# Peñafiel and the Ribera del Duero

The ship-shaped castle with the Provincial Wine Museum, the Plaza del Coso, wineries you can visit on foot and roast-lamb restaurants in the heart of the Ribera del Duero.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/castile-and-leon/penafiel · Revisado: 2026-11-12

Peñafiel is the village in the Ribera del Duero where you visit the wine on foot. Up above, a ship-shaped castle 210 metres long holds the Provincial Wine Museum. Down below, the Plaza del Coso, an earth bullring surrounded by wooden balconies. All around, dozens of wineries, roast-lamb restaurants and the Duero plain, with a Cistercian monastery and a pre-Roman city a few kilometres away.

## How do I get there from Valladolid?

By the N-122, the Duero road, towards Aranda: it is about 57 km and a little under an hour. From Burgos you come down the A-1 to Aranda de Duero and continue along the N-122. From Segovia, via Cuéllar. From Madrid, via the A-1 to Aranda and then the N-122: about two hours.

## Where do I park?

On the flat, next to Avenida de la Constitución or Paseo de la Estación, and walk up. You can drive up to the castle esplanade, but the walk up from the Plaza del Coso is only a few minutes. In the centre everything is close at hand: the plaza, the castle, the restaurants and two wineries.

## How much time do I need?

A day: the castle and the museum in the morning, a glass in a wine bar, roast lamb at midday and a winery visit in the afternoon. With a night, add the monastery of Santa María de Valbuena, the Vaccaean city of Pintia at Padilla de Duero or a second winery, and have dinner without taking the car.

## When should I go?

In September and October the vines change colour and the harvest takes place; Peñafiel also holds its grape harvest festival. In spring the wineries are quieter. From 14 to 18 August are the festivals of Nuestra Señora and San Roque. In winter the castle closes at 18:00 and on Mondays; many restaurants also close on Monday.

## What to see

The castle is visited with a guide and the Provincial Wine Museum, in its south courtyard, on your own: an hour and a half in all for €6.60, free for under-12s. At weekends there is a tasting in the museum for €9.20. On the way down, the Plaza del Coso and the tourist office. At weekends, the Casa Museo de la Ribera shows a traditional house in one-hour theatrical sessions, and the sacred art museum opens on Saturdays and Sunday mornings.

## The wineries

The town council lists more than sixty wineries open to visits in Peñafiel and its surroundings. In the village, Protos runs visits with online booking and Peñafalcón, a family winery, a two-hour visit with tasting from €30. Always book: almost no winery receives without an appointment. And decide beforehand who is driving.

## Eating and sleeping

Churro lamb roasted in a wood oven is the dish: Molino de Palacios prepares it to order, Tuesday to Sunday at midday. Origen-es, in the Hotel AF Pesquera, is the gourmet table, and the Ágora de Protos, the mid-morning glass. To sleep, the Hotel AF Pesquera, in a 1922 flour mill with a spa; AZZ Las Claras, four-star with a spa; or La Casa del Coso, a whole house on the plaza for up to eleven people.

## Dónde está
- Zonas: Ribera del Duero Wines
- Cerca: Duratón River Gorges and Sepúlveda (a 39.3 km), Pedraza (a 57.6 km), Covarrubias and Santo Domingo de Silos (a 71.2 km), Segovia (a 72.1 km)

## Qué hacer
- **Peñafiel Castle and Provincial Wine Museum** (1 h 30 · For everyone · €6.60 · under-12s free): Peñafiel castle is 210 metres long and only 20 wide, on top of a hill above the town, with views of three valleys, those of the Duero, the Duratón and the Botijas stream. Because of its shape it is called the stranded ship. It began to be built in the 10th century, but what you see is mostly from the 14th and 15th centuries; it has been a National Monument since 1917. In its south courtyard is the Provincial Wine Museum, and the visit combines the two.
The tower in the middle of the ship
The 34-metre keep stands in the centre of the enclosure and divides it into two courtyards. The castle is always visited with a guide. From the top you dominate the town and the three valleys that surround it.
The Wine Museum, on your own
In the south courtyard, the Provincial Wine Museum tells the story of wine and the five designations of origin of the province of Valladolid. It is seen on your own with the same ticket, at your own pace: between the castle and the museum, the visit usually takes an hour and a half, and somewhat longer if you linger in the museum. At weekends a tasting can be booked for €9.20.
Opening hours and tickets

