# Covarrubias and Santo Domingo de Silos A timber-framed village with Count Fernán González's tower, the Romanesque cloister of Silos with its monks singing, and the La Yecla canyon, an hour from Burgos. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/castile-and-leon/covarrubias-and-silos · Revisado: 2026-11-12 Covarrubias and Santo Domingo de Silos are the two villages of the Arlanza valley, south-east of Burgos, that are visited together in a day. Covarrubias is a village of timber-framed houses around an arcaded square, with the tower that Count Fernán González had built in the 10th century and the collegiate church where he is buried. Silos, twenty kilometres further south, is a living Benedictine monastery: a two-storey Romanesque cloister and a community of monks who sing their offices in Gregorian chant. Between the two, the ruins of San Pedro de Arlanza in a bend of the river, the juniper woods of a natural park and the La Yecla gorge, with walkways between limestone walls. ## How do you get there from Burgos? By car. Covarrubias is about 40 km from Burgos, about 40 minutes leaving along the N-234 towards Soria; Silos, about 55 km and a little under an hour. From Valladolid or Palencia you arrive along the A-62 or via Lerma, in an hour and a half or less. From Madrid, along the A-1 to Lerma and from there to Covarrubias, in a little over two hours. This plan needs a car: by public transport you cannot chain the two villages in a day. ## Where to park? In Covarrubias, outside the old town, beside the Arlanza and the bridge, and walk in: the streets of the old town are narrow. In Silos you park on the streets around the Plaza Mayor, two minutes from the monastery. La Yecla has its own car park on the BU-910, at the exit from the tunnels. ## How much time do you need? One day is enough for the essentials: Covarrubias in the morning, lunch there, San Pedro de Arlanza on the way, and Silos and La Yecla in the afternoon, with vespers at 19:00 as the finale. With a night, sleep in Silos, hear vespers without looking at the clock and the next day add the Visigothic hermitage of Quintanilla de las Viñas, Territorio Artlanza or a guided route through the juniper woods. ## When to go? May, June and October are the best months: the valley is green or golden and the monuments have long hours. In summer it is hot by day but cools down at night, and La Yecla carries little water. In winter everything opens less: the collegiate church of Covarrubias only on Sunday morning, the tower at weekends in the morning and the chapel of San Olav closes from December to February. The cloister at Silos is open every day of the year except 1 January and 25 December. ## What to see in Covarrubias The walk starts in the Plaza de Doña Urraca, continues along streets of adobe and timber houses to the gate in the wall and ends at the collegiate church of San Cosme y San Damián, with the tombs of Count Fernán González and his wife, and a cloister with a sacred art museum (€4, closed on Tuesdays). Next to it, the tower, with an exhibition of siege weapons (€6). Two kilometres away, the chapel of San Olav commemorates Princess Kristina of Norway, who married a Castilian infante in the 13th century and is buried in the collegiate church. ## What to see in Silos The monastery cloister, with the pharmacy and the museum, costs €4 and is free on Wednesday afternoons and for under-12s. Vespers in Gregorian chant are at 19:00 every day, and on Sundays the conventual Mass is at 11:00. 3 km away, the La Yecla gorge is walked in a quarter of an hour along metal walkways. ## Where to eat and sleep In Covarrubias you eat olla podrida, the village's red-bean stew, and roast lamb: Casa Galín is open on Sunday at midday and closes on Sunday evening and Tuesday. In Silos, the grill of the Hotel Tres Coronas has a wood-fired oven. For sleeping, the Hotel Rural Covarrubias, small and with a pool; the Nuevo Arlanza, in the square; and in Silos, the Tres Coronas or the Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos, opposite the monastery. ## Dónde está - Cerca: Atapuerca (a 32.5 km), Burgos (a 34.8 km), Río Lobos Canyon (a 50.7 km), Laguna Negra and Picos de Urbión (a 56.0 km) ## Qué hacer - **Old Town and the Collegiate Church of San Cosme y San Damián** (1 h 30 · Everyone · Walk free · cloister and museum €5): Covarrubias can be walked in an hour: narrow parallel streets inside what was the ring of the wall, timber-framed houses of wood and adobe with arcades, linked squares and, at the end, beside the Arlanza, the collegiate church of San Cosme y San Damián, where Count Fernán González is buried. Add a good half hour if you go into the cloister and museum. A walk round the old town Begin at Plaza de Doña Urraca, the main square, with its arcades; on it is the town hall, in the building tradition holds to be Fernán González's palace, with a 12th-century Romanesque arch. The 15th-century Casa de Doña Sancha is the best example of the village's vernacular architecture: an adobe facade with timber framing, a wide porch and a balcony. The wall, from the 10th to the 13th centuries, probably had three gates; the bridge gate lasted until 1888 and appears on the village's coat of arms. In the 16th century Dr Francisco Vallés, physician to Philip II, who was born here, had a good part of it pulled down to air the town against the plague; stretches remain beside the river. In his honour the Archivo del Adelantamiento de Castilla was built in 1575, in Herrerian style, whose documents were taken to Simancas in the 18th century; today it houses the free Book Museum on its upper floors. Look also for the church of Santo Tomás, with its 16th-century Plateresque staircase and the Romanesque font in which Vallés was baptised, and the 16th-century jurisdictional pillar, in the Arrabal quarter. The collegiate church The present church is 15th-century, with three aisles and four chapels, a 16th-century cloister and 18th-century Baroque altarpieces. Inside are the tombs of Fernán González and his wife, brought in 1841 from San Pedro de Arlanza, and that of Princess Kristina of Norway. The 17th-century organ is, according to the town hall, the oldest in Castile that still plays. In the museum there is a 15th-century triptych of the Adoration of the Magi, attributed to a pupil of Gil de Siloé, Romanesque capitals and works attributed to Berruguete and Van Eyck. The cloister and museum are visited with explanations by QR codes: €5 per person. Collegiate church opening hours in 2026 19 March to 1 November: Mondays and Wednesday to Saturday, from 10:30 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 19:00; Sundays and public holidays, from 10:30 to 12:30 and from 16:00 to 19:00. 