The Santimamiñe cave, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008, is located in the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve in the municipality de Kortezubi.
This major archaeological site is well-known for the prehistoric paintings found inside the cave. It conserves remains of human settlement from more than 14,000 years ago and beautiful stalactites and stalagmites.
The cave paintings at Santimamiñe represent bison, goats, horses, a bear, a deer and incomplete remains of other figures attributed to the middle of the Upper Palaeolithic period.
Despite the fact that the cave paintings site has been closed to the public since 2006 to avoid its deterioration, guided visits are organised to the Cave of Santimamiñe and the surrounding area. They include multimedia projections so that visitors can enter the cave virtually and see what it was like in 3D.
Route of the visits:
The visit to Santimamiñe takes 90 minutes, starting at the meeting point and going up through a birch wood to stop at a viewpoint to admire the natural surroundings.
Once inside the cave, you will see the archaeological excavation work that is being done there. At the end, a virtual visit is made to the entire cave in 3D, including the area where the cave paintings are, to visualise them without damaging them as we breathe out carbon dioxide.
You need to reserve a visit in advance.
How to get there
⚠ NOTICE 2019: THE SANTIMAMIÑE CAVE WILL RE MAIN CLOSED UNDER ORANGE ALERT UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
The Santimamiñe Cave belongs to the municipality of Kortezubi, just 10 minutes’ drive from Gernika.
To get there, when you arrive at Gernika take the bypass in the direction of Urdaibai (beaches of Laga and Laida or Lekeitio) along the BI-635 road as far as the roundabout at Barrutia, then continue along the BI-2238 for 2 kilometres.
The Bosque de Oma, the ‘painted forest’ of Agustín Ibarrola, is also located nearby.
| Useful information | |
| Information | Reservation for visits required:
94 465 16 57 / 94 465 16 60 |
| Entry fee | General : €5 / children under 6 free of charge
Reduced : €2 Groups : €3 (minimum 10 people, maximum 20) |
| Times | From 15 April to 14 October:
Monday to Sunday: 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 15:30, 17:00 and 17:30. From 16 October to 14 April: Tuesday to Sunday: 10:00, 11:00, 12:00 and 13:00. In summer, the visiting hours are extended from 1 July to 1 August: The Information Centre is open from 10:00 to 19:00. Express visits of 45 minutes are also organised on Sundays afternoons and Mondays. |
Establishments nearby
Accommodation nearby
