This is the late 20th century opus of American architect Frank Gehry…read more As an architect, i am always amazed at what some architects can get build. Thus, this always perplexed me. However in situ, it makes total sense. At a human scale its underpinnings line up with the surrounding buildings and the river it sits upon. The curvilinear forms are symbolic of the ships once built on this ground in the early 20th century. As an icon and symbol of basque pride. Interestingly, it also plays homage to Frank Lloyd Wright's opus the original Guggenheim in NYC. The Art? The building is the art. I will let others comment on its success as a gallery. However, it is perhaps the one of the greatest pieces of architecture of our time. Post Modern deconstructionist Master Work

I recommend buying advance tickets online! I did that and got to skip a very long ticket line…read more Some cool stuff here for sure! I came in August of 2026 and there was a big Jasper Johns exhibit and a big Ruth Asawa exhibit. It feels like quite a large proportion of the museum is devoted to specific exhibits like that, rather than having long corridors with a diverse assortment. I like to be pleasantly surprised by different takes on art as I turn every corner, and there isn't as much of that here. But that's just my taste. Whether or not that's true for you, this is a large facility, and the building and grounds themselves are a pleasure to explore. Some of you, and I include myself here, definitely would wish for more seating in the galleries than you'll find here. They are pretty strict about bringing in metal objects and bags and things. I actually am not sure what those specifics are; I had a backpack and they told me to check it in with them. Had to wait in line and give it to them and everything.

If you are fortunate enough to find yourself in the lovely city of Santander then you really should…read morenot pass up on the opportunity to visit this first class museum. Covering just about every imaginable topic in the area of marine studies, a wander through the museum will take you past a video and some brilliant exhibits about how the coast of Cantabria and northern Spain in general was formed, the importance of the sea in the original settling and continued inhabitance of this area, the state of the maritime industry today and how conservation is managed by the government. If this were not enough, it has a huge variety of marine biology on show, the highlights being a full-sized whale skeleton in the main hall and a pickled two-headed fish! It is not only the contents of this museum which deserve comment. The building itself is fantastically designed, being an instantly recognisable landmark. It is centred around a main hall, with galleries leading off from this on all floors. At the top of the building there is a restaurant and, even better, the roof is open to the public, so that you can go and admire the views across the bay and out to sea. They have also constructed an outdoor lecture theatre up on the roof if only all my school and university classes had been given in a setting like this! Adult tickets are EUR6, while concessions (including students) will pay EUR4. This is an absolutely top rate museum, and not to be missed.

I was a bit disappointed with this museum. I thought it would be similar to El Prado in Madrid,…read morewith lots and lots of master paintings but it was actually a combination of traditional Renaissance and Medieval paintings and modern art. The amount of paintings by masters of the Renaissance was very small. The museum itself was not very big either...just two floors and about 4 wings. Overall not a bad place to spend a few hours, but not a place that I would recommend to someone that liked their time at The Prado in Madrid.

I am extremely disappointed. The permanent collection is not on display during renovation and…read morethat's why I came to this city and decided on it over other cities in Spain. THERE IS NO INFORMATION ONLINE THAT THE PERMANENT COLLECTION IS CLOSED. The staff confirmed this and they receive this complaint everyday. THIS IS EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTING. The new building is scheduled to reopen in October. For a major museum, this lack of communication is very bad.

The Altamira Caves are located only 2km from Santillana del Mar and it's worth the trip to see the…read moreMuseum and the replication of the original cave (which is closed to the public). The Neocueva is a impressive reconstruction, the explanations are good, and the recreated and prone-painted bison-related art is enjoyable to look at and ponder prehistoric history. Gayle and I also enjoyed wandering through the attached Museum that puts this cave and many of the others in Europe into historical perspective. The paintings were first discovered in 1879 by Marcelino Sanz de Sautuola and was the first discovery of Paleolithic cave art. In 1973, 174,000 people visited the caves and it became evident that the visitor numbers was having a grave effect on the caves. A black mold started to cover the paintings caused by increased humidity due to the breath of visitors . In 1977 the caves were closed to the general public to protect the paintings. In 1982 it was decided to build an exact replica of the caves, this was opened in 2001. A small number of visitors are allowed to the original caves each year but the waiting list is very long. Gayle and I saw what we think was the old entrance as we walked along the spacious grounds. There's also a separate building that supports continuing research at this UNESCO Heritage Site.

From the owner: Altamira, la más bella Prehistoriaread more

Photos etc coming soon…read more Very interesting small museum Next door to the Archeology Museum Free on Thursday

Sweet little museum of the archaeological finds in the Basque region of Spain and France. They had…read morea virtual tour of the cave paintings from the area. I really liked it and is well worth the stop to check it out.