2 November to 13 December: Mondays and Wednesday to Saturday, from 10:30 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 18:00; Sundays and public holidays, from 10:30 to 12:30 and from 16:00 to 18:00. It closes every Tuesday and, for the rest of the year, from 14 to 20 December, the afternoon of the 24th, the 25th and the afternoon of 31 December, and on 1 January 2027. Sunday Mass is at 13:00. Phone: 660 283 698. The town hall's information office (947 406 461) warns on its website that it is temporarily closed. To complete the visit A short walk away is the Fernán González tower, and about 2 km away, the Chapel of Saint Olav, built in memory of Kristina. For eating without leaving the square, Casa Galín. - **Fernán González Tower and Siege Weapons** (45 min · Families · €6 · children aged 5 to 12, €3.50): On the edge of Covarrubias' old town, beside the Arlanza, stands the tower that Count Fernán González had built to watch over the river ford. The Diputación de Burgos presents it as the first Castilian defensive construction, and today it holds an exhibition of medieval siege weapons that is among the largest in Europe. The tower According to its managers, the count built it in the year 942 on the foundations of an earlier construction, probably Roman, to stop Muslim raids. It was a freestanding tower, with arrow slits and battlements, and with the only entrance some 15 metres off the ground: you climbed a movable ladder to a horseshoe-arched door on the south face, and in case of danger the ladder was withdrawn. Today you enter by a staircase perpendicular to the tower. It has the shape of a truncated pyramid on a rectangular base, and you can tell it was built in several phases: large unworked stones below, rubble masonry in the middle and ashlar above. The ten machicolations were added in the 14th century, during the first Castilian civil war, and in the 19th century its owners, descendants of the count, roofed it so they could use it all year round; the red roof is not the original finish. It was declared a monument in 1931. It is also called the tower of Doña Urraca, because legend says Fernán González shut his daughter in here for refusing to marry the king of León and having a love affair with a shepherd. The siege weapons exhibition The show, prepared with the historian Rubén Sáez Abad, brings together weapons from the 7th to the 15th centuries, from both the Muslim and the Christian worlds, and is organised according to the three phases of a siege: long-range fire against the walls, the approach and the assault. There are full-size machines and large-format models, all operational, as well as the soldiers' equipment (swords, spears, helmets and shields), farm tools adapted for war and the banners of the peninsular kingdoms. The pieces have been reconstructed from manuscripts, reliefs and archaeological finds. Hours, prices and booking From 10 October to 20 December 2026 it opens on Saturdays, Sundays and national public holidays from 11:30 to 14:30, and also on Monday 12 October and 2 November and Monday 7 and Tuesday 8 December at the same hours. The last entry is 35 minutes before closing, and the hours depend on the weather. It is not open on the weekends of local festivals. General admission, €6; children aged 5 to 12, €3.50; over-65s, €4.50. On Saturdays and Sundays there is a guided visit at 12:00, with a €2 supplement. A group of 1 to 5 people can ask for a private guided visit for €50 in total. Groups of 15 or more pay €4.50 per person and can go outside opening hours, with a reservation. Book by WhatsApp on 677 534 267 or at info@torreondefernangonzalez.es. It is at plaza de Doña Sancha, 7, a short walk from the collegiate church. - **Romanesque Cloister, Apothecary and Museum of Silos Monastery** (1 h · Everyone · €4 · under-12s free · free on Wednesday afternoons): The cloister of the monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos has two storeys of Romanesque arches and capitals, and on its corners reliefs that are among the most studied in Europe. It was the centre of the monks' life: around it were the church, to the north; the chapter house and scriptorium, to the east; the kitchen and refectory, to the south, with the dormitory above, and the guesthouse, to the west. The visit also includes the apothecary and the museum. The cloister The lower storey was built in two phases: the east and north galleries are from the second half of the 11th century, and the west and south ones from the 12th. The upper storey is from the late 12th century. It is almost rectangular, with 16 arches in the north and south galleries and 14 in the east and west. The abbey numbers 46 capitals: 1 to 36 are from the first phase and 37 to 46 from the second. On the corners, the first master carved six large reliefs. Starting from the north-east angle: the Ascension, Pentecost, the Burial and the Resurrection, the Descent from the Cross, the disciples at Emmaus and the doubting of Saint Thomas. Later, in the late 12th century, the Annunciation and the Tree of Jesse were added. In the courtyard grows the cypress, planted in 1882, which is now over 25 metres tall; at the main entrance there is also a monumental sequoia. The apothecary and the museum The apothecary dates from 1705. In the Middle Ages the monks ran a hospital and a leper house, and that is where their botanical knowledge came from. About 400 books survive, most from the 17th to 19th centuries, among them a Dioscorides of 1525 with drawings of plants and animals, and