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COMILLAS Comillas, is also known as the Villa of the Arzobispos, it is one of the most beautiful and best known villages in
Cantabria. Santander is only 48 km. far and Comillas is sited between the Cantabrian Sea and the Picos de Europa
in a privileged environment due to its spectacular landscape.
Comillas would probably remain a small fishers village in the Cantabrian coast had it not been for Antonio Lopez and
his heirs. They were given the Marquisate of Comillas. They transformed the village completely and made of
Comillas host of one of the most significant group of modernist architecture. Antonio Lopez and his heirs enhanced
Comillas’ touristic tradition when in 1881 and 1882; they invited King Alfonso XII and his family to spend their
holidays in the village.
Nowadays, Comillas offers its visitors a wide range of architectonical and natural attractions, significant cultural
events, the possibility of enjoying beaches or golf courses, its gastronomy, pleasant walks along its cobbled streets,
and to sum up, its people’s good know-how.
Apart from the village, the municipality has five populations more: Ruiseñada, beginning of the Monte Corona
(Corona Wood) with interesting rural architecture; Trasvía, located in a nice natural point overlooking the estuary
of La Rabia and the dunes of Oyambre; Rubárcena with a nice walk with centenary trees, the small park “El Joyucu”;
La Rabia, next to the estuary of the same name, an ecosystem of great ecological value for its great variety of birds
and Rioturbio, the same as La Rabia, with a high ecological and landscape richness.
HOW TO GET TO COMILLAS
Comillas Comillas is connected by road with the
Cantabrian Motorway A8 which in turn connects
with the motorway of “La Meseta”. It has a bus
line that connects the village with San Vicente de
la Barquera on one side and with Santander on
the other. It connects San Vicente de la Barquera,
Comillas, Santillana del Mar, Torrelavega and
Santander.
The Parayas Airport (Santander) is 52 kilometers
far from Comillas. There are regular national
flights between Santander and Madrid,
Barcelona, Alicante, Las Palmas de Gran
Canaria, Palma de Mallorca, Malaga, Sevilla,
Valencia or Reus. There are also regular
international flights that connect Cantabria with
London, Frankfurt,
Rome, Milan, Dusseldorf, Dublin and Brussels.
There is a railway station (RENFE) 25 km far from
Comillas, there are daily departures
to Alicante,Valladolid and Madrid. FEVE (a
different railway net) runs along the Cantabrian
coast.
By sea there is a line of Ferries (Plymouth) that
sails between Cantabria and England..
Como How to get to Comillas from:
Santander: Go along the A8 Motorway (Autovía del
Cantábrico), heading to Oviedo till the way out 249 (to
Comillas and Cabezón de la Sal).
Asturias: Go along the A8 Motorway (Autovía del
Cantábrico), heading to Santander till the way out 249 (to
Comillas and Cabezón de la Sal).
Madrid, Bilbao, Burgos, Palencia, Valladolid: The easiest
way to arrive in Comillas is reaching Torrelavega and then
following the A8 Motorway (Autovía del Cantábrico), heading
to Oviedo till the way out 249 (to Comillas and Cabezón de la
Sal).
COMILLAS MONUMENTAL Y MODERNISTA
Visiting Comillas is entering a rich monumental patrimony. This patrimony is organized in two
main routes: The Modernist Route and the Monumental Route.
THE MODERNIST ROUTE. is closely linked with the
figure of Comillas´ 1st Marquis Antonio Lopez y Lopez
who made possible for great Catalan artists of the 19th
century, such as Joan Martorell, Luís Domenech
Montaner or Antonio Gaudi, to start working in Comillas
and consequently, leaving an unique manifestation of the
artistic movement known as Modernismo, at the same
time as it gave the Town a highly reputation in Art
productions. Many of the buildings display precious
sculptures and paintings. Some of them could be
considered the most valuable sculpture works of the
end of the 19th century.
El Capricho
Puerta de los Pájaros
Among the most important monuments we find: El Palacio
de Sobrellano. A majestic building that stands on a
hillside next to the Capilla- Panteón. It was designed by the
Catalán architect Joan Martorell. The Chapel houses some
beautiful pantheons that display some of the best sculptures
of the late 19th century in Europe. They are both open to the
public.
Palacio de Sobrellano
Capilla Panteón
El Capricho: It is one of the first architectural works by
Antonio Gaudi (1883-1885), a modernist and internationally
recognized building. Gaudi also designed La Puerta de los
pajaros, a door made out of stone remains with wavy
surfaces and roundy corners.