1 April to 30 September: Tuesday to Sunday and public holidays, from 10:30 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 20:00.
1 October to 31 March: Tuesday to Sunday and public holidays, from 10:30 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 18:00.
Closed: on Mondays, on 24, 25 and 31 December and on 1 and 6 January.

The last castle visit is 40 minutes before closing. The joint ticket costs €6.60 and is free for accompanied under-12s; groups pay €5. It is bought at the ticket office or in advance at valladolidesvino.es, and is also included in the Ribera Friendly tourist card, sold by the tourist office in the Plaza del Coso.
Getting up
On foot from the Plaza de España or the Plaza del Coso, along Calle Subida al Castillo: short but steep. You can also drive up to the esplanade. On some public-holiday long weekends the town council lays on a free bus to the castle.
Coming down to the town
On the way down, the Plaza del Coso is a short walk away, and for eating, the Molino de Palacios roasts milk-fed lamb to order. In the afternoon, a winery visit completes the wine day.
- **Plaza del Coso** (30 min · For everyone · Free): The Plaza del Coso is Peñafiel's bullring: a large earth enclosure closed in by houses with wooden balconies, with the castle watching from above. It is documented from the 14th century and the Town Council describes it as a unique heritage jewel in Castilla y León. You can stroll in it free at any hour, and the tourist office is here.
What it is like
Its layout is irregular and it is enclosed by more than fifty traditional houses, with wooden balconies from which, for centuries, the town's festivities, shows and popular rites have been watched. It was created for bullfighting festivities, but is used for other events throughout the year, and mixes the domestic with the ceremonial. Walk round it unhurried, looking at the balconies and raising your eyes to the castle. With a dog, on a lead.
Fiestas and shows
From 14 to 18 August, at the fiestas of Nuestra Señora and San Roque, declared of Regional Tourist Interest, a portable ring is set up inside the square for the release of cattle in the town's style: one bull inside the ring and another outside, a custom that has made the Peñafiel fiestas famous. The bull runs go along the Paseo del Valdobar to the Coso, and on the 15th, 16th and 17th the Chúndara, a melody adapted from the pasodoble “La Entrada”, accompanies the route from the Plaza de España to the Coso with the Municipal Band and water thrown from the balconies.
On Easter Sunday the square hosts the Bajada del Ángel, a festival of National Tourist Interest since 2011, documented since at least 1799. At midday the Virgen de la Asunción, patron saint of Peñafiel, leaves the church of Santa María and arrives at the Coso, where she is placed between two towers about five metres high built for the occasion; from one a white balloon that serves as a cloud emerges, and from it an angel descends who releases two doves and removes the black veil from the image.
In addition, the Town Council programmes light and sound shows in the square. In October and November 2026 they are on Fridays and Saturdays at 21:00, 21:15 and 21:30; in June, July and August they were on Fridays and Saturdays at 22:45, 23:00 and 23:15. Check the programme at turismopenafiel.es for later dates.
The tourist office and Cosovisión
The tourist office is at Plaza del Coso 31-32. It is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10:30 to 14:00 and from 17:00 to 20:00; on Sundays, only in the morning. Telephone: 983 881 526. There you book the Ribera House Museum and buy the Ribera Friendly tourist card. In August the office moves to the Sacred Art Museum. The Cosovisión interpretation centre, on the square, is temporarily closed for refurbishment, according to the November 2026 leaflet of the Valladolid Tourist Office.
What to combine
From the Coso you walk up to the castle and Provincial Wine Museum along Calle Subida al Castillo, a short, steep slope. If you want to sleep with a balcony onto the square, La Casa del Coso is a whole house for groups.
- **Visit a Ribera del Duero Winery in Peñafiel** (2 h · Adults · Desde 30 € per person): Peñafiel is the centre of the Ribera del Duero, and the Town Council lists more than sixty wineries that can be visited in and around the town; in 2024 and 2025 it was recognised as the best wine-tourism municipality in Spain. The designation of origin was born on 21 July 1982 and extends about 115 km along the Duero, through Soria, Burgos, Segovia and Valladolid. Its main grape is tempranillo, which they call tinta del país or tinto fino here and which makes up 95% of the vineyard. These are two that receive visitors in the old town of Peñafiel itself, without taking the car out to the vineyards.
Bodegas Protos