some 400 ceramic jars made for this apothecary with the monastery's coat of arms, as well as shelves, stills and ovens. In 1927 Juan de Aguirre y Achútegui bought it and donated it to the abbey just before it was sold abroad; the present room is not its original place. The museum occupies a medieval room and gathers what was saved from the 19th-century confiscations (desamortización). Highlights are the chalice of Santo Domingo, of gilded silver with filigree and horseshoe arches, from the 11th century; a Romanesque tympanum of around 1200 found in 1964 in the foundations of the present church, with the Nativity, the Presentation and the Adoration of the Magi; an enamelled 12th-century crozier and a processional monstrance of 1526. Hours and tickets Monday to Saturday it opens from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 16:30 to 18:00; Sundays and public holidays, from 12:00 to 13:00 and from 16:00 to 18:00. On Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday it opens morning and afternoon. It closes on 1 January, 25 December and for some of the community's celebrations. General admission, €4; groups and students, €3; free for under-12s, the unemployed, pilgrims and people with disabilities, and for everyone on Wednesday afternoons. Tickets are bought at the counter, with no reservation; groups of more than 20 should let them know. There are explanations by QR codes. Allow an hour. When you leave, stay for Vespers in Gregorian chant at 19:00 or go first to the La Yecla gorge. - **Vespers with Gregorian Chant in the Church at Silos** (40 min · Everyone, in silence · Free): The Benedictine monks of Silos sing their offices in Gregorian chant, and the abbey church is open to the public for each of them. The community gathers in the church seven times a day for the divine office, which surrounds and prepares the daily Mass, and the chant is the traditional one: the Latin music of the Roman liturgy, restored in the 19th century from the old manuscripts by the French abbey of Solesmes, to whose congregation Silos belongs. It is not a concert and there is no entry fee: you arrive, take a pew and follow the office in silence. Timetable of the offices The abbey publishes this timetable for the services open to the public: Vigils: 6:00, every day. Lauds: 7:30 Monday to Saturday; 8:00 on Sundays and holidays. Conventual Mass: 9:00 Monday to Saturday, with Terce at the end; 11:00 on Sundays and holidays. Sext: 13:45, every day. Vespers: 19:00, every day; on Thursdays from July to September, at 20:00. Compline: 21:40, every day. On Sundays Terce is at 9:15, and on the abbey's holidays, at 10:30. Those holidays are 6 January, 19 March, 15 August, 12 October, 1 November and 8 and 20 December. The community warns that the times may occasionally change, without notice, because of its own needs; if you are coming a long way just for this, confirm beforehand. Which office to choose For visitors, the most convenient is Vespers at 19:00: it lasts between half an hour and three quarters and falls just after the cloister closes, which in the afternoon is open until 18:00. Compline, at 21:40, closes the community's day and fits if you are sleeping in the village. On Sunday, the 11:00 Conventual Mass lets you hear Gregorian chant in mid-morning, with time afterwards to see the cloister, which that day opens from 12:00 to 13:00. Go in a few minutes early, switch off your phone and take no photos or recordings during the office. Children may come, but it helps if they know they must be quiet the whole time; if they get tired, leave quietly. The church The abbey church is not Romanesque, like the cloister, but Neoclassical and very sober. It was designed by Ventura Rodríguez, royal architect to Ferdinand VI: the first stone was laid on 21 October 1751 and it was inaugurated on 8 September 1792. For lack of money, around 1760 the dome was abandoned and the north tower was never built. How to combine it The natural thing is to see the cloister, the apothecary and the museum in the afternoon, go to the La Yecla gorge, three kilometres away, and come back for Vespers. If you stay for dinner and Compline, on the square you have the Hotel Tres Coronas and, opposite the monastery, the Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos. The abbey itself has a guesthouse for men and the village a mixed pilgrims' hostel. - **La Yecla Gorge by the Walkways** (30 min · Families · Free): La Yecla is a limestone gorge of about a kilometre, deep and narrow, through which the Helechal stream runs, about 3 km south of Santo Domingo de Silos. It is walked on metal walkways hung over the water, and it is the quickest and easiest way to look into the Sabinares del Arlanza-La Yecla Natural Park. What you see The gorge was formed by dissolution and collapse of the rock, in a landscape of limestone escarpments and eroded synclines. From the car park, a short path goes down into the canyon and follows it along walkways less than two metres wide, between vertical walls that let in little sun. Below you can see shafts, giant potholes carved by the water and small falls. On the cliffs nests one of the largest colonies of griffon vultures in the province of Burgos, and Egyptian vultures, peregrine falcons and Bonelli's eagles also fly around. According to the Camino del Cid, first thing in the morning it is easy to see the vultures leave the walls. Duration, difficulty and season It is about 15 minutes of easy walking, and in half an hour you can do it calmly, stopping to look. It is a good plan for children, but it has no adaptation for wheelchairs or for people with reduced mobility. Entry is free and open. With small children, hold their hand on the walkways and leave the pushchair in the car: a baby carrier is better. The season changes the visit a lot. In summer the stream carries little water and the gorge looks less impressive. In winter there may be ice on the stairs and on part of the walkways: go with shoes that grip and watch where you step. The Burgos Tourism Board recommends leaving this stop, like the other outdoor visits in the Arlanza, for the