Camping Cantabria

Camping sites in Cantabria can be found along the long coastline or in the heart of this green region of Spain. Nautical activities, medieval towns, caves with paintings of our forefathers, and scenic routes await you in this beautiful region of Spain. It's time to find the best camping spot in Cantabria for your vacation.

Cantabria is a northern Spanish autonomous community with the capital city of Santander. In its current Statute of Autonomy, it is referred to as a Comunidad Histórica or historic community. Cantabria is part of Green Spain, which refers to the area of land between the Bay of Biscay and the Cantabrian Mountains that is known for its particularly lush vegetation due to the wet and mild oceanic climate.

Cantabria gained independence from the Romans in 409 and remained so until 574 when the Visigoths established the Duchy of Cantabria here. However, the region was not always geographically identified; during the Middle Ages, a portion of Cantabria was incorporated into Castile, while the remainder belonged to Asturias.

Ason-Aguera

The coastal strip between Castro Urdiales and Laredo is a popular tourist destination, with well-developed infrastructure and urban planning, a plethora of hotel options, and long, lively weekend walks. The most populous beaches are in cities, such as Castrea de Brazomar and La Salvé Laredana. The meeting point of the sea and the cliffs remains a major scenic attraction in the area.

Besaya

The Besaya river valley runs through Cantabria's geographical centre, where the remains of the region's first inhabitants can be found. The proximity of the cave paintings of Altamira and Puente Viesgo demonstrates that the area has always been populated in the literal sense of the term.

Central Costa 

Cantabria's central coast stretches from Miengo, west of Santander, to Comillas. Its beach list is outstanding, not only because of the sheer number of them but also because of their exceptional quality. Usgo, for example, has an appealing rural setting. Others, such as Cóbreces and Mogro, are easily accessible and quiet. Comillas and Suances have a more urban environment and are more popular in the summer.

They're all made of fine golden sand.

Liébana

Liébana is a well-known holiday destination in Cantabria. It has great landscape value and is favoured by a benevolent microclimate because it is surrounded by high mountains. It is a traditional rural tourism destination, appealing for the authentic character that its population centres have managed to preserve. The many hoteliers in the area have managed to stay true to Lebanese traditions.

Nansa Saja

The Saja-Nansa region is known for its high ecological value. It includes the protected areas of the Oyambre Natural Park and the Saja National Reserve, which are located between the coast and the mountain ranges of Escudo de Cabuérniga, Barcena Mayor, Cordel, and Pea Sagra. Nature's exuberance and guaranteed tranquillity reign supreme. The sinuosity of the folds dominates the landscape.

Santander

Santander is a city where you can feel at ease, relax, and enjoy discovering all of its attractions, including its natural beauty, extraordinary gastronomy, the human quality of the people of Santander, a vibrant cultural life, and an abundance of leisure activities.

Trasmiera

This region's coast stretches from Somo, in front of Santander Bay, to Santoa. It is divided into two sections: the first reaches Cape Ajo (the coast's northernmost point), and cliffs with few sandbanks predominate along its route. The second journey takes you from Cape Quejo to the Treto estuary, which has beautiful and extensive beaches.

Pas Valleys

The evergreen basins of the Pas, Pisuea (Carriedo), and Miera rivers perfectly reflect Cantabria's most common stereotype: intricate valleys, pastures that disappear behind the hills of the mountains, and reserved people. Due to the transhumance of its inhabitants, the pasiegos, these three valleys, contiguous and until recently cut off from each other by road, have been connected for centuries precisely through the mountains that divide them. Liérganes, Villacarriedo, and Selaya are the most important population centres in the area. The old part of Liérganes has been designated as a historic-artistic site.

1. Santander

Santander, the region's capital, has a resort-town feel with sprawling beaches, plenty of shopping, good eats, and tourist attractions such as La Magdalena palace and gardens and the medieval gothic cathedral. Explore the historic city centre before unwinding on one of the city's white-sand beaches.

2. Oyambre Nature Reserve

No trip to Santander is complete without a stop at Oyambre Nature Reserve, one of Cantabria's largest dune areas. With beaches, dunes, hills, cliffs, and valleys set against the backdrop of the Picos de Europa mountains, the reserve has some of the best landscapes in the region.

3. Picos de Europa

Picos de Europa, Spain's first national park, has high mountains, deep ravines, and exquisite beauty. You can see the mountains from your car, but for a better view, park and take the Fuentede cable car, which takes you a mile up and provides a birds-eye view.

4. El Capricho de Gaudi

Cantabria has more to offer than just natural beauty. El Capricho de Gaudi in Comillas is a popular tourist attraction in the area. The palace, built by Antonio Gaudi in the nineteenth century, is an architectural marvel that reflects a unique Modernist style that blends Arabesque and neo-Gothic elements and is a must-see tourist stop.

