The most stunning beach I have seen (although admitedly I have never been to the Caribbean ;), set…read morein El Sardinero, an iconic area in Santander, where you can also find a very distinctive building, the Casino. This beach is something worth seeing, especially when the tide is down, and the First and Second Sardinero beaches are joined through the corner under the Piquio Gardens, and then the First Sardinero beach is joined at the other end with the Concha beach (Shell beach). You can then walk them all up and down, having 1km and 500m more or less to walk each way. You can also walk the seaside walk all along it (and further more all the way to the city centre) without interruptions! If you like a good beach, I thoroughly recommend this one.

This beach is beautiful, and an easy, close getaway from the city feel. It's an easy bus ride from…read morethe city center that will only take about fifteen minutes, maybe less. It was really pretty even in the fall. I went before it got really cold here, so I'm sure it's amazing when it's warmer. The water is so distinctively blue from the sand and the beautiful cliffs. There's also a Regma ice cream right there and more. Being lazy so go to www.kimstravelblog.com for pictures and more info. I'll come back and post them here later :)

When my family and I temporarily moved to Santander, I dreamed about finding a great gym and I…read morefound it at Marisma! The membership is very reasonable for everything you get - and you can pay month to month - no yearly fee. They have lots of great classes to choose from at different times of the day 7 days a week. The instructors are all excellent. I haven't had one that I didn't like. They also have lots of machines if you feel like just putting on your headphones and going it solo. The lockers and showers are also always very clean. PLUS they have a huge pool area, perfect for laps or another section perfect for bringing the kids (great for toddlers too). The attached cafe is excellent and it practically became my office while I worked on my laptop. (although make sure your laptop battery is fully charged because they don't have plugs). Highly recommend it.