months from May to October. Getting there and parking From Silos you leave along the BU-910 heading south. The road goes through some tunnels, and the car park is at the exit of the tunnels, beside the start of the path. By car it is a few minutes from the village. What to combine it with La Yecla adds effortlessly to a morning or afternoon in Silos: the monastery's cloister, apothecary and museum and, at 19:00, Vespers in Gregorian chant. If you want something more active in the same park, the via ferrata at Arauzo de Miel is to the south, about 15 km from Silos. The Camino del Cid includes the gorge in its Exile route (ruta del Destierro), which can be done on foot or by bike, and in Silos the safe-conduct of travellers following it is stamped. - **Chapel of Saint Olav, the Norwegian Church in the Valley** (20 min · The curious · Free): About 2 km from Covarrubias, in the so-called Valley of the Wolves, a chapel dedicated to Saint Olav, the royal saint and patron of Norway, has stood since 2011. It is a modern building of wood and metal whose shape recalls a drakkar, the Norse ship, and it is the end of a story that began almost eight centuries ago. Princess Kristina's promise Kristina, daughter of King Haakon IV of Norway, came to Castile to marry the infante Felipe, brother of Alfonso X the Wise. Felipe was abbot of the collegiate church of Covarrubias and obtained a papal dispensation to leave the post; the wedding was held in the collegiate church of Valladolid on 31 March 1258. After the wedding, Kristina asked her husband to build a hermitage to Saint Olav. The couple went to live in Seville, where the climate did not suit the princess, who died in 1262, childless. Felipe died in 1274 and the hermitage was never built. Kristina is buried in the cloister of the collegiate church of San Cosme y San Damián in Covarrubias, chosen, according to the Diputación, because her widower had been abbot of that house. In 1992 the Kristina of Norway Foundation was created, and it called a competition to finally build the chapel. Today it is a multi-purpose building: religious services are held there and also cultural events. Opening hours It opens only at weekends. From June to October, Saturdays from 17:00 to 19:00 and Sundays from 11:30 to 13:30; from November to May, Saturdays from 16:00 to 18:00 and Sundays from 11:30 to 13:30. The Junta's 2026 resource sheet lists it as closed from December to February, and the town hall says it closes in January and February: if you plan to go in December, confirm beforehand. Entry is free. Groups can arrange a visit on 608 903 315 or at info@capillasanolav.com. The visit is short, about twenty minutes. Getting there and what to combine The chapel is outside the village, in the valley: you reach it by car in a few minutes, and on foot it is about 2 km each way. The logical thing is to join it to the visit to the collegiate church, where Kristina's tomb is (the cloister and museum are visited with a €5 ticket, with explanations by QR codes), and a stroll round the old quarter, where the village dedicates a tribute sculpture to the princess. The Fernán González tower is a short walk from the square. Bear in mind that the collegiate church closes on Tuesdays and the chapel only opens on Saturday and Sunday, so the weekend is when everything fits. - **Ruins of the Monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza** (45 min · Everyone · Free): About 6 km from Covarrubias along the BU-905, towards Hortigüela, stand the tower, apses and walls of one of the oldest monasteries in Castile, in a meander of the Arlanza surrounded by junipers. It is a set of open-air ruins, with no roof or museum, linked since its origin to the first counts of Castile and to the legend of Fernán González, the count who made the county independent. What it was and what remains According to the Burgos Provincial Tourism Board, the monastery was founded in the year 912 by Gonzalo Fernández, father of Fernán González. Of what is seen today, the church was begun in 1080 and the tower is from the 12th century; there are also remains of the cloister and other monastic buildings. After the 19th-century confiscations (desamortización) it was abandoned, and since then it has suffered continuous looting that has removed a good part of its best pieces. Count Fernán González and his wife, Sancha, were buried here until 1841, when their remains were moved to the collegiate church of Covarrubias, where they remain. That is why it makes sense to see both places on the same day. Hours and visit Entry is free and there is no guided visit service: you walk round on your own. The Junta's 2026 resource sheet gives these hours: 1 October to 30 April: from 10:15 to 16:45. 1 July to 30 September: from 10:30 to 14:30 and from 16:00 to 18:30. It closes on Mondays and Tuesdays, the second weekend of each month and on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 and 6 January. The sheet gives no hours for May and June, and warns that the visit may be suspended because of improvement works on the site. Always call beforehand on 689 596 064, especially if you are going in those months. Allow about 45 minutes. The ruins are outdoors: wear comfortable shoes, something warm in winter and sun protection in summer. The Board recommends the Arlanza's outdoor visits from May to October. Getting there From Covarrubias you take the road towards Hortigüela; halfway, the ruins can already be seen from the road, down by the river. From Burgos you reach it by the N-234 as far as Hortigüela and there take the turn-off towards Covarrubias. What to combine it with The Board's classic Arlanza route links this monastery with the Visigothic hermitage of Quintanilla de las Viñas, which closes on the same days, and with Covarrubias, where the count's tomb is in the collegiate church and the Fernán González tower. From Hortigüela the guided walk through the juniper woods by Pedrete Guiados also starts. - **Visigothic Hermitage of Santa María de Lara, in Quintanilla de las Viñas** (30 min · History enthusiasts · Free): At the foot of the Peña de Lara, in Quintanilla