Bodegas Protos, at the foot of the castle, at Calle Bodegas Protos 24-28, shows its underground ageing cellar and the new winery designed by Richard Rogers and Alonso Balaguer. Everything is booked online on its wine-tourism website. For 2026 it offers two visits. The “Denominaciones” lasts an hour and a half, with a tasting of three wines (Protos Clarete, Protos Cuvée and Protos Serie Privada), an appetiser and a gift: €30 for adults and €10 for children aged 4 to 17. The “Grandes Vinos” lasts two hours, with a tasting of four high-end wines (Protos Clarete, Protos Verdejo Reserva, Protos 27 and Carroa), an appetiser and a gift, for €50, adults only. Groups of more than 20 people should enquire separately, and capacity is limited. The visit can be changed or cancelled without charge up to 48 working hours beforehand; otherwise it is charged in full. Its shop is open on Saturdays from 10:30 to 14:30 and from 17:00 to 20:00 and on Sundays from 10:30 to 14:30. With the visit you can also book a menu at its restaurant, the Ágora de Protos, in the house's first winery, from 1927.
Bodegas Peñafalcón
Bodegas Peñafalcón is a family winery at Calle Pisuerga 42, whose ancestors were already making wine in 17th-century presses. The visit, of about two hours, tours the facilities with the history of the house, the winemaking and old farm tools, and ends with a guided tasting in which the colour, aroma and flavour of each wine are analysed. The special one costs €30: three wines aged two, three and five years in barrel, with a traditional appetiser and a gift glass, and you can repeat the wine you like best. The VIP, at €60, tastes three wines of the 2006, 2007 and 2009 vintages. There is also a luxury visit for a minimum of two people, at €500 per person, with five wines and milk-fed lamb chops roasted over vine cuttings. It has no fixed hours: ask for a day and time on the form on its website or on 625 184 871.
Practical tips
Always book in advance, especially at weekends and at harvest time; the 35th Peñafiel Grape Harvest Festival was from 2 to 4 October 2026. The visits are for adults, although Protos admits children from age 4 on its basic visit. If you are driving, pick someone in the group who does not drink or stay overnight in Peñafiel, for example at the AZZ Las Claras. To understand the designation beforehand, the Provincial Wine Museum, in the castle, offers a tasting at weekends.
- **Ribera House Museum, a Dramatised Visit** (1 h · Families · 5 €): The Ribera House Museum (Casa Museo de la Ribera) shows how people lived in Peñafiel in the early 20th century, in a traditional 16th-century three-storey house. It is not toured with labels or an audio guide: it is told by actors playing its inhabitants, in dramatised one-hour sessions, and that is why it is one of the visits that works best with children in the town.
What the visit is like
The hosts are Mariano and Tomasa. Mariano shows the tavern, the stable, the courtyard, the winepress and the cellar, the part of the house tied to work and wine; Tomasa takes “the visitors” through the rooms, the kitchen, the oven and the bedrooms spread across the three floors. The performance is full of interaction with the audience, so you will live situations that today seem implausible but were everyday in the Peñafiel of a century ago. The Town Council does not say whether there are sessions in other languages, so assume they are in Spanish.
Hours and tickets
There are sessions at weekends throughout the year. According to the November 2026 leaflet of the Valladolid Tourist Office, on Saturdays they are at 12:00, 13:00, 17:00, 18:00 and 19:00, and on Sundays at 12:00 and 13:00. Every year the house closes to the public from mid-December to February, for maintenance and staff holidays.
Admission costs €5. Groups of more than 20 people pay €4 per adult and €3 per child under 12. It can also be bought together with other resources in the town with the Ribera Friendly tourist card. Prior booking is essential and is made at the tourist office, in the Plaza del Coso, on 983 881 526. Note the condition set by the Town Council: booked places are paid in full at least two days beforehand, by bank transfer, and the amount is not refunded if you then do not go. Book when you have your day settled.
With children and what to combine
It is a family visit: children get drawn into the story because the characters talk to them, and they see the stable, the oven or the winepress up close. With the smallest, choose a morning session. Allow for the session time and some margin to arrive: the tourist office, for booking or questions, is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10:30 to 14:00 and from 17:00 to 20:00, and on Sundays only in the morning.
Afterwards, go up to the castle and Provincial Wine Museum, which under-12s visit free, or take a turn around the Plaza del Coso, where the tourist office is. On Saturday you can also fit in the Regional Museum of Sacred Art, in the church of Santa María. If you stay overnight, La Casa del Coso is a whole house with balconies onto the square.
