What you can see on the Castro Urdiales webcams
One camera sits on the seafront by the inner dock, where the fishermen stack their crates and nets and small boats crowd in front of the tall houses of the waterfront; the people on the benches show how busy the town is. The other looks back across the outer bay from the southern breakwater: dozens of boats on their moorings, the main breakwater with the open sea beyond, and on the headland the church of Santa María and the castle that carries the lighthouse.
Castro Urdiales harbour webcam: the inner dock and the seafront
Puertos de Cantabria watches the inner dock of Castro Urdiales from the seafront at the root of one of its quays, in a sharp, wide picture with the name of the dock printed in the corner. The quay runs away from the camera through the middle of the frame, stacked with the fishermen's crates and nets. To the right lies the sheltered inner basin, packed with small boats in front of the tall houses of the waterfront; to the left, the open water of the harbour bay, with more boats on their moorings and the hills behind the town.
The benches in the foreground are a meeting point, so the picture also tells you whether the waterfront is busy, and the surface of the water shows whether the bay is calm or ruffled by the wind. It is a still image: the refresh button brings the latest one.
Castro Urdiales bay webcam: the moorings, Santa María and the breakwater
From the southern breakwater of the harbour, this port camera looks back across the bay of Castro Urdiales. The long quay with its row of bollards leads the eye away on the right; the water in front is dotted with dozens of small boats on their moorings, and beyond them the main breakwater closes the harbour, with the open Bay of Biscay above it. In the top left corner, on the headland, stand the Gothic church of Santa María and the castle of Santa Ana, whose tower carries the town's lighthouse.
This is the view for the state of the sea: the horizon beyond the breakwater and the surface of the bay show how much wind and swell there is, and the walkers on the quay show what the day is like. It is a still image: the refresh button brings the latest one.
A Roman port and a Gothic church
The Romans founded the colony of Flaviobriga here in AD 74, and its remains lie under the old town. In 1163 Castro became the first town on the Cantabrian coast to receive its charter. The church of Santa María de la Asunción, built between the 13th and 15th centuries, is part of the UNESCO World Heritage listing of the northern routes of the Camino de Santiago. Beside it, the castle of Santa Ana has carried a lighthouse since 1853, and a medieval bridge links it to the harbour.
When to watch Castro Urdiales
Castro Urdiales is one hour ahead of the UK and Ireland. The harbour opens to the east, so on clear summer mornings the sun comes up over the sea in front of it. On the first Friday of July the Coso Blanco, a night-time parade of decorated floats and a festival of national tourist interest, fills the town, and on 16 July the fishing boats sail out dressed with flags for the Virgen del Carmen.
Around Castro Urdiales
The town has two Blue Flag beaches, Brazomar and Ostende, and the beach of Oriñón, further west in the same municipality, holds the flag too. Laredo and its long beach of La Salvé are a short drive west.
Visiting Castro Urdiales
Bilbao airport is about 28 miles (45 km) away. The harbour, the church and the castle are all a short walk from each other in the old town, and the walk along the breakwater gives the view the bay camera shows.