de las Viñas, the east end of a Visigothic church from the late 7th century, dedicated to Santa María, still stands. It is small and can be seen in half an hour, but it is one of the few churches of that era to survive, and the decoration of its walls is very different from the Romanesque and Gothic of the rest of the valley. What you see Of the original building the apse and the crossing survive. On the outside, the walls carry friezes carved in the stone: two on the arms of the crossing and three in low relief on the apse, with vine stems, bunches of grapes and leaves, birds and other animals, and geometric motifs of Eastern influence. Among them appear monograms and inscriptions that have not yet been deciphered. Walk slowly round the building before going in, because the friezes are on the outside. Inside, the most valuable thing is the Visigothic triumphal arch that gives access to the presbytery, with reliefs of similar composition to those of the apse and two curious representations of the Sun and the Moon. The hermitage also has its place in the history of the county of Castile: according to the Burgos Tourism Board, history places here the first public act of Fernán González, who came with his mother, Countess Muñadona, as a witness to the restoration of the monastery of Santa María de Lara. Hours and visit It is managed by the Archbishopric of Burgos. Entry is free and there is no guided visit: there is a custodian, whose instructions must be followed. It opens Wednesday to Sunday. From 1 October to 31 May, from 10:05 to 16:55; from 1 June to 30 September, from 10:20 to 14:25 and from 16:05 to 19:10. It closes on Mondays and Tuesdays and on the second weekend of each month. In 2026 it also has an extraordinary closure from 3 to 17 November and on 24, 25 and 31 December, and in 2027 on 1 and 6 January; it opens exceptionally on 7 December. The dates may change because of works or other incidents, so call beforehand on 626 496 215; the Mambrillas de Lara town hall answers on 947 392 049. Getting there You go along the N-234, the Burgos to Soria road: after Cuevas de San Clemente comes the turn-off to Quintanilla de las Viñas. From Covarrubias it is about 20 minutes by car. Continuing along the N-234 towards Hortigüela you reach the ruins of San Pedro de Arlanza, the other great place linked to Fernán González, which shares closing days with the hermitage. From Hortigüela the guided walk through the juniper woods also starts. It ends in Covarrubias, where the count and his wife are buried in the collegiate church. - **Territorio Artlanza, Félix Yáñez's Medieval Village** (1 h 30 · Families · €10 · children aged 5 to 14, €5): In Quintanilla del Agua, on the BU-904 between Lerma and Covarrubias, the sculptor Félix Yáñez has built with his own hands an entire medieval village, with streets, squares, facades, workshops and a church, which you walk through from the inside. It is an open-air visit, very different from the monuments of the Arlanza valley, and has an area designed for children. How it came about Félix Yáñez, born in 1960 and a resident of the village, is a sculptor and ceramicist: he spent about thirty years selling at craft fairs in Madrid and Castilla y León. He learned to work clay from a neighbour; his father was a builder. He began by decorating a garden wall, some arches and the facade of a porch to hide the woodsheds and garage of his workshop, and when the 2008 crisis stopped him selling ceramics at the fairs, he carried on building. As he himself tells it, the more he built, the more people came to see it. He has done almost all of it with material salvaged from the rubble tips of the surrounding villages: posts, tiles, doors and adobe, as well as tools, utensils, antiques and old doors and balconies that people have given him. Inside the facades he has set up small museums with those tools and objects. During the 2020 lockdown he added a children's area of coloured houses, with comic characters, his own version of Burgos cathedral and buildings of the Arlanza valley, made mostly with coloured tiles. Hours and tickets It opens every day, including weekends and public holidays, from 10:00 to 18:00. Entry costs €10 for adults and €5 for children aged 5 to 14. The website says nothing about under-5s, so ask at the ticket office. Allow an hour and a half without rushing. As everything is outdoors, come prepared for whatever the weather is: on very windy days it may close, and they announce it on their social media. Phones: 651 100 999 and 649 129 877. Facilities and parking Halfway round there is a picnic area with tables, benches and bins to have something to eat. There are water, snack and coffee machines, toilets in the Felipe Segundo comedy theatre (corral de comedias) and, at the end, a shop with ceramics, souvenirs and local products. At the ticket office they have a first-aid kit for small wounds and stings. You park in the same street, C/ El Molino, 20, an area of low houses beside the swimming pools: leave the car inside the yellow line. What to combine it with It fits well into a day along the Arlanza with children: the village in the morning and, after lunch in Covarrubias, a stroll round the old town and collegiate church and a climb up the Fernán González tower, with its exhibition of siege engines. For lunch, on Plaza de Doña Urraca is Casa Galín. - **Guided Walk through the Sabinares del Arlanza from Hortigüela** (3 h · 4 km · Families and groups · Desde 18 € per person): Pedrete Guiados, an adventure tourism company from Burgos, runs a guided route from Hortigüela of about 4 km and three hours through the karst landscapes of the Sabinares del Arlanza-La Yecla Natural Park. It is beginner level and suitable from age 5, so it works for families and for people who don't walk often. What you see The route passes the natural viewpoint of Cueva Negra and the cave of the San Pelayo hermitage, with its rock balcony over the valley, and the guide explains how water has shaped the limestone and the legends the village tells about the cave. That is why the equipment they lend includes headlamp, helmet and