Burgos

Catedral de Burgos

• One of the most beautiful places in Spain

A jewel of Spanish Gothic and a World Heritage Site (1984), with its openwork towers and Golden Staircase. It holds the tomb of the Campeador “El Cid”, famed in the wars of the taifa kings and ruler of Valencia.

Museo de la Evolución Humana

A modern museum displaying the original Atapuerca fossils, the oldest human remains in Western Europe, in an enjoyable interactive display.

Pendón de las Navas de Tolosa (Museo de Telas Medievales, Las Huelgas)

• Originally a mosque (probably)

An Almohad textile of silk and gold thread (about 326×222 cm) woven on a loom, with an eight-pointed star inside a circle surrounded by bands of Arabic inscriptions and verses of the Quran. It is not a banner but a tent-door curtain. The traditional account is that it was Alfonso VIII's booty from the tent of the caliph Muhammad al-Nasir at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa (609 AH/1212 CE).

Monasterio de Santo Domingo de Silos

· Santo Domingo de Silos

A famous Benedictine monastery with its 11th-century Romanesque cloisters, whose carved capitals of animals and plant motifs show clear traces of Andalusi art, and a painted Mudéjar wooden ceiling. Its monks are known for Gregorian chant.

Easy to reach · needs a car

An hour from Burgos by car; no practical public transport. The visit is flat and easy (45 minutes), suitable for older visitors.

Orbaneja del Castillo (cascada)

· Orbaneja del Castillo

A magical village in the upper Ebro valley. Its river rises from the “Cave of Water” and runs as a waterfall between the houses before flowing into the Ebro. It is surrounded by strangely shaped limestone rocks, one of the most beautiful villages in Spain and among the most photographed in the north.

Easy to reach · needs a car

An hour and a quarter from Burgos or Santander by car; no public transport. Short, simple walks, and a climb to the cave by stone steps; one hour.

Covarrubias – Torreón de Fernán González

· Covarrubias

One of the most beautiful villages in Spain, with timber houses, arcades and walls, and cradle of the County of Castile. Its 10th-century tower is the only Castilian fortification surviving from before the 11th century, the age of the struggle with the Umayyad caliphate of Córdoba.

Easy to reach · needs a car

By car (an hour from Burgos). Park at the entrance to the town; the lanes are level. Climb the tower by an internal staircase. Restaurants and cafés in the town.

Castillo de Castrojeriz

· Castrojeriz

A long town stretched along a hillside on the Burgos plains, crowned by an old fortress that dates from the Visigothic era and saw many wars. It is a well-known stop on the Camino de Santiago.

Moderate effort · needs a car

45 minutes west of Burgos by car. The road to the top is dirt and exposed; bring water. Not suitable for strollers.

Cottage Montealegre

· Mozoncillo de Juarros

A whole country cottage for rent, sleeping more than 15 people, with a heated pool, a garden and a children’s play area, about 20 km from Burgos. Complete privacy for a large family.

Yacimientos de Atapuerca

· Ibeas de Juarros

World Heritage excavation sites where remains of people who lived about a million years ago were found, with an experimental centre for making tools and lighting fire.

How to get there

Bus from Burgos to the Ibeas visitor centre (about 30 min); by car about 25 min.

Moderate effort · needs a car

By car (or by bus from the Museo de la Evolución Humana in Burgos as part of a tour). From the reception centre, a bus to the caves, then about an hour and a half on foot over dirt ground and metal stairs; hard going for pushchairs. Sun, wind and cold; no services at the site.

Plaza Mayor y Palacio Ducal de Lerma

· Lerma

A town on a rise above the Arlanza river, re-planned in the early 17th century by the Duke of Lerma, the powerful minister of Philip III, who turned it into a small royal court: one of the widest squares in Spain and a majestic ducal palace, today the Parador hotel.

Easy to reach · needs a car

40 minutes south of Burgos on the A-1, with buses from Burgos and Madrid. The town sits on a hill but the square is flat; an hour and a half.

Cascada de Tobera

· Tobera (Frías)

Small stepped waterfalls cut by the Molinar river in the medieval village of Tobera, between a bridge of Roman origin, old watermills and the church of Santa María de la Encina. It is a few minutes from Frías, Spain’s smallest “city”.

Easy to reach · needs a car

Inside the village of Tobera: park at the entrance and walk a short way along a wooden walkway and steps. Services in Frías (5 min).

Lagunas de Neila

· Neila

A group of glacial lakes at about 1900 m in the Demanda mountains of Burgos, carved by glaciers tens of thousands of years ago. The best known are Laguna Negra and Laguna de la Cascada, where a waterfall drops over a cliff.

Moderate effort · needs a car

Mountain road from Neila to the car parks near the lakes (a barrier closes in winter and snow). From the car park it is 10–20 min to the nearest lake; the full route is 8 km (3 hours) with slopes. Fog and cold.

Cañón del Ebro (Mirador de Pesquera)

· Pesquera de Ebro

A deep gorge carved by the Ebro (called “Ibra” by the Arab geographers): a maze of bends between limestone cliffs north of Burgos. From the Pesquera viewpoint the river’s loops look like a painting, with vultures soaring above them.

Easy to reach · needs a car

Viewpoint beside the road near Pesquera de Ebro: a small car park and a short walk. No services. The road is narrow.

NH Collection Palacio de Burgos

• One of the city's best hotels

A 16th-century monastery on the river bank, a few minutes from the cathedral, with excellent breakfast in a historic hall.

Hotel Landa

• One of the city's best hotels
• Romantic

A five-star hotel built around a 14th-century tower, with a famous indoor–outdoor pool, an ideal stop on the Madrid–North road.

Parador de Lerma

· Lerma

The 17th-century palace of the Duke of Lerma dominates the town’s great square, with a huge covered inner courtyard. An ideal stop between Madrid and Burgos.

Hotel Rice Palacio de los Blasones

• Boutique

A 16th-century palace, renovated while keeping its original stone, a short walk from the cathedral. Some of its rooms are duplex, with a lounge on the ground floor.

Crisol Mesón del Cid

• Boutique

A historic hotel directly opposite Burgos Cathedral, with spacious rooms and a stunning view of the cathedral. The location is its best feature.

Café España

A historic café in central Burgos, opened in the 1920s, with the atmosphere of an early-20th-century café: dark wood, mirrors and a piano, and quiet jazz. It reopened after a temporary closure, and locals call it “the most venerable café in Burgos”.

Área recreativa de Zarcia (Sierra de la Demanda)

· Santa Cruz del Valle Urbión

A wide meadow beside a river in the Demanda mountains near Burgos, with tables, a covered shelter and barbecue grills, and paths from it to the Altuzarra waterfalls.

Easy to reach · needs a car

By car, about an hour from Burgos; tables beside the car park. Medium shade.

Barbecue

Conditional: allowed only at the fixed, designated grills outside the danger season (usually banned from about 1 July to 30 September and on alert days); check the signs.