Fuente de Tres Caños
Universidad Pontificia
Asilo Hospital
Cementerio
Fuente de Tres Caños, a historic fountain that
incorporates a lamppost above it, work of Luis Domenech.
La Estatua del Marqués and the expansion of the
Graveyard, another two architectural works by Luis
Domenech. Angel Guardían, a sculpture of a Guardian
Angel situated on one of the walls that surrounded the
Cemetry. This work of art belongs to Josep Llimona.
La Universidad Pontifícia, a majestic building that is
preceded by a spectacular entrance. Although its exterior
may look quite austere, its interior is fully decorated with a
wide variety of art works, thanks to the architect Luis
Domenech.
Asilo Hospital de Comillas. It was built in 1888, and
presents similar architectural structure to el Palacio de
Sobrellano. This work was done by the architect Cristobal
Cascante.
Angel de Llimona
THE MONUMENTAL ROUTE, leads the visitor through
an immense variety of places and buildings such as the
port; it was the last Cantabrian port that kept its whaling
tradition. Different testimonies of religious architecture
such as the Parochial Church of San Cristobal, built and
funded by the town´s people. From the half of the 17th
Century, it houses in its interior El Cristo del Amparo
(Christ the Protector), the patron saint of local fishermen.
The Hermitage of Saint Lucia, very connected to the
sailors. And El Corazón de Jesús (Sacred Heart of
Jesus Christ), a monument which was entrusted the II
Marquis of Comillas, following the devotion from the
consecration of Spain to the Sacred Heart.
Ermita de Santa Lucía
Sagrado Corazón
El puerto
Iglesia Parroquial
Comillas also presents singular examples of civil
architecture such as; The Espolón, which construction was
ordered by archbishop of Lima, D. Juan Domingo González
de la Reguera, in the 17th Century as a school and chair of
Latin.
La Casa Ocejo (Ocejo house), indiano house. The I
Marquis of Comillas bought it for his mother. In 1881, it
became the summer residence of the King Alfonso XII.
El Espolón Casa Ocejo
La Carcel (The Jail), this building was built and financed by
several neighbours in the 18th Century in order to shelter
the prisoners of the villa. Nowadays, it is used as a pilgrims’
lodging.
The Duke, a beautiful construction of the 19th Century with
clear influence of English architecture style.
The ancient Town Hall: It possesses in his interior a
lounge for plenary sessions of modernista style. On the
outside the shields of the archbishops born in the villa are
shown.
The new Town Hall: The original building was constructed
at the end of the 19th Century, as a free school for infants.
Nowadays, it is the new headquarters of the Town hall.
Finally, Comillas counts with some other interesting outdoor
spaces such as the Corro San Pedro delimited by several
typical constructions of noble architectures of the 17th
Century, and the Corro Campíos, a place of leisure and
celebrations that as the years go by continues being the
meeting point of the villa.
The Duke
Corro Campíos
Ancient Town Hall
Corro San Pedro
New Town Hall
NATURAL HERITAGE
Comillas Town has a natural and exceptional
environment; there are plenty of zones where
you may enjoy walking through nature.
Comillas offers the opportunity to delight you
with all kinds of outdoor activities.
Its coast is outlined by rocky almost vertical
cliffs, formed by the strong erosion that on
them has exercised the Cantabrian Sea,
These cliffs alternate with beaches of thin and
golden sand and dunes that were generated
by the effect of the wind and tides. Between
all the beaches that can be found in this area,
Comillas beach stands out, with something
more than 500 m length, together with
Oyambre Sandbank.
Another natural element of interest is “La Ría
de la Rabia” constituted by the rivers Turbio
and Capitan in their river mouth. They both
are part of Oyambre Nature Reserve. It is an
excellent habitat for the numerous aquatic
birds that hibernates in the zone or rest
during the migrations.
Comillas is also surrounded by a large area of
forests with many autochthonous trees, most
of which are gathered in crowds in Monte
Corona.
HOTELS AND ACCOMMODATION
Comillas has a wide variety of lodgings, actually there are 1074 hotel rooms, apart from the 305 camping parcels.
3 four-star hotels, 2 three-star hotels, 4 two-star hotels, 1 hostel, 10
guest houses, 5 enterprises of touristic apartments, 6 rural
accommodations, 1 camping, 1 enterprise of active tourism
Apart from these accommodations, in Comillas there is a pilgrims’ hostel, ran by the municipality, with a capacity for
20 people. The building, a former prison with two dungeons and an interior patio was rebuilt with these objective not
many years ago. It will be opened from 1st April to the 30
th October.
