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In the early 20th century, King Alfonso XIII built his summer palace in Santander, and the royal spirit still lingers in pastel villas, sweeping promenades, and the golden crescent of El Sardinero Beach. In 1941 a devastating fire erased much of the medieval heart, forcing the city to reinvent itself. What remains today are two distinct identities: a graceful seaside escape with lively beaches and fine dining, and a place whose roots reach back 15,000 years, visible in the prehistoric cave art of Altamira and Puente Viesgo.

There are cities where you eat well, and then there’s San Sebastián. With more Michelin-starred restaurants per square meter than almost anywhere else in the world, this jewel of Spain’s Basque Country is its undisputed culinary heartland. Pintxo bars crowd the Old Town, their counters overflowing with anchovies, peppers, and jamón, while elegant dining rooms reinterpret centuries of gastronomic tradition with modern flair.

La Ràpita is a town of plates, promenades, and plunges into the deep, blue Mediterranean. At its edge lies the Ebro Delta, where vast rice fields shimmer in the sun, salt flats stretch to the sea, and flocks of flamingos turn the lagoons pink. Rice from these paddies fills steaming paellas, often paired with the prized tuna landed in local waters. The town’s story is written in chapters: Moorish origins, a medieval monastic community, and Bourbon-era redesigns that influenced squares, churches, and viewpoints, leaving one of the most distinctive corners of Catalonia.

Located on Germany’s Baltic shore at the mouth of the Trave River, this seaside resort town feels charmingly nostalgic with rows of striped wicker beach chairs, wide sands, and a breezy promenade lined with ice cream stalls and cafés. Maritime history is close at hand; the Passat, a four-masted barque from 1911, is moored as a floating museum. Travemünde also serves as a gateway to Lübeck, just 30 minutes inland, whose red-brick Gothic gables and spires earned UNESCO World Heritage status.