Santander is an important tourist destination in Spain, especially among Spaniards themselves, and it has several very good beaches.
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Santander is located on the north coast of Spain, based around Santander Bay and next to both the Bay of Biscay and the Cantrabrian Sea. Santander has a population of about 185,000 and is the largest city of the province of Cantabria. The city has a busy port, a small historic center and a handful of beaches. Its most famous tourist attraction is the Magdalena Palace which was used as a summer getaway for Spanish royalty.
In the 19th century Santander was a renowned tourist resort for Spanish politicians, aristocrats and for the upper class. The city still keeps wonderful palaces and promenades, white buildings, old cafés and its famous Grand Casino. Santander is still an important tourist destination in Spain, especially among Spaniards themselves, and it has several very good beaches. El Sardinero is the part of Santander where there is most tourism. Opposite this famous beach you can enjoy one of the most beautiful promenades in Spain, with many magnificent buildings, among them the Grand Casino. The Plaza de Italia, with its elegant, lively summer terraces, and the Piquío Gardens, which are situated on a rocky inlet marking the separation between the two beaches of Al Sardinero, complete the picture.
Very little of Santander 's old quarter remains, it was destroyed in 1941 in a fire that lasted for four days and even consumed the cathedral. The cathedral, which has now been completely restored, is gothic in style, and characterised by its austerity. It was build on high ground, in a location which was, in antiquity, the port entrance, and was build on the ruins of a pre-Roman settlement, whose remains can still be seen in the Romanesque Chapel of Santo Cristo.
Santander has a small airport where mostly domestic and charter flights arrive, but there are also scheduled international flights from London, Dublin, Rome, Milan, Frankfurt, Paris and Amsterdam. As an alternative to Santander airport one can use the airport in Bilbao that has more international flights. The distance to Bilbao is 100 kilometers (60 miles).
San Sebastian
