Environment

Rio Trueba in Medina de Pomar

For most people Spain conjures up images of the Costas, with their sun, sand, sangria and flamenco for foreigners.

But Spain has so much more to offer the visitor. This is especially true of the north of Spain where we have decided to spend this new phase of our lives. Unspoiled nature, a hundred Romanesque churches, castles, beautiful and dynamic cities with unique museums like the Guggenheim in Bilbao and the Artium in Vitoria, and with magnificent monuments such as the cathedral in Burgos. But above all there are the small villages, home to the spontaneous people and the simple life make this area so worth visiting. An hour’s drive will take lovers of fine wines right to the heart of the Rioja region, and the up-and-coming and highly esteemed Ribiera del Duero region can be reached in an hour and a half. And if beaches are more your thing, in just over an hour you can be lying on one of the spectacular beaches of the Cantabrian or Basque coast.

We live in this beautiful, unspoilt region, where it sometimes it seems as though time has stood still. An authentic region that has not yet been discovered by the masses. This has major advantages. It is still unspoiled and pristine, life revolves around agriculture and forestry. The catering and other facilities are mainly targeted at local people and families, many from the Basque Country who migrated there to find work in the fifties and sixties and still possess their family home. And then there are the pleasant climate, the delicious local cuisine, breath taking scenery, and an unexpected wealth of castles and Romanesque churches. For us to know the Merindades has been a great experience that we now wish to share with you.

                                             Las Merindades              Cities             La Rioja Wine region

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