Our first stop after breakfast is a visit to Palacio la Quinta de Selgas a 19th century estate with a mansion and French, Italian and English style gardens, also known as the Spanish palace of Versailles.

It’s only fifteen minutes walk away and we pass some houses that are pristine and others that are derelict and sometimes both in the same block!

The estate was built between 1880 and 1895 by the wealthy Selgas-Fagalde brothers from Madrid. We peer through the locked gates for our first glimpse of the immaculate French style garden which fronts the house before paying €16 and starting the tour. There are statues, fountains and pools and manicured lawns with regimented rows of blooming flowers.

We wander around two floors of the house which has retained its original decor and is bursting with beautiful furniture, porcelain, art and objects. The art on the ceilings is amazing. It really is stunning. No photos are allowed inside so I’ve found a few online.

Leaving the house we walk through the Italian garden to the Tapestry pavilion and then follow a very specific path through the extensive English gardens. All other paths are cordoned off so it’s unnecessarily restrictive but very beautiful.

Back to the van after a two and a half hour tour for tea and cake before heading down to Cudillero’s harbour and old town.

It’s an off road downhill stepped path to the harbour with amazing views along the way to the very picturesque fishing village. The multi coloured houses look like they are hanging onto the steep sides of the cliff overlooking the Cantabrian Sea in the Bay of Biscay.

A quick visit to a very gloomy church before a stroll along one side of the harbour, T,M & J walk onto the lighthouse for coastline views.

We’ve definitely earned a beer and a snack in a bar which we enjoy until T is plopped on from a great height and we all suffer splash back !

We walk partway up the hill to the bus stop for another cheeky beer before a two minute bus ride back to the campsite.

After some downtime we enjoy a couple of beers in the campsite bar before roast chicken, baked potatoes and salad in M & J’s bungalow. End the day quizzing until the early hours.

A fabulous palace and spectacular village kind of day.

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