Wild Spain
National parks, landscapes from another planet, waterfalls, autumn forests, caves and picture-postcard beaches.
From the team
Out into nature
This issue is for people who choose where to go by the landscape: national parks, clay deserts, waterfalls, caves and forests that change colour in autumn. All in Spain, and almost all of it a short getaway away.
Some of these places limit access to protect them; each guide tells you when it is best to book.
Every destination comes with its full guide. When you choose, we plan your trip in under a minute. We travel together.
The Bagintravel team
National parks
Spain at its wildest
Volcanoes, laurel forest, glacial peaks and marshes full of birds: a tour of the national parks.
Volcanoes and laurel forests in the Canary Islands, peaks and glacial valleys in the Pyrenees and the Picos de Europa, marshes full of birds in Doñana and Atlantic islands of white sand: Spain's national parks are the best of its nature. These are the ones we have guides to, with what to see in each.
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01 Spain
Picos de Europa
Spain's first national park: limestone peaks, the Lakes of Covadonga, the Cares route and mountain villages between Asturias, Cantabria and León.
Read the guide -
02 Spain
Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park
Ordesa y Monte Perdido, in the Huesca Pyrenees: a glacial valley between rock walls, beech forests and the Cola de Caballo waterfall.
Read the guide -
03 Spain
Doñana
One of Europe's great wetlands, with marshes full of birds, shifting dunes and the Iberian lynx.
Read the guide -
04 Spain
Teide
The highest peak in Spain, lava flows, the Roques de García and some of the best skies in the world for stargazing.
Read the guide -
05 Spain
Garajonay
A laurel forest covered in moss and mist in the centre of La Gomera, a World Heritage Site.
Read the guide -
06 Spain
Cíes Islands
Atlantic Islands of Galicia: white-sand beaches and cliffs at the mouth of the Vigo estuary, with limited visitor numbers in season.
Read the guide
Landscapes
Another planet
Clay deserts, wind-sculpted rocks and stone arches above the sea, a few hours from home.
A clay desert, turquoise pools in a beech wood, stepped lakes in the heart of La Mancha, rocks that look sculpted, stone arches above the sea and a river that falls as a waterfall into the Atlantic: the most spectacular natural landscapes in Spain, many of them a few hours from a big city.
Some landscapes don’t look like they belong here, and they are just a getaway away.
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01 Spain
Bardenas Reales
A desert of clay and gypsum in the south of Navarre, with buttes such as Castildetierra.
Read the guide -
02 Spain
Ciudad Encantada
Limestone rocks sculpted by water and wind into fanciful shapes, in the Serranía de Cuenca.
Read the guide -
03 Spain
El Torcal
A labyrinth of rocks stacked like pancakes next to Antequera, a World Heritage Site.
Read the guide -
04 Spain
Mallos de Riglos
Reddish rock walls some three hundred metres high above a tiny village in Huesca, with nesting vultures.
Read the guide -
05 Spain
Las Médulas
Peaks of red earth among chestnut trees: the landscape left by the largest gold mines of the Roman Empire.
Read the guide -
06 Spain
Beach of the Cathedrals
Rock arches tens of metres high that you walk through at low tide, on the coast of Lugo.
Read the guide
Water
Where the water falls
A river that leaps into the sea, turquoise pools beneath the beeches and a waterfall between the houses of a village.
A river that falls into the sea, turquoise pools beneath a beech wood, waterfalls inside a monastery park and a cascade between the houses of a village: Spain's most beautiful waterfalls look their best in spring and autumn, when the rivers carry more water.
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01 Spain
Ézaro waterfall
The river Xallas falls almost straight into the sea at the foot of Mount Pindo, on the Costa da Morte.
Read the guide -
02 Spain
Source of the Urederra
Turquoise pools and small waterfalls beneath a beech wood, at the source of the river, in Navarre.
Read the guide -
03 Spain
Orbaneja del Castillo
A waterfall tumbling between the houses of the village, on the edge of the Ebro canyon.
Read the guide - 04
Spain
Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park
The Cola de Caballo and the Soaso steps, on the classic route along the floor of the Ordesa valley.
Read the guide -
05 Spain
Monasterio de Piedra
A park of waterfalls, grottoes and lakes around a Cistercian monastery, in Zaragoza.
Read the guide -
06 Spain
Lagunas de Ruidera
Waterfalls between stepped lakes in the heart of La Mancha, such as El Hundimiento.
Read the guide
Autumn
Forests of colour
Red and gold beech woods, vineyards and valleys in the loveliest season to get out into nature.
Beech woods turning red and gold, ochre vineyards, chestnuts, mushrooms and the deer rut: autumn is one of the best times to explore inland Spain. These are the places where it shows most, from the Pyrenees to the Sierra Morena.
In November the beech wood sounds different: dry leaves underfoot.
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01 Spain
Irati Forest
One of the largest and best-preserved beech and fir forests in Europe, in the Navarrese Pyrenees. In autumn the ground and the treetops fill with reds, oranges and yellows, and its trails along the river and the reservoir are among the most photographed of the season.
Late October and early November
Read the guide -
02 Spain
Montejo Beech Forest
The beech wood in the mountains north of Madrid, a World Heritage Site, which turns red and gold in October and November; guided visits are booked in advance.
Read the guide -
03 Spain
Tejera Negra Beech Forest
One of the southernmost beech woods in Europe, in the Sierra de Ayllón in Guadalajara. It is the classic autumn getaway from Madrid: take it slowly and, on the busiest days, check access arrangements before you go.
Late October and November
Read the guide - 04
Spain
Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park
The Ordesa valley, in the Huesca Pyrenees, turns ochre beneath enormous rock walls. The walk to the Cola de Caballo waterfall, along the valley floor, is the best known.
