WE ARE

Machinery Ingenio Rosario (1885)

The tourist tradition in the district

of Medio Cudeyo is closely linked

to the Solares Spa, to such an ex-

tent that the town itself developed

around the use of these mineral-

medicinal waters.

The tourist resource par excellence,

the driving force of Medio Cudeyo,

is its Spa and its power of attraction

is such that it justifies the speciali-

sation in thermal tourism of the

entire district. Based on the deve-

lopment of the health tourism mar-

ket, the district must make the most

of its image as a thermal bath cen-

tre based on the quality of the en-

vironment, its resources and of the

services at the disposal of the citizens.

The waters from the Fuencaliente Spring are

used for a wide range of activities: bottling

factory, leisure and curing physical illnesses.

Water, in the mythological concept of the uni-

verse, is a productive, creative and fecund

element and it is precisely at Medio Cudeyo

where it has become the basis of one of the

first tourist initiatives.

The Solares spa tradition goes back to the

XVIII century, when the existence of thermal

baths used for the treatment of stomach pro-

blems and nervous ailments was mentioned in

the Ensenada Land Registry in 1753. The first

bath establishment opened in 1827 and soon

extended to eight bathing establishments and

a covered gallery with a fountain and a tree-

lined avenue.

WaterWE ARE

Ánaz Bridge

Solares Spa

Ríver Miera

A hotel also opened to cater for the accom-

modation of customers, together with a

number of inns, guesthouses and boarding

houses.

Towards the end of the XIX century, the

architect Carlos Velasco made improve-

ments to the Spa to adapt it to a new luxury

and elitist trend. With this in view, a bathing

area in the Neo-Mudejar and Eastern style

was built based on the model of other spas,

such as the French spa at Biarritz. The

Solares Spa Grand Hotel was built in 1902.

This is the work of the architect Lavín Casalís

that combines modernist and historical ele-

ments, especially the large “liberty” windows

on the ground floor, the stucco on the facade

and the bolsters and cresting on the outside.

A round kiosk was added to the spa and

hotel in the park, providing the whole with

Heras Reservoir

Cubón washhouse-Sobremazas

a garden area where guests could walk.

The end of the XIX and beginning of the XX

centuries marked the age of splendour of

the Solares Spa, when visitors did not ne-

cessarily come to treat any type of illness

but to use the spa as a summer and leisure

resort, the embryo of so-called "thermal

tourism". Solares then became the most

outstanding Spa in Cantabria and one of

the main establishments in the north of the

country until it closed in 1976.

After far-reaching improvements in 2006,

the Hotel Balneario de Solares opened and

is now part of the hotel offer in the thermal

sector, basing its business on elegance and

comfort.

WaterWE ARE

Solares Spa

Solares Spa

View of Hermosa

Heras landscape

EarthWE ARE

The natural resources of the district

include outstanding ecological and

landscape values. The landscape

is dominated by the mass of Peña

Cabarga, a limestone formation

with numerous karstic elements

and where Holm oak and eucalyp-

tus tree grow. Peña Cabarga forms

an excellent background for San-

tander Bay and is a viewpoint from

where the coastline of Cantabria

can be enjoyed.

The rest of the district features the

result of the interaction between

native vegetable species (mainly

oak forests) and man, who has

transformed the most productive

areas into pastures and grasslands

and who has established towns and industries

that have permanently deformed the natural

environment by introducing a clearly urban

aspect.

In general, the landscape is defined by the

limestone mass of Peña Cabarga, which pro-

vides the entire area with a peculiar outlook.

Apart from this massif, other natural resources

found in the Medio Cudeyo district include the

headwaters of the Cubón Spring, where part

of the former mining railway line is preserved;

the Solía and San Salvador marshes, which

are first-class areas for bird-watching; Mount

Castillo, which features the remains of a me-

dieval site on its peak and that was declared

an Asset of Cultural Interest in 2002; the Heras

Reservoir, originally used to wash minerals;

the banks of the Pámanes and Miera rivers,

Pastures Regata park-Ceceñas

EarthWE ARE

catalogued as Sites of Community Interest

(SCI); and the property of the Marquis of

Valdecilla, recently acquired by the Town

Council and that includes excellent speci-

mens of oak trees, American oak, magnolia

trees, Atlantic cedars, palm trees, lime trees,

Holm oak, sorb trees, laurels and eucalyptus

trees.

