Somontano de Barbastro

Right in the middle of Somontano lies Barbastro, a thriving shopping and services center. We recommend you to visit its majestic cathedral, in gothic-Renaissance style, dating back from the 16^th century. Town’s old part holds nice examples of worth visiting civil and religious architecture, to be seen while taking a relaxing promenade through the streets.

Roughly 5 km from Barbastro heading off to Huesca, on the top of a lonely hill, the monastery of ‘El Pueyo’ is erected. Walking up to see it won’t let you down, especially on a clear day, which will offer you a magnificent sightseeing to the Somontano and the Pyrenees.  

If you love wine, we give you another reason to visit this area, because Barbastro is considered to be the wine route capital around Somontano. The Centre of Interpretation ‘San Julián y Santa Lucía’ is the entrance to the famous wine route, whose products take part one of the four wine Designations of Origin registered in Aragón.

Every month of August, Barbastro hosts one of the most relevant touristic wine routes in Spain: the Somontano Wine Fair. Live music, tasting contests, visits to cellars and exquisite snacks or ‘tapas’ are the main attractions in this great celebration around wine.

Barbastro is also the reference for the River Vero Cultural Park. Its more than sixty shelters with prehistoric paintings, declared World Heritage by Unesco, make it a real outdoor museum.

North from Guara’s Natural Park, formed by ranging mountains and canyons, the most alluring ravines in Europe are to be found, apart from majestic landscapes. A professional guide service should be hired at any case, from the numerous businesses in the area. With a help from them you will be living a unique experience in a wild and beautiful scenery of rock and water.

When travelling with children, a very funny trip to the River Vero passage ways is highly recommendable. It is about a short route that will let you discover beautiful spots along the River Vero flowing through Alquézar, a picturesque medieval village and a must in any tour. The castle and the monastery ‘colegiata de Santa María la mayor’ are settled on a hill. By the way, don’t miss there the Romanesque cloister or the wall paintings… almost a fairy’s tale.

Another worth walking village in good condition is Rodellar, which has become a starting point for short trips as it is located on the astonishing Mascún ravine. Several specialized businesses provide all kind of sport activities in this remarkable natural frame, with rafting and climbing outstanding from the rest.

Somontano is a land which feels proud of its magnificent monuments, witnesses of centuries of history. Romanesque churches are waiting for your visit, like the ones in Peralta de Alcofea and Berbegal, as well as splendid Gothic painting samples in Bierge, leading you to the Middle Age. You are also going to discover the Mozarab traditional legacy in the Baroque temple of ‘Santa María de Dulcis’in Buera.

After such a hard activity, we suggest you taking a relaxing therapeutic bath in one of the pools where sinking is quite complicated: salt pools in Naval, which contain a higher salt level than the Dead Sea.