- **Regional Museum of Sacred Art** (45 min · For everyone · 2,50 €): The Regional Museum of Sacred Art is inside the church of Santa María, in the Plaza de España in Peñafiel, and brings together a good part of the religious heritage of the town and its region: altarpieces, carvings, documents and, above all, silver. It is a short visit, of about 45 minutes, and a good stop if you arrive before the castle opens or while waiting for your session.
What you will see
The highlight, according to the Town Council, is its collection of processional crosses, of national importance: numerous silver pieces worked between the 14th and 17th centuries. Among them is the Cross of the Saviour, in silver, the work of Cristóbal Romero in the 16th century. On Easter Sunday, a collection of silver crosses from Peñafiel and the region leads the procession of the Bajada del Ángel (Descent of the Angel), which leaves this church for the Plaza del Coso.
The museum also displays the original “Ordenanzas” (ordinances) that the Infante don Juan Manuel, nephew of Alfonso X the Wise and lord of the town, gave to Peñafiel, the place he preferred of all his estates. The visit is completed by the Altarpiece of the Souls, anonymous, from the school of Felipe Vigarny, 16th century; the Altarpiece of the Virgin, by Juan Ortiz the Elder, also 16th century, and a Romanesque Virgin of the 12th century, by an unknown author.
Opening hours and tickets
It is open on Saturday mornings and afternoons and on Sundays in the morning only. According to the November 2026 leaflet of the Valladolid Tourist Office, from October to March it opens on Saturday from 11:00 to 14:00 and from 16:30 to 19:00 and on Sunday from 11:00 to 14:00; the municipal website gives the winter afternoon as 17:00 to 19:00, and in summer, from 1 April to 30 September, from 17:00 to 20:00. In January and February it is closed to the public; groups wishing to visit in those months should contact the tourist office. On weekdays, groups by appointment only.
Admission costs €2.50. Groups of more than 20 people pay €2 per adult and €1.50 per child under 12. It can be bought together with other resources in the town with the Ribera Friendly tourist card, sold by the tourist office. Sometimes, within its opening hours, the museum closes for a while to attend to organised groups. Information at the tourist office: 983 881 526.
August and what to combine
Every year, throughout August, the tourist office in the Plaza del Coso moves inside the museum for the fiestas of Nuestra Señora and San Roque, so in August you can visit it Tuesday to Sunday in the morning. From the Plaza de España you walk up to the castle and Provincial Wine Museum along Calle Subida al Castillo, and in a few minutes you reach the Plaza del Coso. If you are more interested in everyday life than religious art, the Ribera House Museum has dramatised sessions at weekends.
- **Monastery of Santa María de Valbuena** (1 h 15 · For everyone · €5 · reduced €4): The monastery of Santa María de Valbuena is in San Bernardo, in the municipality of Valbuena de Duero, about 20 km from Peñafiel on the way to Valladolid. Today it is the seat of the Las Edades del Hombre Foundation, known for its sacred art exhibitions. It is visited with a ticket, taking in its church and cloister.
History
According to Castilla y León Tourism, it was founded on 15 February 1143 by doña Estefanía de Armengol, Countess of Urgell and granddaughter of Count Ansúrez, to help repopulate the lordships of Curiel, Peñafiel and Cuéllar. It was occupied by French monks, who formed a farm or monastic estate around it, and its architecture is Cistercian. In 1432 it was reformed with greater austerity, following the guidelines of Saint Bernard. In the 19th century it suffered several exclaustrations due to the confiscations; in 1835 it passed into private hands, those of Baron Carlos de Quessel, and in 1964 the Archbishopric of Valladolid bought it. Today it houses Las Edades del Hombre.
What to see
The visit goes through the spaces of the monastery that are open that day, with the church and the cloister. The Junta warns that the opening of the rooms depends on there being no events or worship inside, so some may be closed. Allow an hour and a quarter. If you are interested in sacred art, check the Las Edades del Hombre programme beforehand: sometimes there are exhibitions in the monastery itself.
Opening hours and tickets
From 1 October to 31 March it is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10:15 to 13:45 and from 15:00 to 18:45, and on Sundays and public holidays from 10:15 to 13:45, closed on Sundays from 11:20 to 12:30 for worship. From 1 April to 30 September, Tuesday to Saturday from 10:15 to 13:45 and from 16:00 to 19:45, and on Sundays and public holidays from 10:15 to 13:45, closed for worship from 10:40 to 11:30. Closed on Mondays. Admission ends 45 minutes before closing. Admission costs €5, €4 reduced, and is free on Wednesday mornings, from 10:15 to 13:45; if the Wednesday is a public holiday, the free entry moves to Thursday. Groups can arrange a guided visit Tuesday to Friday with a minimum of 25 people, and on Friday afternoons and weekends with a minimum of 50. Telephone: 983 683 159.
