The Atlantic rolls hard against the breakwater while green pastures tilt down into cobbled alleys. Comillas is an odd, wonderful collision of working fishing port, damp northern sea air, and extravagant nineteenth-century Catalan modernisme. You smell griddled squid, wet limestone, and sea salt. Gaudí dropped El Capricho here like a riotous Persian tower amid the hydrangea bushes, while the Sobrellano Palace looms grandly overhead. It is small enough to walk in twenty minutes and stubborn enough to stay itself.
Last updated 22 Aug 2026
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Modernist Architecture
Tour Gaudí’s 1885 El Capricho with its sunflower tiles, then walk five minutes uphill to Domènech i Montaner’s towering brick and stone Sobrellano Palace.
Modernist Architecture
Tour Gaudí’s 1885 El Capricho with its sunflower tiles, then walk five minutes uphill to Domènech i Montaner’s towering brick and stone Sobrellano Palace.
Exploring Gaudí's Summer Villa
El Capricho de Gaudí
Book seven-euro timed tickets online. Wander the Persian-inspired conservatory, the glazed sunflower tiles, and the musical window sashes for ninety minutes.
Editor TipBuilt in 1883 for Máximo Díaz de Quijano, this early Antoni Gaudí masterpiece blended Catalan modernisme with Mudéjar brickwork and cast iron. Stand inside the music room and listen to the cast-iron counterweights chime as you raise the sash.
Cantabrian Sobaos and Morning Cortado
Pastelería Regma
Grab a zinc-counter stool by 8:30 for fresh sobaos pasiegos and strong coffee before the town stirs. Expect under five euros.
Editor TipMade with dense grass-fed butter from the Pas valleys, Cantabria's sobao is a protected culinary ritual dating back to sixteenth-century hearths. Skip the packaged boxes on display and ask the counter staff for warm cuts sliced from the tray behind the glass.
Modernist Cliffside Sculptures
Cementerio de Comillas
Walk up the cobbled path from the village edge. Admission is free, open from 10:00; give yourself forty-five quiet minutes among the stones.
Editor TipArchitect Lluís Domènech i Montaner transformed this fifteenth-century church ruin in 1893, crowning it with Josep Llimona's marble Ángel Exterminador. Walk right up to the perimeter wall for an uninterrupted view over the Cantabrian Sea breakers.
Puff Pastry and Morning Cortado
Confitería Carma
Order a warm pejina with your cortado at the small counter. Pay cash, watch the morning bread delivery, and give yourself twenty minutes before the walking starts.
Editor TipThis coastal confectionery upholds Cantabria's fierce butter pastry standard, baking pejinas with layered puff dough and almond paste for town fishermen since the nineteen-seventies. Take a bag of fresh sobaos pasiegos for the road; the industrial versions at the petrol station are an insult.
Climbing Medieval Estuary Ramparts
Castillo del Rey
Buy the two-euro entry ticket at the arched entrance. Spend forty-five minutes walking the stone parapets overlooking the tide channels and the Picos de Europa.
Editor TipConstructed in 1210 under Alfonso VIII, this limestone fortress anchored the Kingdom of Castile's northern sea border, watching over both fishing fleets and pilgrims walking the Camino del Norte. The stone steps get slick after coastal drizzle, so skip thin-soled shoes and watch your footing on the lower battery.
Simmered Bonito Pot Stew
Restaurante Las Redes
Book ahead for an outdoor table on Calle los Pescadores. Order the sorropotún, a summer bonito and potato stew, with a crisp local white wine. Allow ninety minutes.
Editor TipSorropotún originated on San Vicente fishing vessels, where deckhands thickened ocean-fresh tuna broth with torn village bread and slow-swept white onions. Skip dessert here and take the ten-minute uphill walk toward the ramparts for harbor air.
Day Trips
Drive fifteen minutes west to the marshlands of Oyambre Natural Park or head inland to Santillana del Mar for eleventh-century Romanesque stone churches.
Day Trips
Drive fifteen minutes west to the marshlands of Oyambre Natural Park or head inland to Santillana del Mar for eleventh-century Romanesque stone churches.
Morning Sobaos and Espresso
Café Bar Filipinas
Grab an outside metal table on Plaza del Corro. Order a café con leche and a butter-dense sobao pasiego; expect to spend four euros and take thirty unhurried minutes.
Editor TipCantabrian sobaos rely on the rich, grass-fed dairy of the Pas valleys, baked using a high-butter sponge recipe perfected during the nineteenth century. Ask for the sobao toasted on the plancha with a smear of salted butter if the griddle is hot.
Cantabrian Rabas and Vermut
Taberna El Corro
Grab an outdoor barrel table by 8:30 PM. Order a ración of fresh fried squid rabas, Santoña anchovies, and house vermouth on tap for under twenty euros.
Editor TipThe Plaza del Corro remains the social anchor of Comillas, where fishing families and summering Madrileños have gathered over fried cephalopods and local white wine since the nineteenth century. Ask for rabas de peludín if they have fresh squid from the morning catch rather than frozen cuts.
Tavern Culture
Stand at the wooden bar for poured sidra natural, plates of steamed mejillones, and spicy chorizo cooked in cider as the evening crowd gathers after sunset.
