El Club · Santillana del Mar

These two historic buildings, examples of traditional civil architecture from the 16th and 17th centuries, are located side by side in the town’s main square. They currently serve as exhibition halls for the Government of Cantabria, where visitors can admire the classic mountain-style architecture on the outside and explore a variety of high-quality temporary exhibitions inside, focusing on art, ethnography, and regional culture.

This 12th-century church is the town’s most iconic landmark and one of the jewels of Romanesque art in Cantabria, giving the town its very name. Highlights of the visit include its impressive Romanesque cloister, famous for the extraordinary beauty of its finely carved capitals, as well as the church’s interior, which houses the tomb of the martyr Saint Juliana and a valuable Gothic-Flemish main altarpiece.

This permanent exhibition is dedicated to the history of torture and physical punishment in Europe from the Middle Ages to the Industrial Age. During the tour, visitors can view an extensive collection of original instruments used for punishment and public humiliation, such as torture racks, clubs, and guillotines, accompanied by explanatory panels detailing their use and historical context.

Housed in a former 16th-century Dominican monastery, this important museum of sacred art houses and displays more than a thousand religious artifacts from churches throughout Cantabria. Visitors can stroll through its beautiful Renaissance cloister and admire a rich collection that includes polychrome wood carvings, gold and silverwork, and enamelwork, offering a tour of great historical and artistic value.

This state institution is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the famous Altamira Cave and the region’s prehistory. The main attraction of the visit is the Neocueva, an exact three-dimensional reproduction that allows visitors to view replicas of the spectacular ceiling depicting polychrome bison, complemented by a permanent exhibition on daily life, hunting, and art from the Upper Paleolithic period.

The Jesús Otero Museum and Foundation is a municipal museum of contemporary art dedicated to the Cantabrian sculptor Jesús Otero, located in Plaza del Abad Francisco Navarro, in the heart of the historic district of Santillana del Mar, next to the Collegiate Church of Santa Juliana. The center houses the works donated by the artist to his hometown and is housed in his former home and studio, featuring exhibition halls and an outdoor garden where sculptures are also displayed. The institution was founded in 1994, following a donation made by the artist in 1993, and is administered by the municipality through a board of trustees. The museum houses more than fifty sculptures, as well as drawings, sketches, utensils, and tools, offering insight into both the artist’s body of work and his creative process. Its heritage value lies in the preservation of the original creative space and in its representation of an artist deeply connected to Cantabrian tradition and the rural landscape, with works in stone and wood characterized by strong formal restraint and expressiveness. It is, therefore, a key cultural resource in Santillana del Mar for understanding contemporary Cantabrian sculpture within the local context in which it was conceived.

The Velarde Palace, also known as the Palacio de las Arenas, is a stately palace located in the Plaza de las Arenas in Santillana del Mar, next to the Collegiate Church, in Cantabria. It currently serves as a museum and a heritage tourist attraction for the town, linked to the history of the Velarde family and the historic center of Santillana del Mar. According to the sources consulted, it was built between the 15th century and the mid-16th century, with subsequent renovations in the 17th century. It is a building that marks the transition from the Gothic to the Renaissance style, although its façade and composition are most commonly characterized as Renaissance or Early Renaissance. The traditional attribution links the work to Alonso de Velarde. Among its most notable features are the main façade, the stepped gable, the decorative pinnacles, the balconies, the corbels, and the family coats of arms. Plateresque decoration is also mentioned in the main hall, which reinforces its value as an example of noble architecture in the historic town. The palace is part of the monumental complex of Santillana del Mar, one of the most significant heritage sites in Cantabria. Its significance lies both in its architecture and in its preservation and cultural reuse, which provide insight into the town’s social and artistic evolution from the Late Middle Ages to the Modern Age.

Santa Justa Beach is a small coastal spot in Santillana del Mar, in the town of Ubiarco, on the coast of Cantabria. It is a beach open to the north, about 100 meters long according to several tourist cards, with golden or toasted sand and occasional mixture of sand and stone; appears sheltered by a low cliff that forms a very characteristic frame of the Cantabrian coast. Its main singularity is the hermitage of Santa Justa, embedded under the rock and next to the edge of the beach, an element that turns this corner into one of the most recognizable images of the municipality. The place is interesting for the contrast between the sandy beach, the sea of moderate waves and the coastal relief, as well as for its quiet and uncrowded atmosphere, especially outside the high season. In the sources consulted it is described as a natural beach, isolated or rustic urbanization, with pedestrian and vehicular access and without great urban pressure. There is no specific figure of environmental protection for the sandy area, but it does have a notable landscape and heritage value due to the presence of the chapel and its integration into the cliff. Due to its small size, its windy nature and the changing state of the sea, it is an enclave more appreciated for the contemplation of the landscape and photography than for mass leisure bathing. Its tourist interest is based on that combination of abrupt coast, small inlet and traditional religious architecture, very representative of the coast of Santillana del Mar.

The Torre de Don Borja is a medieval tower house located in the historic center of Santillana del Mar, in Cantabria, set within the old market square and very close to other noble buildings in the town. It is a civil heritage site—not a church or a castle—linked to the Barreda family and representative of the stately architecture of the mountainous region. The current structure dates to the 15th century and features a blend of a medieval tower and a Baroque mansion, with a later expansion and layout centered around a 16th-century inner courtyard. Its main structure is complemented by another wing separated by this courtyard—a feature uncommon in this type of building and highlighted in the heritage descriptions consulted. Among its most recognizable features are the square floor plan, the three stories, the linteled openings, and the Barreda family’s coats of arms on the façade. The sources consulted also note that it was associated with various noble families and was later used for residential and cultural purposes, which explains its preservation and restoration as a site open to visitors. Today, it functions as a cultural center offering exhibitions and guided tours, and it forms part of the historical and artistic heritage of Santillana del Mar, which was designated a historic-artistic site in 1943.

The Santillana del Mar Zoo is a private zoo and wildlife park located in Santillana del Mar, Cantabria, at the coordinates indicated, within a six-hectare site with 60,000 m² of accessible area. It is not a historic monument, but rather a natural and educational tourist attraction focused on animal observation and conservation. It opened in 1977 as part of a project spearheaded by José Ignacio Pardo de Santayana, and since then has remained committed to nature conservation and environmental education. Official sources from the center itself describe it as a member of AIZA and EAZA, and as a participant in more than 40 conservation programs for endangered species. Among its most notable features is its concept as a Biodiversity Reserve, with outdoor trails and zoological collections designed to educate the public. Various sources also describe it as a Zoo and Quaternary Park, a designation that refers to its focus on modern fauna and species linked to the evolution of life during the Quaternary period. Therefore, in the heritage profile, it should be classified as a zoo / natural area for tourism and educational purposes, founded in the 20th century and lacking a specific historical architectural style.