Getting there and what to combine
From Peñafiel you go by car, in the direction of Valladolid. On the way is Padilla de Duero, with the Vaccaean site of Pintia, and in Valbuena itself, the church of Santa María del Castillo, which can be visited free with prior booking at the tourist office; guided visits are on Saturdays at 14:00 and 20:00 (19:00 in winter) and on Sundays at 14:00. If you go on Wednesday, start with the monastery and take advantage of the free entry. On the way back, in Peñafiel, go up to the castle or book a winery visit.
- **Vaccaean and Roman City of Pintia** (1 h 30 · For history buffs · 10 €): In Padilla de Duero, a hamlet of Peñafiel about 5 km from the town, is the Pintia Archaeological Zone, a city of the Vaccaei, the pre-Roman people of the Duero valley, later occupied by Rome. It is studied and shown by the Federico Wattenberg Centre for Vaccaean Studies, of the University of Valladolid, which has its seat in the Plaza Mayor of Padilla. It is a visit for anyone curious about history who wants to see real, unreconstructed archaeology.
What you see on the visit
The visit is guided and organised by the centre itself. It begins at the Padilla headquarters, with a short introduction and a broad display of some of the most interesting pieces from the excavations. Then you go to the Las Ruedas necropolis, the city's cemetery and the most important part of the site. The guided visit does not include the wall area or the city's archaeological pits, but access to them is free, so you can explore them on your own afterwards. According to the centre, the visit lasts at least 90 minutes, although it can be cut to an hour if needed; they recommend the full version. The explanations are normally in Spanish.
In June, July and August the visits usually coincide with the excavation season, and then you see the archaeologists at work and how an excavation is done. The Peñafiel Town Council also points out that important evidence of wine consumption among the Vaccaei has appeared at Pintia.
How to book and how much it costs
Visits are by arrangement, every day, for groups of at least five adults or paying the equivalent price. You must book at least four days ahead on 983 881 240, from 10:00 to 14:00 or from 17:00 to 20:00, or by email at cevfw@uva.es. According to the November 2026 leaflet of the Valladolid Tourist Office, admission costs €10, and €8 for groups of more than 20 people. The centre's own visits page gives still lower rates, €7 for adults and €2 for ages 7 to 12, so confirm the price when booking. The tourist leaflet warns that the hours may change depending on the weather.
Getting there and what to combine
Padilla de Duero is between Peñafiel and Valladolid, about 5 km from the town: the practical way is to go by car. After the visit, the site is close to the Monastery of Santa María de Valbuena, in the same direction, and back in Peñafiel you can go up to the castle and Provincial Wine Museum to close the day with the wine of the Ribera. It suits teenagers interested in history; with small children, bear in mind that much of it is outdoors and on your feet. Wear comfortable shoes, and bring water and a cap in summer.
- **Tasting among the vines at Pago de Carraovejas, facing Peñafiel castle** (2 h · Adults · Desde 85 € per person): Pago de Carraovejas is on the hillside opposite Peñafiel castle, on the edge of the town, along the road that bears its name. It is one of the benchmark wineries of the Ribera del Duero, and its wine tourism is in keeping: not a half-hour visit with a glass, but a long tasting of two or three hours in which you tour the estate and try several wines with bites prepared by the kitchen of Ambivium, the house restaurant.
Three ways to taste
Paisajes con Alma is the shortest and the one that best fits a day with more in it: two hours, four wines from different projects of the Alma Carraovejas group and four bites, for €85, Wednesday to Sunday from 10:00. Edición Cuesta de las Liebres also lasts two hours and focuses on the terroirs and how the main wines are made, with eight wines, for €110, Friday to Tuesday. Grandes Crus de Alma is the long one: three hours, seven wines and seven bites, for €135; from January 2027 it adds Cuesta de las Liebres and rises to eight. The winery makes clear the bites are not a tasting menu: if you want to eat, book separately.
Booking and arrival
Book on their website, choosing day and time, or on 983 878 020. The website gives no languages or minimum age; if you travel with minors or need the tasting in English, ask when you book. From the centre of Peñafiel you get there by car or taxi in a few minutes.
Before and after
With the morning tasting, the rest of the day fits in Peñafiel: the castle and the Provincial Wine Museum, the Plaza del Coso and a lunch of lechazo (roast suckling lamb). As with all long tastings, the problem is the way back: if you are sleeping in the town, for example at the Hotel AF Pesquera, you can go and return by taxi and forget about the car.