The district presents three large areas that,

in turn, feature three types of vegetation:

the Peña Cabarga Massif; the northern area

between Peña Cabarga and the Solía and

San Salvador rivers; and the southern area

between Cabarga and the border of the

district.

The Peña Cabarga Massif is a limestone

outcrop that has been repeatedly reforested

with Eucalyptus trees. The areas that feature

higher levels of humidity and greater soil

quality present vestiges of the ancient do-

minance of oak trees, with a court of other

species such as hazels, hawthorn, ash trees,

birch trees, chestnut trees, maples; all for-

ming small concentrations or, frequently,

isolated. There are also privet trees, blac-

kthorn, elder, blackberry bushes, wild roses

and a number of liana and climbing plants,

such as bryony and honeysuckle.

Grasslands and pastures predominate in

the northern region. The mountainsides

present fertile lands with an excellent

provision of water and small luxurious woods

of great interest. Eucalyptus trees give way

to small clumps of oak forests, with a great

variety of trees and bushes; the remains of

ancient vegetation and abandoned crops.

The San Salvador tidal river, with its marshy

landscape washed by the tides and affected

by sea salt, is important for the biodiversity

i t harbours, especial ly birds and

invertebrates.

Solía marsh-San Salvador

Former railway line-San Vitores

We must also mention the riverbank vege-

tation along the Pámanes and Miera rivers,

which, in certain sections, can be considered

full-scale woods. These are species linked

to water courses, damp areas, riverbanks...

A locally significant mass of water is the

Heras-Sobremazas Reservoir. Located on

the course of the Cubón Spring, it features

a greater diversity of species than other

nearby areas. However, the area nearest

the water is incapable of maintaining stable

vegetable species given the slope of the

banks, which prevents the typical grass

plants and bushes of this type of habitat

from taking root, directly affecting the stable

residence of birds in this area.

All these natural and landscape resources

can be enjoyed by following a number of

routes through the district and that include

a number of cultural heritage elements along

the way. We can mention the routes along

the Miera River banks, Sierra Hermosa, the

Mining Railway line, Cubón Spring, Peña

Cabarga, the Route to Santiago and the

Marshes. There is even a 22.5 km. route

that links each one of the ten villages found

in the district. All these routes are easy to

follow, enabling visitors to embark on a

number of activities such as photography,

landscape painting, bird-watching, fishing,

potholing and even botany.

EarthWE ARE

Marquis of Valdecilla

WE ARE

HistoryHistoryThe history of Medio Cudeyo goes

back to the "Merinidad de Trasmie-

ra", of which the Council of Cudeyo

formed part. This term comes from

the Castrum Cultellum that the Ro-

mans seem to have built on Mount

Castillo and that is based on its

shape that resembles a knife. The

district that is known today as Me-

dio Cudeyo was once Crown land

surrounding medieval churches

and monasteries (San Miguel de

Heras, San Víctor,Santa María de

Cudeyo).

In the XII century, the so-called

“Alfoz de Cudio” existed as a type

of association of councils of an

organisational-administrative nature. The said

Alfoz became, towards the end of the XIV

century, the Junta de Cudeyo, which comprised

twenty-seven villages grouped into three districts

(La Marina, Enmedio and Allendelagua). The

District of Medio Cudeyo appeared in 1814

based on the segregation of a number of coun-

cils that formed part of the Junta de Cudeyo.

The chronological scope of Medio Cudeyo

covers from extremely early periods based on

archaeological sites, of which we can mention

the Castilnegro Fort (1st century B.C.) and

Castillo Mountain (VII-XI centuries), to the first

decades of the XX century, when the so-called

"Indiano" houses were built; a type of house

found in many villages in this district.

Among the churches of Medio Cudeyo, we can

mention Santa María de Cudeyo, the patron

saint of the district, which features a stone

sepulchre of a knight inside.Former school of Ánaz

Former Solares Spa

The religious architecture also includes

simply chapels and the building of the Co-

fradía de la Vera Cruz (Association of the

True Cross), built at the beginning of the

XVII century on one of the branch routes

on the Route to Santiago.