Tavern Culture
Stand at the wooden bar for poured sidra natural, plates of steamed mejillones, and spicy chorizo cooked in cider as the evening crowd gathers after sunset.
Cantabrian Rabas and Draft Cider
Bar La Fragua
Squeeze into the stone-walled tavern on Plaza del Corro. Order a plate of crisp rabas and a bottle of regional cider. Expect to spend around fifteen euros per person; no reservations taken.
Editor TipCantabrian tavern life revolves around rabas, fresh squid cut into strips and dusted in flour before hitting screaming-hot olive oil, served without sauce so the sweet sea flavour shines. Arrive right as the doors open at eight to secure an outdoor wooden cask table before the local evening rush begins.
Countertop Cider and Rabas
Mesón El Marinero
Step up to the zinc bar by eight. Order a bottle of dry cider and a ration of rabas, lightly dusted and fried to order. Cash preferred; budget twenty euros per person.
Editor TipCantabrian tavern culture is defined by chiquiteo, the social habit of drifting between neighborhood counters for small pours and freshly fried calamari strips. Stand at the bar rather than taking a table to get the fastest service and the freshest catch.
Note from the Editor
“Book your Capricho entry for 10:30 before the tour buses roll in from Santander. The town wakes slowly, so take your coffee outdoors at Plaza del Corro while the shop shutters rattle open.”
The Bed
Where to stay in Comillas
Which part of town to book, and what each one costs you in walking, noise or quiet.
The Comparison
Comillas, or somewhere near it
The places you are realistically choosing between, and the honest case for each.
The Local Record
Where to read more about Comillas
The blogs, boards, guides and operators worth bookmarking.
What to do in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Comillas wraps around a series of low coastal hills between the Atlantic rollers and green pastures. Days divide naturally between morning strolls through nineteenth-century Catalan modernisme, unhurried lunches of grilled hake or squid, and lazy afternoons on the sand. It suits independent travellers who enjoy good walking shoes, rich regional history, fresh sea air, and quiet evenings in lively stone plazas.
24 hours in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Spend the morning exploring El Capricho and Sobrellano Palace before crowds peak. Walk ten minutes down to the harbour for a plate of grilled rabas and a glass of chilled white wine. Finish with an early evening walk past the cemetery up to Punta de la Garita for wide sea views. Select 1 Day above to see it.
2 days in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Devote day two to the coast. Walk or cycle two miles west into Oyambre Natural Park for empty beaches and estuary birdlife. Return to Plaza del Corro de San Pedro for an evening of dry Cantabrian cider, cured anchovies, and rich stewed marmita de bonito at a neighbourhood tavern. Choose 2 Days to expand the plan.
3 days in Comillas Cantabria Spain
A third day allows an easy trip inland into the green hills of Cantabria. Explore the medieval stone lanes of Santillana del Mar, tour the coastal cliffs around San Vicente de la Barquera, and return to Comillas for fresh quesada pasiega and a quiet nightcap by the harbour.
Comillas Cantabria Spain itineraries by interest
Modernist Architecture in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Tour Gaudí’s 1885 El Capricho with its sunflower tiles, then walk five minutes uphill to Domènech i Montaner’s towering brick and stone Sobrellano Palace.
Local Seafood in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Eat Cantabrian anchovies cured in Santoña olive oil, grilled rabas de peludín at the harbour taverns, and stewed bonito cooked with sweet onions and red peppers.
Coastal Walks in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Follow the clifftop footpath from Playa de Comillas out toward the Punta de la Garita lookout for views of the Cantabrian Sea breaking over sandstone reefs.
Sacred Architecture in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Climb to the red-brick Pontifical University above town or inspect the carved gothic cemetery angel sculpted by Josep Llimona on old parish ruins.
Town Squares in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Sit outside at Plaza del Corro de San Pedro for a glass of dry txakoli or crisp cider alongside small plates of grilled pimientos de Padrón and local cheeses.
Regional Cheese in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Sample pungent Queso Picón Bejes-Tresviso blue cheese and creamy Quesuco de Liébana with crusty sourdough bread at the traditional grocery shops on Calle del Sol.
Beaches in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Spend quiet mornings walking the fine gold sand of Playa de Comillas, or head two miles west to the protected dunes and surf breaks at Playa de Oyambre.
Maritime History in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Wander the small stone Puerto de Comillas, where fishing families once harpooned whales before the nineteenth-century shipping boom transformed the town.
Day Trips in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Drive fifteen minutes west to the marshlands of Oyambre Natural Park or head inland to Santillana del Mar for eleventh-century Romanesque stone churches.
Pastry Traditions in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Pick up buttery sobaos pasiegos and dense quesada pasiega baked with fresh local milk from family-run bakeries along the cobbled lanes off Calle Mayor.
Tavern Culture in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Stand at the wooden bar for poured sidra natural, plates of steamed mejillones, and spicy chorizo cooked in cider as the evening crowd gathers after sunset.
Cemetery Art in Comillas Cantabria Spain
Walk through the monumental gothic arches of the Comillas Cemetery, where sea winds scour nineteenth-century Catalan statues overlooking the open ocean.