October
Read the guide -
05 Spain
Ribeira Sacra
The canyons of the Sil and the Miño, with vineyards on almost vertical terraces and Romanesque monasteries. In autumn, after the harvest, the slopes turn golden and russet.
October and November
Read the guide -
06 Spain
Jerte Valley
Famous for its cherry blossom, in autumn its leaves turn red and yellow and the valley celebrates with the Otoñada, with walks and activities in its villages.
November
Read the guide
More in “Autumn in Spain: forests, vineyards and villages in colour”
Underground
Cathedrals of stone
Underground lakes, impossible formations and prehistoric art: plans for any weather.
Underground lakes crossed by boat, formations that seem to defy gravity, rivers beneath the mountains and prehistoric paintings: Spain's most beautiful caves can be visited in any weather, and inside the temperature barely changes all year.
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01 Spain
Caves of Drach
By the sea in Mallorca, with Lake Martel, one of the largest underground lakes in Europe, crossed by boat.
Read the guide -
02 Spain
El Soplao
Famous for its eccentrics, formations that grow in every direction, in an old mine in Cantabria.
Read the guide -
03 Spain
Nerja
The Nerja cave, with huge halls and one of the largest stalactite columns in the world, near the coast of Málaga.
Read the guide -
04 Spain
Aracena
The Gruta de las Maravillas, beneath the town's castle, with lakes and colourful formations.
Read the guide -
05 Spain
Valporquero caves
Great halls hollowed out by an underground river in the mountains of León.
Read the guide -
06 Spain
Santillana del Mar
The replica of the Altamira cave and its museum, with the most famous bison paintings in prehistory.
Read the guide
Coast
Beaches to dream of summer
Turquoise coves, wild stretches of sand and a beach you can only walk at low tide.
Turquoise coves in the Balearics, wild stretches of sand on the Atlantic, volcanic beaches in the Canaries and rock arches on the Cantabrian coast: Spain has thousands of kilometres of coastline and some of the most beautiful beaches in Europe. Here are the areas where you’ll find them, each with its guide so you know when to go and what to bear in mind.
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01 Spain
Formentera
Ses Illetes and Llevant, tongues of white sand between two turquoise seas, in a natural park.
Read the guide -
02 Spain
Menorca
The unspoilt coves of the south, such as Macarella, Turqueta and Mitjana, among pine woods and cliffs, on an island that is a biosphere reserve. In summer, arrive early or take the bus.
Read the guide -
03 Spain
Cabo de Gata
Mónsul and Los Genoveses, unspoilt beaches between volcanic rock and dunes. In summer, car access is limited and there is a bus.
Read the guide - 04
Spain
Cíes Islands
Rodas, on the Cíes Islands, one of the most famous beaches in Spain. In season you need a permit from the Galician government (Xunta) as well as a boat ticket.
Read the guide - 05
Spain
Beach of the Cathedrals
The Cathedrals beach, with rock arches tens of metres high that you can only walk through at low tide.
Read the guide -
06 Spain
Fuerteventura
The Corralejo dunes, wild Cofete and the Sotavento lagoon, with turquoise water all year round.
Read the guide
In the kitchen
Mountain cooking
Three recipes from our guides for after a good walk: Soria pork belly bites, Cuenca morteruelo and Asturian cachopo.
Soria, Spain
Torreznos de Soria
Strips of marinated pork belly fried until the rind puffs up and turns crisp: the tapa in every bar in Soria, with its own quality mark.
Ingredients
- 600 g skin-on pork belly in one piece
- Coarse salt
- Sweet paprika (optional)
- Olive oil for frying
Method
- Cut the pork belly into finger-thick strips and dry them well.
- Cook them in the oven at 120 °C for an hour, skin side up, so they release their fat.
- Fry them in very hot oil, skin side down, until the rind puffs up.
- Drain, salt and serve straight away.
Tip: The skin must be very dry: moisture makes the oil spit and stops it puffing up.
Recipe in its guide
Cuenca, Spain
Morteruelo
A warm pâté from Cuenca, made with game and pork, thickened with bread and spiced with clove, cumin and caraway. It’s spread on bread, a shepherds’ winter dish.
Ingredients
- 1/2 boiling hen or 1 rabbit
- 1 partridge (optional)
- 200 g pork liver
- 100 g pork belly
- 150 g day-old breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon of paprika
- Ground clove, cumin, caraway and cinnamon
- Olive oil and salt
Method
- Simmer the hen, partridge, liver and pork belly in salted water for about 2 hours, until tender. Keep the stock.
- Shred the meat very finely and pound the liver in a mortar.
- In a pan with oil, fry the paprika for a second, add the breadcrumbs and the meat and gradually pour in the stock.
- Add the spices and stir over a low heat until it becomes a thick paste.
- Serve hot, with toast.
Tip: It should have the texture of a spreadable pâté, neither dry nor runny.
Recipe in its guide
Gijón, Spain
Cachopo
Two large beef fillets stuffed with serrano ham and cheese, breaded and fried: the dish that fills the cider houses of Gijón and all of Asturias.
Ingredients
- 2 large, thin beef fillets
- 4 slices of serrano ham
- 4 slices of cheese (Asturian, ideally)
- 2 eggs
- Flour and breadcrumbs
- Olive oil and salt
- Chips and peppers to serve
Method
- Salt the fillets and lay the ham and cheese on one of them, without reaching the edges.
- Cover with the other fillet and press the edges together firmly.
- Coat it in flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs, pressing so they stick.
- Fry it in plenty of hot oil for about 4 minutes on each side, until golden.
- Serve it with chips and peppers.
Tip: The oil shouldn’t be too hot: the cheese needs to melt before the coating burns.
Recipe in its guideDownload the app
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