gloves, all approved. The park, declared by an act of the Cortes de Castilla y León in December 2020, protects what Turismo de Castilla y León presents as the largest and best-preserved juniper wood in the world, with junipers more than two thousand years old. The Spanish juniper shares the hillside with holm oaks, Pyrenean oaks, Portuguese oaks and pines, and beside the Arlanza grows a riverside forest of ash, alder, poplar and willow. On the cliffs live around a hundred pairs of griffon vultures, and in the area you can see golden eagles, short-toed eagles and Bonelli's eagles, goshawks and peregrine falcons. Price and booking The price is per person and depends on the group: €25 in groups of 6 to 10 and €18 from 11. Children under 5 do not pay. If there are fewer than six of you, the company can join you to another group; for large groups, ask for a quote. The website does not publish a fixed calendar or meeting point: it is agreed when booking, on 652 19 38 49 (also by WhatsApp), at reservas@pedreteguiados.com or on the form on its website. Wear comfortable, warm clothes and shoes with good grip, because the terrain is stony and slippery. In summer add water and sun protection. Pedrete Guiados also offers, in the park, an introductory abseiling workshop of about four hours and, for those looking for something more demanding, the K4 via ferrata at Espeja de San Marcelino, advanced level, from age 12, with a 30-metre zip line. To round off the day Hortigüela is a short distance from the ruins of San Pedro de Arlanza, in a bend of the river on the way to Covarrubias, and from the Visigothic hermitage of Quintanilla de las Viñas, at the foot of the Peña de Lara. If you enjoyed the guided experience, the same company runs the via ferrata at Arauzo de Miel, in the same park, suitable from age 8. And to see another side of the park without a guide, the walkways of the La Yecla gorge, near Silos, can be walked in a quarter of an hour. - **Via Ferrata at Arauzo de Miel with a Guide** (2 h · From age 8 · Desde 25 € per person): At Arauzo de Miel, south of Silos and inside the Sabinares del Arlanza-La Yecla Natural Park, there is an introductory via ferrata of grade K2-K3 that follows a rock ridge. Pedrete Guiados, an adventure tourism company from Burgos, runs it with a guide and all the equipment, and it is a good first ferrata: suitable from age 8 and with no previous experience. What the route is like The route is progressive: it starts easy and gains height over exposed sections, secured with a stainless steel lifeline and grips for climbing. Once at the top, you descend by crossing three bridges of more than 20 metres, with views over the park. The company gives a figure of 200 metres for the route, without clarifying whether it is length or height gain. At the end you can add an optional 12-metre abseil. From above the park is easy to understand: a relief of limestone folds covered with Spanish juniper, holm oak and Pyrenean oak, which Turismo de Castilla y León presents as the largest and best-preserved juniper wood in the world. Look at the sky from time to time, because the park is home to about a hundred pairs of griffon vultures. The activity lasts about two hours, or three if you do the abseil. Anyone wanting more can add the harder K4 sector, which extends the outing by about 45 minutes. Price and what is included The price is per person and falls the bigger the group: €60 if there are two of you, €40 for three, €30 for four to five and €25 for six to ten. The abseil costs €5 more, and the K4 sector another €5. For groups of more than 20, they ask you to enquire. The guide provides the approved technical equipment: harness, helmet, energy-absorbing lanyards and gloves. You only need comfortable clothes and shoes that grip on stony terrain, and depending on the season, water and sun cream or warm clothing. The website does not publish a meeting point, fixed calendar or cancellation conditions: they are agreed when booking, on 652 19 38 49 (also WhatsApp), at reservas@pedreteguiados.com or on the form on its website. Before you go No experience is needed, but you must not have serious vertigo: there are airy sections and the bridges hang over empty space. If you are going with children aged 8 to 12, tell the company when booking. In summer, ask whether you can set out first thing and bring plenty of water. In the area Arauzo de Miel is about 15 km from Santo Domingo de Silos. On the way back, stop at the walkways of the La Yecla gorge, 3 km from the village, and end the day in Silos with the cloister and Vespers in Gregorian chant at 19:00. If you are looking for something quieter with the same company, it has a guided walk through the juniper woods from Hortigüela, suitable from age 5. ## Dónde comer - **Casa Galín** (Restaurant, Covarrubias, €€). Qué pedir: the olla podrida, the house dish, and roast lamb as a main; or the €38.90 tasting menu. - **Asador Casa Emeterio, at the Hotel Tres Coronas** (Restaurant, Santo Domingo de Silos, €€). Qué pedir: the roast lamb, the speciality of the wood-fired oven. - **Restaurant at the Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos** (Restaurant, Santo Domingo de Silos, €€). Qué pedir: Ibeas red beans or Castilian soup, and a roast as a main; for dessert, curd cheese or rice pudding. ## By car: By car through the Arlanza valley Without a car this getaway does not work: Covarrubias, San Pedro de Arlanza, Silos and La Yecla are on minor roads and there is no useful bus on Sunday. With a car, everything is within half an hour of everything else. Leave the car outside the old towns and walk in. Presupuesto orientativo: 70–130 € por persona y día. ### Dónde dormir if you're driving - **Hotel Rural Covarrubias** (Small hotel): The Hotel Rural Covarrubias is a local family's big old house, converted into a small three-star hotel that opened on 1 April 2022. It is on Calle Viña Vieja, a two-minute walk from the historic centre: close enough to do everything on foot and far enough not to hear the square at night. Covarrubias lies inside the Sabinares del Arlanza-La Yecla Natural Park, and the