Near Bareyo there are several beaches where nudism is common and respected: La Arena in Arnuero, Langre and El Puntal in Ribamontán al Mar, Sonabia in Liendo, Covachos in Santa Cruz de Bezana and Somocuevas in Liencres. All are publicly accessible and, although a naturist atmosphere is the norm, wearing a swimsuit is never a problem.
In Spain, nudism is legal on any public beach, but there's a handful of coves in Cantabria where the practice has real tradition, with a stronger naturist presence than elsewhere and a relaxed atmosphere that often has as much to do with the landscape — cliffs, walk-in access, little crowding — as with custom. None of them is exclusive or has a sign at the entrance: they are long-standing beaches, shaped by use rather than by any municipal rule, and on all of them swimmers with and without swimsuits mix without anyone paying much attention to who's who.
For this list we've left out coves where naturism is mentioned in passing on traveller forums but without an established tradition, and kept the ones that appear consistently in specialised naturist-beach guides and on the websites of the town councils or natural parks themselves. We've ordered them from closest to furthest from Bareyo, so if you only have one free morning, start with the first ones on the list.
Playa de la Arena, in Arnuero
It's the closest to Bareyo on the whole list: Arnuero is the neighbouring municipality, so it's just over ten minutes away by car. Known locally simply as 'Los Nudistas', it's a small, sheltered beach with low dunes and little traffic on weekdays, making it the easiest option if you're after a morning without planning a whole excursion. Access is straightforward, with no stairs or long path, and there's free parking just a few metres from the sand — something that can't be said for almost any other beach on this list. It has no lifeguard or beach bar, so it's worth bringing water and your own shade if you're planning to stay all morning.
Playa de Langre, in Ribamontán al Mar
About 25 minutes from Bareyo, on the way to Santander, Langre is actually two coves separated by a rocky outcrop, with green cliffs falling almost to the sand and a view that turns up in any list of Cantabria's most photogenic beaches. The naturist area is concentrated mainly at Langre II, the more westerly cove, reached on foot from the car park along a path through meadows that in spring fill with grazing cows — a very typical scene of this stretch of coast. With no lifeguard and currents that can be strong when there's a swell, it isn't the best beach for swimming with small children, though it is good for walking along the cliff and just heading down to sunbathe.
Playa de Sonabia, in Liendo
In the opposite direction, heading east and already close to Castro-Urdiales, Sonabia (also called Valdearenas de Liendo, to avoid confusing it with the one in Liencres) is a large, wild beach flanked by Mount Candina, with more than a kilometre of sand and dunes that make it feel much bigger than most of the coves on this list. It's about 30 minutes from Bareyo, already at the eastern edge of Cantabria. The naturist stretch is at the far end from the car park, so you have to walk a bit further than on other beaches in the area to reach it — which also explains why it's one of the least crowded, even in August.
Playa de El Puntal, in Somo
El Puntal is a tongue of sand almost three kilometres long that separates the Bay of Santander from the open sea, opposite El Sardinero, which you can reach by car from Bareyo (around 35 minutes) or by crossing on the regular ferry from Santander, if you'd rather leave the car in the city and make the crossing part of the plan. Naturist use is concentrated on the stretch furthest from the village of Somo, the wildest part of the whole beach, with dunes and a protected ecosystem that set it apart from the rest of this list. Its size means that, even at the height of August, it's easy to find a quiet spot by walking a little further than most people do.
Playa de Covachos, in Santa Cruz de Bezana
About 40 minutes from Bareyo, past Santander, Covachos is a small, very sheltered cove between cliffs, with an islet joined to the sand that you can cross on foot at low tide. It's traditionally naturist and, with no direct car access — you have to leave the vehicle up at the Liencres car park and walk down a path through pine trees — it keeps a calm atmosphere even in high season. It's worth checking the tide table before going, because at high tide the beach shrinks considerably and the crossing to the islet is cut off, leaving only a small arch of sand at the foot of the cliff.
Playa de Somocuevas, in Liencres
It's the furthest from Bareyo, at around 45 minutes, but also one of the naturist beaches with the longest tradition in all of Cantabria, right next to the Dunas de Liencres Natural Park. You get down via a staircase of more than a hundred steps cut into the cliff, which filters out a good deal of foot traffic and explains its calm atmosphere despite being so close to Santander. Sheltered within a cove, the swell here tends to be gentler than on the open beaches nearby, though it has no lifeguard or any kind of facilities either, so you need to bring everything you'll need for the day.
What you need to know before you go
Nudism is legal on any public beach in Spain, so on none of these six is it compulsory to undress, nor is it at all strange to wear a swimsuit — it's simply that the naturist atmosphere carries more weight here. None has facilities such as a lifeguard, showers or a fixed beach bar, except for the odd exception in high season, so it's worth bringing water, your own shade and, if you have children, keeping a close eye on them, as there's usually no marked swimming area either. Discretion with cameras is an unwritten but strongly respected rule: no one takes photos that might include other bathers, and getting your phone out to do so is considered poor form on any of these beaches. And since many of these coves are set among cliffs or depend on stairs and paths, checking the tide table before heading down avoids surprises, especially at Covachos and Sonabia, where the available sand changes a lot between high and low tide. Comfortable footwear helps too: almost none of these beaches can be reached in flip-flops without slipping on the path.
In Cantabria, naturism needs no sign: you recognise it by the silence, the walk-in access and a cove that seems saved just for those who bother to reach it.
With six naturist beaches less than 45 minutes away, the Trasmiera coast offers an entire summer of swimming at different coves without repeating a single one. If you'd like to round out the route with more sand to explore, our guide to the best beaches of Cantabria's western coast includes Somocuevas among its recommended stops, alongside other coves in the area. You can find more information about the natural surroundings of some of these beaches on the website of the Dunas de Liencres Natural Park. Bareyo Residences is a handful of minutes from the first beach on this list, with villas designed for those who prefer a quiet beach to a beach crowded with parasols: both already have open dates for September 2027.
