiful sights in Santander, Spain! Whether you want to discover the city's historical treasures or experience its modern highlights, you'll find everything your heart desires here. Be inspired by our selection and plan your unforgettable adventure in Santander. Dive into the diversity of this fascinating city and discover everything it has to offer.

Sightseeing Tours in SantanderActivities in Santander

1. Monumento al Cántabro

Show sight on map
Monumento al Cántabro Alcides Pinto / GFDL

The Cantabri or Ancient Cantabrians, were a pre-Roman people and large tribal federation that lived in the northern coastal region of ancient Iberia in the second half of the first millennium BC. These peoples and their territories were incorporated into the Roman Province of Hispania Tarraconensis in 19 BC, following the Cantabrian Wars.

Wikipedia: Cantabri (EN)

2. Estatua del cardenal Ángel Herrera Oria

Show sight on map
Estatua del cardenal Ángel Herrera Oria

Ángel Herrera Oria was a Spanish journalist and Roman Catholic politician and later a cardinal. He established the Instituto Social León XIII to promote the social doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church and named it in honor of Pope Paul VI who elevated him to the rank of cardinal in 1965.

Wikipedia: Ángel Herrera Oria (EN)

3. Museo de Prehistoria y Arqueología de Cantabria

Show sight on map

The Museum of Prehistory and Archeology of Cantabria (MUPAC) is a museum specialized in prehistoric archeology and also has collections of the ancient and medieval world. It is located in the city of Santander, in Cantabria (Spain).

Wikipedia: Museo de Prehistoria y Arqueología de Cantabria (ES)

4. Palacio de la Magdalena

Show sight on map

The Palacio de la Magdalena is a palace in Santander (Cantabria), Spain. Its construction was financed by popular subscription and given to the Spanish royal family for use as a summer residence. It was built by architects Javier González Riancho and Gonzalo Bringas Vega between 1909 and 1911. The palace is located at the Magdalena Peninsula in the place where the old Fort of San Salvador de Hano was, which protected the entrance to the bay. Since 1932, it hosts the summer courses of the Menéndez Pelayo International University. In 1977, the City Council of Santander bought back the palace and the peninsula.

Wikipedia: Palacio de la Magdalena (EN)

5. Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria

Show sight on map
Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria

The Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria (PFC) is an emblematic theatre in the city of Santander, in Cantabria (Spain). The building is located in front of the bay of Santander and its extensive facilities and technical infrastructure also allow the holding of congresses, meetings and conventions of any kind. With a multidisciplinary vocation, this cultural centre offers a continuous artistic programme throughout the year, attracting relevant personalities from the scene, both national and international.

Wikipedia: Palacio de Festivales de Cantabria (ES)

6. Jardines de José María Pereda

Show sight on map

The Pereda Gardens is a public park in the city of Santander, in Cantabria, Spain. They are located on land reclaimed from the sea that was used as a port dock in 1805 and was officially inaugurated in 1905 coinciding with the celebration of the Arts and Industries Exhibition. It is a very busy space due to its centrality and proximity to the promenade, as well as the Botín Centre.

Wikipedia: Jardines de Pereda (ES)

7. Biblioteca de Menéndez Pelayo

Show sight on map

The Marcelino Menéndez Pelayo Library and House-Museum is located in the city of Santander, in Cantabria, Spain. The library of around 42,000 volumes belonged to the famous writer during his lifetime, passing on his death to the Santander City Council by testamentary decision.

Wikipedia: Biblioteca y casa-museo de Menéndez Pelayo (ES)

8. Iglesia de la Anunciación

Show sight on map
Iglesia de la Anunciación

The Church of the Annunciation or of the Society of Jesus of Santander, was declared an Asset of Cultural Interest on November 11, 1992. It is the best example of Renaissance architecture in Cantabria, an architectural style that is scarcely established in the community. It is located on Juan de Herrera Street, near the Plaza Porticada and the cathedral.

Wikipedia: Iglesia de la Anunciación (Santander) (ES)

9. Palacio de Riva-Herrera

Show sight on map

The Riva-Herrera or Pronillo Palace is located in the Pronillo neighborhood of the city of Santander, Cantabria (Spain). The complex composed of the tower, the walls and the monumental complex of the noble house has been declared an Asset of Cultural Interest. The enclosure, of about 2000 square meters, has the original building, a tower from the Middle Ages called "Torre de Pronillo" to which in the sixteenth century a house with a distinguished tower, manor house, chapel, parade ground and a portal with a sundial was attached. It is the oldest civil construction in the city.

Wikipedia: Palacio de Riva-Herrera (ES)

10. Panteón del Inglés

Show sight on map

The Pantheon of El Inglés is a monument located in the Santander town of Cueto, a few meters from the coast that bathes the Cantabrian Sea, between the Devil's Bridge and the beach of El Bocal, near where the Cueto traffic light was located.