hotel presents itself as a base for exploring it. Eight rooms, one adapted It has eight rooms, doubles or triples, for 18 people in all. Some rooms have a double bed and others two beds; all have air conditioning, heating, fibre wifi and a hairdryer in the bathroom. One of them has the room and bathroom adapted for people with reduced mobility. The hotel serves breakfast. Pool, garden and free parking In summer there is a pool and a green area with a garden. In front of the hotel there is a small free private car park and, about a hundred metres away, an electric-car charging point. In Covarrubias, where the old town is not made for cars, sleeping with your car parked at the door is a comfort. From the door On foot, in two or three minutes, you reach Plaza de Doña Urraca, the collegiate church of San Cosme and San Damián and the tower. By car, the ruins of San Pedro de Arlanza and the Visigothic chapel of Quintanilla de las Viñas are about twenty minutes away; Santo Domingo de Silos is half an hour, and Burgos about 30 or 40 minutes. For a meal in the village, Casa Galín, on the square, serves the olla podrida of Covarrubias and a menu of the day at €17.80. Cycling and walking routes The owners know the area and advise on mountain bike routes, from tracks without much climbing to technical trails, and on walks in the natural park. If you prefer a guide, the guided walk through the Arlanza juniper woods starts in Hortigüela, a few kilometres away. Two phone numbers and an email By phone or WhatsApp on 667 602 084 or 637 844 830, or at info@hotelcovarrubias.com; the website advertises its best price for direct bookings. It does not publish a pet policy or check-in and check-out times: ask when you book. - **Hotel Nuevo Arlanza** (Hotel): The Nuevo Arlanza is at number 11 Plaza de Doña Urraca, the main square of Covarrubias, the one with the town hall and the timber-framed houses all around. It is a refurbished three-star hotel belonging to the Amcotur Group, with 45 rooms and a restaurant for a hundred people. All of Covarrubias on foot From the door you can walk in two or three minutes to the collegiate church of San Cosme and San Damián, with the tombs of Fernán González and Princess Kristina of Norway, and to the Fernán González tower, beside the river. For what lies outside the village you need a car: the ruins of San Pedro de Arlanza, the Visigothic chapel of Quintanilla de las Viñas, about twenty minutes away, and Santo Domingo de Silos, half an hour. Forty-five rooms, mostly doubles Of the 45 rooms, most are doubles; there are also two quadruples, two triples and three singles. All have a full bathroom, wifi, a plasma television, heating and air conditioning. The decor blends rural Castilian style with practicality, with nods to the village's medieval atmosphere. There are only a few quadruples and triples: if you are travelling as a family, book them early. A restaurant for a hundred The hotel dining room seats about a hundred and cooks local food: Burgos lamb, blood sausage, seasonal mushrooms, trout and wines from the area, which is the D.O. Arlanza. The hotel also organises medieval dinners and family and corporate celebrations. The website does not publish a menu, prices or hours; if you want an alternative on the same square, Casa Galín serves the olla podrida of Covarrubias. Booking and parking A booking made on its website is normally paid for at the hotel; the card only serves as a guarantee, except on prepaid or non-refundable rates, which cannot be cancelled. A confirmation email follows. The website does not publish prices, check-in and check-out times, pet policy or whether it has its own car park: ask on 947 400 511. The old town of Covarrubias is small, with narrow streets: leave your car in the car parks on the outskirts, beside the river Arlanza, and walk into the square. - **Hotel Tres Coronas de Silos** (Hotel, desde 99 € / night): The Tres Coronas is a stone manor house on the Plaza Mayor of Santo Domingo de Silos, the village of the Romanesque cloister and Gregorian chant, about 55 km south of Burgos. It has 15 rooms and a grill with a wood-fired oven, and from the door to the monastery church it is a couple of minutes' walk. The staircase up to the rooms already sets the mood of another era. On the square, two minutes from vespers Sleeping on the Plaza Mayor lets you do what a day trip does not: stay for vespers with Gregorian chant in the evening, have dinner without a car and enter the cloister on the first visit of the morning. The Yecla gorge is a few minutes away by car. Fifteen outward-facing doubles All 15 rooms are doubles, all outward-facing, and some have views of the square. Six have a double bed and in four others an extra bed can be added for a third person. All have a full bathroom, television, telephone, internet, hairdryer and central heating. Published prices The hotel publishes its rates, VAT included and subject to change: Standard double, outward-facing, Castilian style: €99 to €139 a night. Premium double, with breakfast: €155 to €175. Cot or extra bed: €25. Breakfast: €12.50 per person. Half board, with drinks: €90 per person per day; full board, €110. Weekend package: two people, two nights, four breakfasts and four dinners, two of them tasting dinners of local food with its Gin Silos, for €395. January to March, with a minimum of three nights, there is a lower price per person per day. Reception from 8:00 to 24:00 Reception is open from 8:00 to midnight and closed from 0:00 to 8:00: if you are going to arrive late, let them know beforehand. The bar and dining room are accessible to people with reduced mobility. The Asador Casa Emeterio, on the ground floor, makes wood-fired roast lamb its signature dish, with an average price of about €26. Via Covarrubias or via Lerma From Burgos, take the N-234 and the BU-901 via Covarrubias, or the A-1 to Lerma, 30 km from Silos. From Aranda de Duero it is 41 km along the BU-910. From Madrid, Bilbao, Valladolid or Santander you can get there in under two hours, according to the hotel. - **Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos** (Hotel): The Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos