Spanish Civil War 1936–1939
Santander air-raid shelter (Refugio Antiaéreo)
Air-raid shelter
The story
Santander, then in the Republican zone, was bombed repeatedly during 1937, and over a hundred shelters were dug beneath the city. This one, under the Plaza del Príncipe (then Plaza de Mariana Pineda), was built in spring 1937. It has three connected galleries for about 70 people, mainly military commanders and city officials. It was abandoned after the war and buried during the rebuilding that followed the great fire of 1941. It was rediscovered in 2006 during works on the Plaza Porticada and opened as a museum in 2014. The city fell to Nationalist and Italian troops on 26 August 1937.
What you can see today
About 100 m of restored underground galleries with audiovisuals, period photographs and objects, a Condor Legion airman's equipment and a 250 kg bomb.
Plan your visit
Guided visits only, in small groups (about €3). Closed Mondays; book ahead by phone (942 203 099).
- Open
- Guided visits Tue 17:00, 18:00, 19:00; Wed–Sat 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 17:00, 18:00, 19:00; Sun 11:00, 12:00, 13:00; closed Mon
- Price
- €3
- Booking
- Booking required: 942 20 30 99 or online (anillo.santanderventaentradas.com); groups of up to 15, about 40 min, in Spanish
- Access
- Access for people with reduced mobility
Checked September 2026 from official sources: turismodecantabria.com, santandercreativa.com, anillo.santanderventaentradas.com. Things change, so check before you travel.
Sources
- mapcarta.com/33036606
- es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refugio_antia%C3%A9reo_de_Santander
- turismodecantabria.com/lugar-interes/refugio-antiaereo/
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Santander
Nearby sites
- Puerto del Escudo – Italian memorial · 47 km
- Iron Belt Interpretation Centre, Berango · 66 km
- Valdenoceda prison memorial · 70 km
- Artxanda – Iron Belt trenches & memorial · 74 km
- Iron Belt trail, Zamudio (Berreaga–Gaztelumendi ridge) · 78 km
- Gaztelumendi breach – Larrabetzu Iron Belt bunker · 85 km
All 158 sites in Spanish Civil War 1936–1939 →
The Spanish Civil War 1936–1939
A free field guide for your phone: the route, the maps and the stories built in, even with no signal. The battlefields, trenches, ruined villages, shelters, museums and memorials of the Spanish Civil War across the whole of Spain, told fairly from both sides.
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