Wikipedia: Panteón del Inglés (ES)

11. Iglesia de San Francisco de Asís

Show sight on map

The church of San Francisco is a Catholic, apostolic and Roman temple, eclecticist, located in the Cantabrian city of Santander; it stands at number 9 of Calle de los Escalantes. It is the work of the Santander architect Javier González Riancho, one of the most prestigious architects in Cantabria, who designed it in the mid-twentieth century after winning the 1940 design competition, being inaugurated in 1953. It belongs to the bishopric of Santander, and is included in the lists of the artistic-religious heritage of Cantabria.

Wikipedia: Iglesia de San Francisco (Santander) (ES)

12. Faro de la Punta de la Cerda

Show sight on map

The Punta de la Cerda beacon, also known as the Punta de la Cerda lighthouse, the Cerda lighthouse or the Argolla lighthouse because it is close to a mooring where boats with difficulties arrived, is located in the city of Santander, on the Magdalena peninsula. It receives its name because the Santa Cruz de la Cerda battery was located there, intended to protect the access to the bay of Santander from the enemies.

Wikipedia: Baliza de la Punta de la Cerda (ES)

13. Naves de Gamazo

Show sight on map

Las Naves de Gamazo, located in the city of Santander, is a contemporary art centre dependent on the ENAIRE Foundation, an entity under the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (MITMA). This facility is conceived as the first permanent headquarters of the ENAIRE Collection of Contemporary Art, occupying a space of approximately 1,000 square metres and seeking to offer a flexible environment for various exhibitions and cultural projects.

Wikipedia: Naves de Gamazo (ES)

14. Palacete del Embarcadero

Show sight on map
Palacete del Embarcadero

The Palacete del Embarcadero is a building in the city of Santander, in Cantabria (Spain). The Palacete del Embarcadero is located on the promenade, next to the promenade and gardens of Pereda. Designed by Javier González de Riancho, with a portico facing the sea and angular turrets, it is a building designed in 1920 and completed in 1932. It functioned as a passenger station, later used as a barracks for the Armed Police, and since it was reopened in 1985, it has served as an exhibition and conference hall. It is owned by the Port Authority, being one of the spaces enabled by the port of Santander to promote and disseminate maritime-port culture and heritage. It is dedicated to both its own exhibitions and traveling exhibitions.

Wikipedia: Palacete del Embarcadero (ES), Website

15. Castillo de Corbanera

Show sight on map

Corbanera Castle is a military fortification built in 1874 in the area of Corbanera, La Maruca, in Monte. It was the main defensive element of the line of walls, fortifications and batteries built to protect the city from possible Carlist attacks during the Third Carlist War (1872-1876). It is a monument declared an Asset of Cultural Interest.

Wikipedia: Castillo de Corbanera (ES)

16. Ermita de la Virgen del Mar

Show sight on map

The hermitage of the Virgen del Mar is a building located on the island of the Virgen del Mar, in San Román de la Llanilla, municipality of Santander. It is dedicated to the patron saint of Santander, Virgen del Mar. Its location next to the sea has meant that it has been partially demolished during storms on several occasions. Perhaps its greatest destruction was at the end of the seventeenth century.

Wikipedia: Ermita de la Virgen del Mar (Santander) (ES)

17. Molino de Aldama

Show sight on map

The Aldama mill was an old tidal mill used to grind cereal, of which only a part remains, which is used as a bridge over the San Pedro del Mar estuary, mouth of the Tejona stream in the neighborhood of La Maruca in Monte, Santander, capital of Cantabria (Spain).

Wikipedia: Molino de Aldama (ES)

18. Iglesia de Santa Lucía

Show sight on map

The church of Santa Lucía is an eclectic Catholic church located in the Spanish city of Santander (Cantabria). It dates from the second half of the nineteenth century and has been declared an Asset of Cultural Interest.

Wikipedia: Iglesia de Santa Lucía (Santander) (ES)

19. Jardines del Palacio de la Magdalena

Show sight on map

The Royal Palace of Magdalena is a building located on the Peninsula of La Magdalena, in front of the island of Mouuro, in the city of Santander, and which was built between 1909 and 1911, by popular subscription, to house the Spanish Royal Family . The work of the architects Javier González de Riancho and Gonzalo Bringas, enclava in the place where the former fort of San Salvador de Hano was, which protected the entrance to the bay. It cost 700,000 pesetas of 1912 and was paid by the City Council and a large number of local families who played a laborious micromeceneazgo, such as the 100,000 pesetas of the company El Sardinero or the 1000 pesetas of the Botín family. The financial problems to be able to pay for the work caused the Executive Commission to even buy Christmas lottery to try their luck, without success. He was furnished in 1913, immediately becoming a summer residence of King Alfonso XIII and his family, who regularly occupied him until the proclamation of the Second Republic. In 1914 the stables were projected by González Riancho, which emulates a medieval English town with pointed roofs of pronounced slopes, wooden frames seen, etc.

Wikipedia: Palacio de La Magdalena (ES)

Share

Spread the word! Share this page with your friends and family.

Disclaimer Please be aware of your surroundings and do not enter private property. We are not liable for any damages that occur during the tours.