stands right opposite the monastery walls: you step out of the door and the entrance to the cloister and the church where vespers are sung is in front of you. It is run by a family, has a stone manor-house façade and, inside, wooden staircases and beams and labyrinthine corridors. Silos is on the Way of El Cid and the Castilian Language Route, about 55 km from Burgos. Three hotels in one: guesthouse, three-star and extension The house brings together three types of room under one roof: Guesthouse: simple, inexpensive rooms. Three-star hotel: the main part; some rooms have a hot tub. Extension: the most complete rooms, all with a hot tub. Each room has its own decor, with wood and natural light; many keep old washstands as ornaments, and the attic rooms have sloping beams and skylights. In the booking system they are chosen as standard or premium. If you want your window to face the monastery, ask when you book. Apartments and houses for families For those who prefer to cook or are travelling in a group, the hotel rents apartments in a new rustic building next to the hotel, with a shared pool, and four rural houses, some traditional in style and others more modern, with the hotel's services close at hand. If you cancel an apartment booking, they charge the first night, but keep it for you to use within a year. Café, dining room and garage The café is the centre of the house and is open to the public, with tapas, raciones and sandwiches. The hotel restaurant serves Burgos cooking with wood-fired roasts (€28.50 per person for lamb, kid or suckling pig) and menus at €29 and €42. It has its own garage and car park and a reception with tourist information. What to do from here The cloister and the vespers with Gregorian chant are at the door. By car, the Yecla gorge is a few minutes away and Covarrubias half an hour; Lerma is about 30 km. The website does not publish check-in and check-out times, the price of breakfast or the pet policy: ask on 947 39 00 53, by WhatsApp on 947 92 64 09 or at reservas@hotelsantodomingodesilos.com. ## As a family: A legendary tower and a canyon with footbridges The Arlanza valley works for families if you pace it: a monument in the morning, an early lunch and something outdoors in the afternoon. Under-12s do not pay at the Silos cloister and pay €3.50 at the tower. ### What works best La Yecla gorge, 15 minutes of footbridges, suitable for small children The Fernán González tower, with siege machines and the legend of Doña Urraca Territorio Artlanza, a medieval village you walk through The guided walk through the juniper woods, 4 km, from age 5 ### Where to sleep Hotel Nuevo Arlanza, with triple and quadruple rooms Apartments at the Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos, with a pool in summer Hotel Rural Covarrubias, with a pool and garden ### Where to eat Casa Galín: lamb and olla podrida to share The café at the Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos, for quick raciones ### Bear in mind La Yecla is not for pushchairs: there are stairs and narrow footbridges Vespers at Silos ask for half an hour of silence: with small children, just stay for a little while ### Qué hacer as a family - Old Town and the Collegiate Church of San Cosme y San Damián - Fernán González Tower and Siege Weapons - Romanesque Cloister, Apothecary and Museum of Silos Monastery - La Yecla Gorge by the Walkways - Territorio Artlanza, Félix Yáñez's Medieval Village - Guided Walk through the Sabinares del Arlanza from Hortigüela ## With teenagers: A via ferrata, a canyon and a thousand-year-old tower With teenagers, what hooks them is the physical and the genuinely historic: climbing a wall in a harness, squeezing through a narrow canyon, walking into a ruined monastery. ### What works best The Arauzo de Miel via ferrata, with a guide, from age 8 La Yecla gorge, with vultures overhead The ruins of San Pedro de Arlanza, with no fences or guide The Silos cloister, free for under-12s ### Where to sleep Hotel Rural Covarrubias, with a pool in summer Hotel Santo Domingo de Silos, opposite the monastery ### Where to eat The grill at the Tres Coronas, on the square in Silos ### Bear in mind Book the ferrata in advance; the price per person drops if there are more of you San Pedro de Arlanza is closed on Mondays, Tuesdays and the second weekend of the month ### Qué hacer with teenagers - Fernán González Tower and Siege Weapons - Romanesque Cloister, Apothecary and Museum of Silos Monastery - La Yecla Gorge by the Walkways - Ruins of the Monastery of San Pedro de Arlanza - Territorio Artlanza, Félix Yáñez's Medieval Village - Via Ferrata at Arauzo de Miel with a Guide ## Consejos ### End the day with vespers At 19:00 in the church at Silos. Arrive ten minutes early and sit near the choir. ### Check the San Pedro de Arlanza calendar It is closed Mondays, Tuesdays and the second weekend of each month. The hermitage of Quintanilla de las Viñas, the same. ### Do not go on a Tuesday The collegiate church of Covarrubias closes every Tuesday of the year, and so does Casa Galín. ### La Yecla, better in spring With the thaw and the rains the stream carries water and the canyon sounds. In August it is almost dry. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How long does it take to get from Covarrubias to Silos? About 25 minutes by car, passing San Pedro de Arlanza and Hortigüela. ### What time do the monks of Silos sing? Vespers are at 19:00 every day, and compline at 21:40. On Sundays, Mass is at 11:00. ### How much does it cost to enter the cloister at Silos? €4 general admission. It is free for under-12s and for everyone on Wednesday afternoons. ### What day is the collegiate church of Covarrubias closed? Every Tuesday of the year. In winter, on Sundays it opens only from 10:30 to 12:30. ### Can you take children to La Yecla? Yes. It is a 15-minute walk along walkways, without difficulty, although with stairs and no pushchairs. ### What is there to eat in Covarrubias? Olla podrida, the red-bean stew with pork, and roast lamb, with wine from the Arlanza D.O.