Santillana del Mar

Santillana del Mar is the showpiece of the Cantabrian camino — a medieval village so well preserved it feels like a film set, which is why so many productions use it as one. It's also a mandatory stop on the tourist bus circuit, so take a breath and learn to share the cobblestones.

The Colegiata de Santa Juliana is the main monument — a Romanesque collegiate church with a magnificent cloister whose carved capitals are among the finest in northern Spain. At the opposite end of town, the Convento de las Dominicas (also known as the Convento de San Ildefonso) bookends the main street. In between, nearly every building carries some historical significance, and the stone mansions and carved coats of arms lining the cobbled streets justify the crowds.

If you're looking for something darker, the Museo de la Tortura offers a grimly comprehensive collection. It's sometimes misleadingly billed as an Inquisition museum.

The Museo de Altamira, on the outskirts, is the real reason the tour buses come. The original Altamira cave paintings — the Sistine Chapel of the Paleolithic — are closed to the general public, but the museum's replica cave is a remarkable reproduction that conveys the scale and artistry of the originals. Don't skip it.

Restaurants and bars are plentiful and slightly more expensive than neighboring towns. Multiple albergues and hotels serve the large visitor population.