Concerning civil architecture, we can hig-

hlight the Alvarado Tower in Heras. During

the second half of the XVII century, a number

of monumental baroque mansions were

built, such as those belonging to Ibáñez de

la Riva Herrera or to the Marquis of Valbue-

na and Rubalcaba. The mansions of the

Cuetos and Portilla were built in the XVIII

century in Sobremazas. From the end of

the XIX century we have the Mansion of the

Earl of Torreánaz.

A driving force in the architecture of Medio

Cudeyo were the families that made their

fortune in America and then used part of

their wealth to build large houses in which

to reside when they visited their native land.

We must mention the Plaza de la Marquesa

(Marquesa Square) in Nájera, with its cob-

bled streets, stone benches and street-lights

from London. The square is surrounded by

a number of houses in the regional style

with wooden balconies and gable ends,

including La Tudanca, the former residence

of the Marchioness.

The railway station was built in 1891 coin-

ciding with the greatest period of splendour

of the Solares Spa. This project influenced

the development of a railway and industrial

look that can be seen in some houses in

the La Estación neighbourhood in Heras,

Aerial view of Sobremazas-La Tudanca

HistoryWE ARE

Casa Vial in Valdecilla or the Casino in

Solares, which were built in the modernist

style. Towards the middle of the XIX century,

Ramón Pelayo de la Torriente (Marquis of

Valdecilla) was born in Valdecilla. When he

was only fourteen years old, he emigrated

to Cuba and, thanks to his business abilities

he soon became a significant industrial force

on the island. He travelled to the United

States, where he studied and acquired te-

chnical knowledge on large industrial cen-

tres. He married and acquired a small sugar

cane plantation in the district of Aguacate,

known as Batey Rosario. Meanwhile, he

also began to build on his property in Val-

decilla what would become his home when

he returned from Cuba in 1920. He then

sold Ingenio Rosario and settled in his home

town until his death in 1932.

The Marquis embarked on many charity

projects and sponsored the construction of

a number of schools in Cantabria, including

the one named after him in the town of

Valdecilla. He also paid part of the construc-

tion of the schools of San Salvador in the

district of Medio Cudeyo, which opened in

1909 as well as the Marquis de Valdecilla

University Hospital. But it is in the Property

of the Marquis of Valdecilla where Medio

Cudeyo enjoys the most relevant testimony

of the figure and work of this most outstan-

ding neighbour. Its cultural and natural fea-

tures, its location only 15 km. from Santan-

der, its nearness to the most popular

beaches or to attractions such as the Ca-

bárceno Nature Park.

This 147,910 m2 property includes six

buildings: La Casa Blanca, La Casuca, San

Rafael, El Garaje, La Cabaña and La

Solana. The main entrance is through a

stone portico featuring the coat of arms of

the ancient house of Los Quintana from

Penagos.

Bottling Solares Water

We are water because we live in

one of the most traditional thermal

towns in Spain. The splendour and

importance of Solares in the XIX

century has been restored today

to offer our guests the possibility

of enjoying a unique experience.We are earth because Medio Cudeyo features

beautiful landscapes and sites where one may

enjoy pleasant walks and the traditional

hospitality of the peoples of this land. And all

this seasoned with the prestigious gastronomy

of the land.

View of San Rafael-Estate of Marquis of Valdecilla

Mount Castillo

What youwant usto be

WE ARE

We are history because we treasure a rich

and diverse cultural heritage - from prehis-

toric sites to eighteenth and nineteenth

century mansions, vestiges of our recent

aristocratic and gentlemanly past. The bir-

thplace of illustrious people such as Ramón

Pelayo de la Torriente, Marquis of Valdecilla;

an outstanding benefactor and philanthropist.

Coat of Arms of Los Puebla-Santiago de Cudeyo

View of Peña Cabarga From Santander

What you want us to beWE ARE

Church in Hermosa

View from Sierra Hermosa

View of Mount Castillo

We are what you want us to be... Spa, Golf

Course, Property of the Marquis of Valdeci-

lla, Natural and Cultural Heritage, Country

Tourism and, all in all, a myriad of charming

views to be discovered at the Dark Chamber

found at the viewpoint located on Pico Ca-

barga and that projects a three dimensional

image into the monument of the magnificent

views that can be enjoyed.

La Casa Blanca-Estate of Marquis of Valdecilla

What you want us to beWE ARE