## Dónde comer
- **Molino de Palacios** (Restaurant, Peñafiel, €€€). Qué pedir: the lamb menu, ordered when booking: a quarter of a lamb for every three.
- **Origen-es, Restaurant of the Hotel AF Pesquera** (Restaurant, Peñafiel, €€€€). Qué pedir: the tasting menu with the wines of Tinto Pesquera and Condado de Haza.
- **Ágora de Protos, Wine Shop and Wine Bar** (Winery, Peñafiel, €€). Qué pedir: a glass of Protos mid-morning, between the castle and lunch.

## By car: By car on the N-122, with a driver who does not taste
Peñafiel is on the N-122, the Duero road, about 50 minutes from Valladolid. In the town you walk to everything; the car is for the wineries outside, Valbuena and Pintia. Agree who is driving before the first tasting.
Presupuesto orientativo: 80–150 € por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir if you're driving
- **Hotel AF Pesquera** (Spa hotel): The AF Pesquera is a boutique hotel in a former flour mill of 1922, on Paseo de la Estación in Peñafiel, at the foot of the castle. It is run by Familia Fernández Rivera, the house of Tinto Pesquera and Condado de Haza, and is conceived for wine tourism: sleeping in the Ribera, eating in its gastronomic restaurant and visiting the family's wineries. It has 36 rooms, a spa and a museum cellar with all its wines.
On the flat, under the castle
The hotel is in the flat part of Peñafiel. On foot you reach the Plaza del Coso and the street that climbs to the castle and Provincial Wine Museum in a few minutes. The most special room, El Castillo, has views of the fortress. Valladolid is about 50 minutes away on the N-122.
Rooms named after novels

