Harbour and Memory Cubes

The concrete blocks of the harbour breakwater, painted by the Basque artist Agustín Ibarrola. Walk around the fishing harbour and the old fish market, continue along the San Antón promenade, above the Cubes, and finish at Toró beach: from its east end there is a viewpoint over the breakwater.

What they are

Ibarrola painted directly on the concrete cubes of the harbour breakwater, which protect the harbour mouth from the sea. The town council describes the work as three memories at once: the artist's, art's and the land's, with elements from his own work and from the historical and cultural past of Llanes. The language is not figurative, but the colours link one block to the next, break their edges and create new shapes; depending on the light and the water, symbols such as eyes or fish appear and disappear. Turismo Asturias even calls it the most artistic harbour in Spain.

The walk

It starts at the fishing harbour, which was important between the 15th and 18th centuries thanks to salt and to fishing for whale, sardine, hake, conger, mackerel and sea bream. The old fish market is now the tourist office, at calle Marqués de Canillejas, 1: a good place to pick up a map.

From the harbour, the San Antón promenade leads to Puerto Chico beach and joins the Toró path, which ends at Toró beach. Toró is a shell-shaped cove of about 220 metres with limestone needles rising from the sand, remains of old karst formations. It has the Q for Quality mark, lifeguards, showers, toilets, adapted access with a ramp, parking nearby and an amphibious chair that you request from the lifeguards, depending on the state of the sea.

Allow an hour walking unhurriedly, there and back. It is a flat walk, suitable for pushchairs and for any age. Dogs on a lead.

When to go

The Cubes can be seen at any time of day and any time of year, free of charge. The town council reminds visitors that the colours change with the light and the water, so it is worth seeing them at different times. Do not climb on the cubes: they are the harbour breakwater, right by the sea.

What to combine

From the harbour you can walk up to the old town and the basilica of Santa María, or to the San Pedro walk, on the other side of the town, to see the town from the cliff. If you feel like getting in the water, the sea kayak along the Llanes coast leaves from Celorio.