Route of the Picos de Europa and the Palentina Mountain

Sunday

We begin the route on the Cantabrian coast. Gijón, historical, commercial, industrial, where the sea, the gentle mountains and the city combine, making it one of the most attractive cities in northern Spain. Its mild climate invites you to enjoy it all year round. The San Lorenzo beach, the promenade, the marina, its Black Week, its social life and its festive atmosphere invite you to get to know the city. You have to walk through the fishing neighborhood of Cimadevilla and climb the Santa Catalina hill, where you will see Chillida's sculpture “In Praise of the Horizon”, and from where the Cantabrian coast offers a beautiful panoramic view. Near the Parador there are also the Aquarium and the plant museum of the Botanical Garden. Among its many attractions, Gijón has a network of museums and a multiform cultural offer: International Film Festival, Ibero-American Book Fair, Railway Museum, International Bagpipe Museum, Jovellanos Birthplace, Nicanor Piñole Museum, Palacio de Revillagigedo, the Labor City of Culture... From Gijón you can also visit other seaside towns such as Candás or Luanco, swim on their beaches and see the Maritime Museum. And if you have not yet succumbed to its charms, it is time to try a hearty fabada or other Asturian delicacies such as cachopo or its unbeatable rice pudding. accompanied by the best ciders at the Parador restaurant, a century-old mill located in the Isabel La Católica Park, one of the most beautiful green spaces in the city.

Monday

We continue our journey inland, to Cangas de Onís, the gateway to the Picos de Europa National Park which, despite being only 87 meters above sea level, gives the impression of being a high mountain city due to the high altitudes. peaks that surround it. The grandeur of the Picos de Europa - which receive this name because it was the first thing that northerners who emigrated to America saw when they returned by boat -, one of the most spectacular and beautiful in the Iberian Peninsula, impacts the traveler. Asturias finds its maximum expression in these lands. In the council we suggest you visit the Roman Bridge, from which hangs a copy of the 10th century Victory Cross that commemorates the battle of Covadonga, the Hermitage of Santa Cruz and the Palacio Cortés. To soak up the culture of the Principality, it is necessary to enter a chigre to attend the spectacle of the pouring of cider and taste it accompanied by Cabrales cheese or the many and abundant delicacies prepared in this land by those who are specialists at the Parador - attention to its cheese bar with more than twenty Asturian cheese specialties - located on the banks of the Sella in the old Benedictine monastery of San Pedro de Villanueva. Destination for hikers and mountaineers, close to the Picos de Europa National Park, visit Casa Dago (Visitor Reception Center). The Royal Site of Covadonga, a pilgrimage site that houses La Santina, is another of the places of special interest in the area along with the Lakes of Covadonga (Enol and Ercina) and the Cares Route. The Parador, equipped for cycle tourism, also offers customers a selection of sustainable activities in its surroundings to make their stay even more fun and interesting.

Tuesday and Wednesday

We resume our march to head towards the Cantabrian slope of the Picos de Europa. The grandeur of these mountains - which receive this name because it was the first thing that northerners who emigrated to America saw when they returned by boat - one of the most spectacular and beautiful in the Iberian Peninsula, impacts the traveler. Given its privileged location, surrounded by the imposing verticality and the idyllic landscape of the peaks, the Parador is an excellent accommodation to discover the incomparable Picos de Europa Natural Park and is the gateway to magical forests, slopes and viewpoints that form a natural paradise of incomparable beauty. Through the Fuente Dé cable car, located next to the Parador, we can comfortably ascend to the heart of the Central Massif or Arríeles or to the Áliva viewpoint - you must go up to enjoy a panoramic view of the valley at 2,000 meters above sea level. There are numerous and varied routes to enjoy the surroundings - four of them within the cycle tourism program - and small mountain towns, such as Mogrovejo. The Santo Toribio de Liébana church, in Gothic style, is the most important religious building in the valley, where the Lignim Crucis, the largest surviving piece of the Cross of Christ, is venerated. It is also interesting to visit Potes, the town of bridges and towers famous for its pomace, the Mozarabic church of Lebeña and the hermitage of San Tirso. The cocido lebaniego, a regional specialty of the Parador, is a magnificent way to regain strength when you return from your excursions in the area and you cannot miss trying the peculiar Picón Bejes-Tresviso cheese that is matured in caves. In this framework, the Parador, together with local operators, proposes attractive nature experiences, highlighting its nature, history and culture, and a demanding program for bicycle lovers. And if you like adventure sports, this is your destination: canoeing, rafting, canyoning, climbing, mountaineering, rappelling, snowshoeing, climbing Naranco de Bulnes, horseback riding... Which one are you signing up for?

Thursday

We head towards our final destination in Palencia. To travel from Fuente Dé to Cervera de Pisuerga there are several possibilities and all of them guarantee the enjoyment of spectacular landscapes on a winding route of just 80 kilometers With the waters of the Ruesga Reservoir at its feet and steep peaks in the background, the Parador de Cervera is an ideal base camp for immersing yourself in the Palentina Mountain and in the splendid virgin landscape of the Fuentes Carrionas and Fuente Cobre Natural Park, a common refuge for the elusive brown bear and natural habitat of the capercaillie. A paradise for nature lovers - don't miss the spectacle of the deer bellowing between September and October - and, especially, for fans of hunting and fishing. Dare to get to know the environment through one of the routes such as the swamps, the viewpoints, the Roblón de Estalaya, where you will see “El Abuelo”, an impressive oak of extraordinary longevity; La Tejada de Tosande, with its twisted ancient yew trees, or the beautiful Fossil Forest Path, with a soil in which you can see stumps and trunks of trees from a forest that existed 300 million years ago. If you are traveling with children you cannot miss the El Robledal del Oso adventure park, a fun and original way to visit a natural environment through sports and recreational routes. The Parador is equipped for cycle tourism, proposing several personalized routes, and also offers a range of unique experiences within the Nature for the Senses program in full connection with tradition, food and Cerveran hospitality. In the vicinity there are more than a hundred Romanesque temples, from large monasteries to small hermitages integrated into the landscape, such as the Monastery and Museum of Santa María la Real, in the Aguilar de Campoo “biscuit”, the rock church of Olleros de Pisuerga or the Church of San Juan de Moarés de Ojeda, with its surprising pantocrator. A more relaxed option is to tour the Canal de Castilla by tourist boat and just over 50 kilometers to the south, the Roman Villa of La Olmeda is worth a visit, a site of palatial dimensions whose floors cover more than 1,500 m2 of colorful mosaics. At the Parador you can enjoy genuine Castilian mountain cuisine, with special attention in season to mycological and hunting cuisines. And you can't leave without trying one of their great specialties: their artisan reineta apple pie.