Standard: 24 rooms with air conditioning, heating, television, safe, desk and bathroom with hairdryer; room service is available.
Deluxe: five, with glass-walled bathroom and a four-poster bed; they are called El Perfume, El Amante, Seda, Lolita and Expiación.
Suites: Bomarzo and Gato Pardo, with a double bedroom and a living room with sofa bed, the ones that suit families.
Gran Deluxe: four two-storey lofts with living room and jacuzzi (El elogio de la sombra, Fiesta, Memorias de Adriano and El Aleph) and El Castillo, the largest, with views of the fortress.

Rates appear in its booking engine.
Al Agua Sana Spa
The spa has a hydrotherapy circuit and sessions for therapeutic purposes, as well as treatments and a small gym.
Origen-es and La Perla
Origen-es is the hotel's gastronomic restaurant, with the grill as the star and local produce, above all from the family estate Dehesa La Granja. It has a tasting menu according to season and a cellar with out-of-market vintages from the family, champagnes and sparkling wines. For something more informal, Taberna La Perla serves a menu of small bites, also to take away subject to availability.
If you prefer to eat out, the Molino de Palacios, a few minutes' walk away, roasts Churra milk-fed lamb to order.
Wineries and bikes
The hotel organises experiences with the family's two wineries in the Ribera del Duero, Condado de Haza and Pesquera; book on 983 88 12 12 or at recepcion@hotelpesquera.com. It has a shop with the family's wines and products, and hires bicycles at reception for the Duero trail. The hotel's energy comes from its own solar panels.
- **La Casa del Coso** (Country house): La Casa del Coso is a tourist-use dwelling (VUT-47-29) at number 22 of the Plaza del Coso in Peñafiel, the square of wooden balconies that serves as a bullring at fiesta time. It is rented whole, for a maximum of eleven people, and its façade faces the square: sleeping here means stepping out onto the balcony in the morning and seeing the empty square, with the castle above.
An old house redone the old way
The renovation used traditional techniques and recovered materials: limestone in the walls, Mudejar brick on the staircase, terracotta floors, exposed juniper, elm and pine beams and posts and wrought iron on railings and balconies. It has two entrances: the main one, from the square, and another at the back on Calle Destiladeros, through the threshing-sledge door.
Four floors, four bedrooms

Ground floor: a toilet and a yard with a fireplace-barbecue and two small sheds.
Mezzanine: the open living-dining room, with views of the square and a full kitchen with fridge, dishwasher, washing machine, oven, hob and microwave.
First floor: El Capote, with views of the square and two 0.80 m beds or one 1.60 m bed, and La Lidia, with a 1.35 m bed; bathroom with shower.
Second floor, attic: El Coso, with two 0.80 m beds or one 1.60 m bed and views of the square, the castle, the Clock Tower and the convent of San Pablo, and La Verónica, with a 1.50 m bed and a loft with another of 1.20 m; bathroom with shower.