5. Museo de Altamira

Cantabria is well-known for its abundance of caves containing prehistoric drawings. Museo de Altamira is a well-known venue for viewing prehistoric art. Altamira, known as the Sistine Chapel of palaeolithic art, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. After your visit, go to the nearby Cave of El Castillo, which houses the world's oldest cave paintings, which were created more than 40,800 years ago.

1. Go to a beach

Cantabria has more than 220 kilometres of coastline where you can enjoy more than ninety beaches that cater to the various tastes of Cantabria visitors.

2. Tour Mazcuerras

Mazcuerras, ancient Malacoria, is located on the Route of the Foramontanos, ancient Castilian settlers during the Reconquest. Cantabria's 2008 town of the year for its historical, cultural, and environmental values, which we will discover and enjoy on the tour.

3. Walk through Valle

Valle is the capital of Cabuérniga, the municipality that gives the valley its name. Since 2004, the Villa de Valle has been designated as a historic site. The heritage built around the neighbourhoods with their houses and orchards, as well as the harvest with fenced meadows, and the mountain with its pastures, native forests, and repopulation, reflect a vision of what was and still is preserved today, a way of life in perfect symbiosis with nature that is reflected in the rest of the towns of this Cabuérniga Valley.

4. Visit Dunes of Liencres and Costa Quebrada Natural Park

From the point and inlet of Somocuevas, 500 metres from the town of Liencres, you can travel along the coast to the Mogro estuary, where the Pas River flows. La Picota, located nearly 300 metres above sea level, is one of the most iconic viewpoints for taking in a panoramic and area view of the entire area.

5. Surfing

The beaches in the region are regarded as some of the best in Spain for surfers.

Three cheeses with designations of origin are available: Queso de Cantabria, Quesucos de Liébana, and Queso Picón Bejes-Tresviso. Orujo brandy with the Orujo de Liébana Geographical Denomination is another Cantabrian product that is gaining popularity both within and outside of Cantabria. Cantabria's meats and sausages are protected by the distinctive Protected Geographical Indication; they are made from cattle born, raised, and slaughtered in Cantabria, including high mountain breeds such as Tudanca, Monchina, and Pardo-Alpina. In the last century, fish preserves have grown to be one of the region's most important industries. Laredo, Santoa, and Castro Urdiales produce the majority of semi-preserved anchovies, accounting for 80 per cent of national production between the three locations. Its high quality distinguishes it as the best anchovy in the world. Other Cantabrian preserves, such as bonito, tuna, sardines, and other minor varieties, are well-known.

Similarly, Cantabria has a rich confectionery tradition. For centuries, the excellent quality of milk and its derivatives has been the foundation of Cantabrian artisan confectionery, with sweets as exquisite as the " Quesada pasiego " or as universal as the "Sobao pasiego ".

1. The Route of the Foramontanos

The Foramontanos Route represents a watershed moment in Spanish history related to the period of reconquest. This road follows a portion of the route taken by people fleeing the Muslim invasion in the ninth century, who later returned through the mountains to repopulate the Castilian lands.

2. Cave of the Coins

The visitor will be surprised by the true geological treasure that the cave contains during its interior tour, which is made up of spectacular calcareous formations such as columns, coloured lava flows, discs, fine stalactites and stalagmites that give some of its rooms a certain fragility.

3. Palace and gardens of La Magdalena

There are guided tours available, but only in Spanish.

4. Wild visit to Cabárceno Nature Park

Always accompanied by specialised personnel who will explain the Park's philosophy and why it is regarded as one of the best in the world for conservation, research, and education. We are extremely cautious about security throughout the visit, so you cannot exit the vehicle in the bear enclosure.

Fairs and markets are held on various dates throughout the region, and there are seasonal markets as well as weekly markets. In terms of weekly markets, Ampuero has one every Saturday. Every Sunday, there is a market in The Pedrosa of San Roque de Riomiera and in Santiago de Cartes.

1. Children's Day of Cantabria on the first Sunday of June.
2. Cantabrian Wars at the end of August - beginning of September.
3. Battle of Flowers on last Friday of August.
4. Orujo Festival on the second weekend of November.
5. The Vijanera is on the first Sunday of the year.

Camping in Cantabria is ideal because there are so many campsites near the beach. Camping rentals include bungalows, mobile homes, glamping rentals, and pitches.

RV camping spots are available in prime locations such as the beach or the Picos de Europa National Park. Camping pitches are spacious, with a mix of sunny and shaded areas. The basic necessities of water, wastewater, and electrical connections are available.

Have you ever wanted to go camping near the beach? You can do just that in Cantabria by staying at one of the glamping sites that offer safari and lodge tents.

Cantabria holiday parks welcome you to their campsites with swimming pools, entertainment, sports, and events.