A Week on the Coast of Northern Spain

February 24, 2024- March 2, 2024

What are you doing during your spring break if not roadtripping northern Spain with your two roommates? I would say you’re throwing away one of the most amazing experiences of your life because this trip was definitely one of mine! Our roadtrip through northern Spain was a long awaited trip but worth every second of anxiously waiting for our spring break to come.

For starters, if you are looking for a step-by-step guide of how we planned every detail of this trip… you may be in the wrong place because we decided to catch a flight to Spain with nothing but a rental car and a few dollars to our name and figure the rest out once we got there. Although we didn’t have any plan prior to the trip, there is still plenty of noteworthy stops we made that I will get into that may be of interest if you are planning a trip to the north of Spain.

In the following post I am going to be specifically talking about the time I spent on the coast of northern Spain. If you are familiar with the area, then you will know that the north of Spain has a beautiful collection of geography. It is very easy to be by the sea in the morning and the mountains by lunchtime. So if you are also interested in reading more about my time in the mountains of Spain, you can check out my other blog post called “A Week in the Mountains of Northern Spain”!

The first stop of the trip just happened to be on the way to the hostel we were staying in that evening. (Note: this hostel was the only place we booked in advance for the whole trip!) We drove up to this lookout called Gozòn, Spain. This was an amazing introduction to the beautiful coast of Spain because it offered a very easy hike on some rocks surrounded by water that had the most beautiful view of the beach and sea down below. We sat on the rocks for hours completely mesmerized by nature’s beauty until eventually we walked down a small boardwalk that wrapped around a cafe that sits right on the edge of the rocks overlooking the sea! I couldn’t have asked for a better coincidence to drive up on not even an hour into our trip. This is definitely a stunning viewpoint to visit!

Another noteworthy coastal destination in the north of Spain is hands-down Santander, Spain. This stop was my absolute favorite because it had such beautiful water. Maybe the fact that it was the only day on our trip it didn’t rain plays a role in my bias toward this beach, but I guarantee it would be amazing regardless. This destination was not as secluded as Gozòn, Spain, but you could find peaceful areas amongst the rocks in the water that I had the most fun climbing onto to get a better view. Although it wasn’t as secluded I found the surrounding attractions very entertaining. There is a beautiful walk along the beach that eventually leads you to nature park that allows free entrance. In this park you can find playgrounds, a zoo with seals and penguins, a picnic area, a castle, and a viewpoint of a lighthouse out in the middle of the sea on an island. Strolling through this park after a day of laying on the rocks in the water was so relaxing and I found so much joy in the tiny things we found along the way because they just kept appearing out of thin air! It felt like there was always something to do here.

The final coastal destination I would highly recommend checking out is the beach in Noja, Spain. Now this one is very similar to Santander beach, but it is more secluded! I felt like you got the best of both worlds at this beach because the beach and small town of Noja are separated by the small sand dunes, so you could pick and choose a day by the beach or a day in the town. My favorite thing in particular about this beach is that there are abandoned structure on top of the mountains that you can walk through. I found this super fascinating!

All of these places I’ve mentioned above are more than worth just a short visit. I wish I had more time to stay at each one, but for the time I had I felt as though I managed to get a great grasp on the coastal life of Spain that really believes in the laid back lifestyle that anyone would enjoy. I also cannot stress enough about how relaxing it was not having any plans or anywhere to be. I know traveling is sometimes stressful for some, but I travel with the mentality that I can’t be lost if I have no where to be. I would recommend this mindset to anyone just interested in making the best memories during their time traveling because this trip completely embodied the no schedule trip mindset and it was one of my favorites!

If you’re interested on seeing more of the beauty of my roadtrip through northern Spain, you can check out my YouTube video!