Santander Things to Do

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En el parque hay una sección dedicada a las aves rapaces y una o dos veces al día hacen una demostración que es muy interesante

The park also offers a section devoted to birds of prey and one or two times a day do a show that is very interesting

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Es un espectáculo ver quince o veinte osos en un recinto muy amplio donde parece que viven en libertad
It is really nice to see fifteen or twenty bears in a wide area where it seems that they live in freedom

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Los grandes espacios , el color verde y los animales hacen pensar ( con buena voluntad ) que uno está en Africa , pero realmente está en Cantabria , disfrutando del Parque de Cabárceno
Large spaces, green lanscapes and the animals suggest (with a good will ) that you are in Africa but really you are in Cantabria, enjoying the Cabárceno Park

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Está a 20 kms de Santander y no es un zológico convencional , es un parque donde viven más de cien especies de animales de los cinco continentes en semi libertad , pues los animales tienen gran amplitud de movimientos en espacios abiertos y muy grandes ( 750 hectáreas )
Originalmente fue una mina de hierro a cielo abierto y destaca el paisaje karstico con la vegetación , siempre verde , que tenemos en Cantabria
El Parque está muy bien cuidado y los animales reciben atenciones muy especiales
Es algo distinto y que si tienes tiempo no debes dejar de verlo , es para los niños y también para disfrutarlo los mayores ( Calcular tres o cuatro horas como mínimo si se hace en coche , pero si quiere hacerlo andando puede llevar bastante más tiempo )


It is 20 kms from Santander and is not a conventional zoo,this park houses over a hundred species of animals from five continents in semi freedom, as the animals have room to move in large spaces in open and very large areas (750 hectares)
Originally it was an iron mine open pit and highlights the karst landscape with vegetation, evergreen, that we have in Cantabria
The park is very well kept and the animals receive special care
It is something different and if you have time you should not fail to see it, is for children and also to enjoy the
not so young (Calculate at least three or four hours if the visit is done by car, but if you want to do this walking it can can take much longer)

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The building on the corner between Casimiro Sainz and Castelar is another work of Gonzalo Bringas. In this case, the architect explores the eclectic tendencies of the early 20th century with a great success. The building hosts private appartments and cannot be visited.

A few blocks further, on Casimiro Sainz, the visitor can find the Headquarters of the Autonomous Government of Cantabria. The building is architecturally uninteresting, but it hosts in its ground floor the Cantabrian Museum of Prehistory. It is small and not very well presented, but it gives an idea of the extremely rich heritage of prehistoric art in Cantabria.

There are talks to replace the Autonomous Government building by a controversial new construction designed by star architect Rafael Moneo, but, as far as I know, the project is still at the stage of discussions.

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The Santander Maritime Club is built on stilts and seems to float on the sea. It is a work of Gonzalo Bringas, who participated also in the plans for the Palacio de la Magdalena. The building is reminiscent of a cruise-liner of the late 20s and 30s, with elegant Art déco lines. Its swanky wood-paneled interiors and its excellent restaurant are unfortunately only accessible to members.

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This sumptuous palace in the best location of the city was offered by the citizens of Santander to King Alfonse XII, who made of it one of favorite summer residences of the royal family.

The palace is an early 20th century work of the architects Gonzalez Riancho and Bringas, who got inspiration from the then trendy English Tudor style and, in particular, from the Palace of the Dukes of Santo Mauro in nearby Las Fraguas, which had itself been conceived by an English architect. Thatr should in particular please Queen Victoria Eugenia, who had English roots.

When the Spanish monarchy fell in the 30s, the property of the building passed to the Municipality, who decided to use it to host the Santander Summer University, now called International University Menéndez Pelayo. Occasionally, it is also used to host weddings.

There are no regular tours for visitors and, unless you have an appointment, all you can do is admire the exterior and the fantastic views over the bay, the cliffs and surrounding islands.

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The Park of the Nature of Cabárceno, 17 km from Santander, occupies the place of an ancient open mine.
There are animals of about one hundred of species in conditional release regime. The park surface is 750 ha.
There is an interesting snake terrarium with some of the most dangerous species.