San Vicente de la Barquera Castle

Perched at the top of the Puebla Vieja, the old quarter of San Vicente de la Barquera, stands the town's castle, which many also know as the Castillo del Rey, or King's Castle. That nickname already hints at its ties to the Crown and turns a visit into more than just a stroll: it is a chance to peer into the oldest part of one of the most characterful fishing towns on the Cantabrian coast.

Reaching the fortress means climbing up through the old part of town, and it is best done at a leisurely pace. The Puebla Vieja is the castle's natural setting, and to understand it you need to see it in relation to the historic cluster of houses that, for centuries, huddled in its shelter. From its elevated position, it is easy to see why this spot was chosen to build a defence over the town.

The value of the site is officially recognised. The castle is a Cantabrian Bien de Interés Cultural (Site of Cultural Interest) in the monument category, a designation made public in 2002. Its protection, however, goes back further: the 1985 Spanish Historical Heritage Act declared all the properties included in the 1949 decree on the protection of Spanish castles to be of cultural interest, and San Vicente's fortress came under the umbrella of that law.

This twofold protection speaks volumes about the esteem in which the building is held within the region's heritage. For the traveller, the castle makes an ideal starting point for discovering San Vicente de la Barquera from above, before heading back down into the rest of the town with the feeling of having set foot on its most emblematic spot.