Playa de Oyambre, Sand beach in Cantabria, Spain

Playa de Oyambre lies in the municipalities of Valdáliga and San Vicente de la Barquera, in Cantabria, within the Oyambre Natural Park. It is a broad sandy beach on the Cantabrian coast, where the sand gives way to dunes and marshland behind the shoreline.

The beach became part of the protected Oyambre Natural Park in 1988, a key moment in safeguarding the coastal ecosystems of Cantabria. This protected status was established to preserve the region's valuable dune and wetland systems.

The beach lies within the Oyambre Natural Park, declared in 1988, and its name comes from the adjoining ría and marshland of Oyambre. The surrounding dunes and wetlands are the setting for birdwatching and walking, and the sandbar at the river mouth shifts with the tides.

The beach has restrooms, showers, and lifeguards on duty during summer, along with parking available for cars nearby. Bring a towel and check the tide times to explore the rocky areas safely during low water.

The protected area has an intricate system of dunes and wetlands where many bird species nest and feed, visible from the walking paths. These habitats create different microclimates that shift the landscape from coast to inland areas.