Aguilar de Campoo: a cloister, a church in the rock and roast lamb at Mave.

A Sunday to understand the Romanesque of northern Palencia without getting lost on the roads: the monastery that explains the whole area, the town of Aguilar with its square and castle, a church cut into a crag and another beside the Pisuerga, and lunch in the former convent of Mave, next to that last church. Aguilar is a little over an hour from Palencia, Burgos and Santander, and the whole day fits within 20 km.

The day, hour by hour

9:00 · Set off. From Palencia, on the A-67 towards Santander. From Burgos, on the N-627. From Santander, on the A-67 southwards.

10:15 · Santa María la Real. On the way out of Aguilar towards Cervera, with its own car park. The Romanesque cloister and the ROM, with models of the churches of the area, are the best introduction to what you will see next. The self-guided visit costs €4.50; the guided one, of 50 minutes, €7.50.

11:30 · The square and the castle. Go down to the centre and park beside the Paseo de la Cascajera. The collegiate church of San Miguel opens on Sundays from 11:00 to 14:00 and so does Santa Cecilia, the Romanesque church on the hillside. Each costs €2. If you have time to spare, climb up to the castle through the streets of the old quarter.

12:45 · Olleros de Pisuerga. 6 km to the south, the hermitage of Santos Justo y Pastor is carved into the crag, with the bell gable above the rock. It opens from 11:00 to 14:00; €2.

13:20 · Santa María de Mave. A few kilometres further down, the church of the former Mave monastery, beside the Pisuerga. Same hours and same price. Park at the convent door.

14:00 · Lunch at El Convento de Mave. The hotel restaurant occupies the monastery's outbuildings. If you want roast lamb, order it the day before on 979 123 611: a quarter, for two, costs €67. Without an order, Pisuerga trout, stewed lamb or Castilian soup. On Sundays it serves lunch from 13:30 to 15:30.

16:15 · Head home. You return by Aguilar and the A-67. If there is still light and you are in the mood, Aguilar castle can also be seen from outside at that hour.

With children

The church inside the rock and the ROM models are usually a hit. The castle is a short climb. If they are small, swap the morning for the bison of San Cebrián de Mudá, which open at weekends from 10:00 to 12:30, and still eat at Mave.

With dogs

In the street and outside the churches, on a lead. Dogs are not allowed in the churches or the museum.