As you may already know, the Palacio de Velarde was born with the aim of enriching Cantabria’s cultural offer and providing travelers with an unforgettable visit, allowing them to live an immersive experience where history comes to life through holograms, historical recreations and cutting-edge technology that transform each room into a unique journey into the past of Santillana del Mar.
This innovative concept not only makes us one of the leading immersive museums in Spain , but thanks to technology, everyone who visits us experiences history in the first person, connecting with its protagonists in an exciting and educational journey. Because our goal is clear: that each person who visits us in Santillana del Mar not only learns, but is part of a true journey through time.
Technology and heritage, at the service of experience
To ensure that the tour of this Renaissance palace declared an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC) transforms the past into spectacle without losing historical rigour, we have incorporated state-of-the-art technological resources in the different original rooms.
During the guided tour, spectators walk through more than 2,000 m² where Renaissance architecture, the original furniture of the Palace and historical objects of great heritage value coexist with various audiovisual effects that allow each visitor to be transported to a fascinating environment and be part of the key moments that marked the life of the Palace between the sixteenth and twenty-first centuries. Holograms of historical figures, synchronised audiovisual scenery, interactive tactile games, ambient projections and surround sound ensure that you are not just a spectator, but an active participant in the history of the Palace.
This use of technology applied to museums does not replace the value of heritage, but enriches it, connecting past and present, and allowing history to be known from emotion and in the voice of its protagonists.
Artificial intelligence applied in a museum in Cantabria
One of the latest technological innovations that we have incorporated is our new collection of AI-animated lithographs, which make the Palacio de Velarde a pioneering museum in the use of artificial intelligence in Spain.
To do this, we have selected various characters from our collection of more than 114 lithographs to come to life and “speak” to visitors to tell them their story, their exploits and their experiences with their own voice. Through an artificial intelligence system that generates movement, voice and narrative synchronization, characters such as El Cid, Hernán Cortés, Murillo, Don Íñigo López de Mendoza (Marquis of Santillana), Juan de Herrera or Juan Sebastián Elcano are revived, allowing visitors to discover key figures in history in a very personal way.
If you want to discover it, schedule your visit to the Palacio de Velarde for your next trip to Santillana del Mar. You can purchase your ticket from this link.