TELEPHONE DIRECTORY
Town Hall 942 720033 Pharmacy 942
722240 Police 942 720006 / 609 446201 Guardia Civil 942
720035
Medical Center 942 722270 Taxis 942
720034
Post Office 942 720095 Parochial Church 942
720216
Tourist Information Office 942 722591 Sobrellano Palace 942
720339
Autobuses 942 720822 Polideportivo Municipal 942
722600
Route 8: Cycling in the mountain area.
GOLF AND OTHER ACTIVITIES
In Comillas, sports as Golf can be practiced. There is a
nine-hole golf club that was inaugurated in 2002. It is
100m over sea-level. Autochthonous natural species
make easy the integration of the golf course in the
landscape. It offers facilities such as a restaurant, a
hotel, practice course and equipment rental.
In Comillas, there is also the great chance of riding horses; it offers a unique way to enjoy the natural landscapes
and the contact with animals.
Hiking is another wonderful way to enjoy the area. There
are eight walking and cycling tours. There is a guide at
your disposal at the Tourist Information Office.
Route 1: Comillas' coastal spots and monuments
Route 2: Cycle path from Comillas to La Rabia
Route 3: From Comillas to Rioturbio
Route 4: From Comillas to Ruiseñada
Route 5: From the hermitage of San Esteban to Valle del
Río del Mato
Route 6: Monte Corona
Route 7: The hermitages in Monte Corona
CELEBRATIONS AND TRADITIONS
The most important traditional celebration in Comillas is
on 16th July, El Cristo del Amparo’s day (Christ the
Protector’s day), patron saint of the local fishermen. It is
a celebration of the people whose lives are connected
to the sea. There is a mass, dances, and picayo’s
songs.
This fiesta of the Christ still has the solemnity of the old
days; religious celebrations are eventually followed by
more and more people who are curious for knowing his
hymn and his devotional dancers (picayos), as well as
his sea procession.
Religious celebrations to honour the Cristo del Amparo begin with nine masses that start nine days before the 16th July. On
the 15th of July, the eve of the great celebration day, some processions honouring the Patron Saint start. A sculpture of the
Christ is taken to the fish market in the port where it will spend the night; it is accompanied by a bugle band and the
picayos from Comillas.
The following day in the morning, the statue is taken in a sea procession. After it, a mass is celebrated, that is when
the Christ’s hymn is sang and when it is finished the picayos perform their song and dance in front of the altar and at
the door of the church. Apart from religious celebrations, there are open-air dances in the evening and at night,
brass bands, sport activities and, of course, traditional bowling, games at the port and fireworks the eve of the 16th.
Fiestas en Comillas
In Comillas, San Pedro is also celebrated on 29th
June, there are dances. Trasvia has recovered the
celebration of San Andrés. Celebrations in Comillas:
9th February, Santa Apolonia in Ruiseñada
15
th May, San Isidro Labrador in Ruiseñada
29
th June, San Pedro
16th June, San Adrián in Ruiseñada
16th
July, Santo Cristo del Amparo
Last weekend in August, cattle exposition.
30
th November, San Andrés in Trasvía
Fiestas en Trasvía
Feria de Ganado
CULTURAL SUMMER IN COMILLAS
Comillas becomes each year a place of cultural reference
in the summer of Cantabria.
Los Caprichos Musicales (Musical Whims) are set as a
cultural referent; important groups and solos take part on
these programs. Concerts are held at the Palacio de
Sobrellano (Palace of Sobrellano), in the Constitution
Square and the parochial church of the town, and they
include from classical music to Jazz and Theatre music;
prestigious internationally known artists participate in these
programs.
This is joined by Folk Music Concerts in Palacio de
Sobrellano (Palace of Sobrellano). There are also
Painting competitions for children and adults, choral
concerts..., these are some of the proposals performed
in summer.
It is also worth pointing out the high quality exhibitions
that are held in the Town Hall.
There is also a Cattle contest and a traditional pull of
weight carried out by cows or oxen.
All these initiatives are intended to promote the taking
part of both residents and the hundreds of tourists
visiting the village.
CONTACT
Oficina Municipal de Turismo Plaza
Joaquín del Piélago nº 1 - Bajo
Teléfono: 942 72 25 91 Fax: 942 72 00 37
www.comillas.es
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