With the two extra beds, it sleeps eleven.
The house at fiesta time
During the bullfighting festivities it is compulsory to leave the doors that open onto the square open so that people can take refuge during the capea, and El Coso, El Capote and the living room become viewing stands with tiers: the beds and the wooden balconies change place. The rest of the year it may coincide with other events in the square, such as the Bajada del Ángel at Easter or gatherings of bands and motorbikes. Ask whether your dates coincide with any.
Price, payment and times
The website does not publish a rate: ask the owner, on 619 253 305 or at reservas@lacasadelcoso.com. 30% is paid to confirm and the rest on handing over the keys, with a €200 deposit that is returned after the house is checked. Check-in is from 16:00 and check-out before 12:00. The same owner rents the apartment La Casa de Justina, for four.
From the door
The castle and Wine Museum are reached on foot from the square. For eating, the Molino de Palacios is a few minutes' walk away, and for tasting, a winery visit in the Ribera.
- **AZZ Peñafiel Las Claras Hotel & Spa** (Spa hotel): The convent
The hotel occupies the former convent of the Poor Clare nuns, dating from the 17th century, in the Plaza Adolfo Muñoz Alonso in Peñafiel. Today it belongs to the AZZ chain and has four stars. The cloister, covered with a glass roof, serves as the hotel's great lounge, and the former chapel is now the dining room. It is in the old town, a short walk from the Plaza del Coso and below the castle, which can be seen from the pool. Peñafiel is 56 km from Valladolid and 37 km from Aranda de Duero.
The rooms
There are 64, of two types. The doubles have two beds or a queen bed, and suit couples or solo travellers. The junior suites add a spacious living room and a bathroom with shower and bath to the sleeping area. All have adjustable climate control, full bathroom, free wifi, minibar, safe and flat-screen television. The website does not publish prices openly: you book on it, on 983 878 168 or at recepcion.conventolasclaras@azzhoteles.com. It advertises early-booking discounts of up to 20% and spa, relaxation and winery packs. It does not give check-in and check-out times, parking or pet policy: ask when you book.
The spa
It is the reason for many stays, and the Town Council counts it among Peñafiel's vinotherapy spaces. It has a 60-minute circuit, relaxation areas and treatments sold separately. It is open Monday to Saturday from 12:00 to 20:00 and on Sunday from 10:00 to 16:00. For hotel guests it costs €25 per adult and €15 per child, with a children's timetable to be checked; for those not staying, €31 per adult. Always by appointment, on 674 694 361 or 983 878 168. Cap, flip-flops and swimsuit are compulsory. Outside there is an outdoor pool with a garden and views of the castle.
Eating at the hotel
The Conde Lucanor restaurant is in the convent chapel and serves creative cooking with produce from Castilla y León. In summer the Parrilla Las Claras opens on the garden terrace, beside the pool. Book through CoverManager from the AZZ website. The website does not publish hours or prices.
What to do nearby
From the door you walk up to the Castle and Provincial Wine Museum and down to the Plaza del Coso. For the wine side, the winery visit in Peñafiel combines well with the winery pack or with an afternoon at the spa.
- **Hotel Arzuaga, beside the winery in Quintanilla de Onésimo** (Spa hotel): A hotel right next to the winery
Hotel Arzuaga is next to Bodegas Arzuaga, on the N-122 between Aranda and Valladolid, at Quintanilla de Onésimo, the western end of the Ribera del Duero, about 25 km from Peñafiel. It is a five-star hotel with 96 rooms and presents itself as one of Spain's great wine tourism centres, with a wine-therapy spa and thermal treatments.
Why it is a wine hotel
Because of what surrounds it. In 1982 Florentino Arzuaga bought the La Planta estate: 1,500 hectares with 150 of vineyard and a hunting reserve. The winery offers tours every day by reservation: Sensaciones enológicas, 45 minutes through the cellars with a crianza, €20, at 17:00; Naturaleza en directo, three hours through the estate and the winery with three wines and a seasonal bite, €59, at 11:00, children welcome too; and Descubriendo Arzuaga, winery and vineyard with three wines, €39, at weekends and on public holidays at 12:00. The tastings with tapas at the Taller restaurant, which has a Michelin star, range from the €59 introduction, Tuesday to Sunday at 12:30, to the €85 workshop on Saturdays at 18:00.
How it fits with Peñafiel
Peñafiel, its castle and its Provincial Wine Museum are a good half hour away on the N-122. If you taste at Arzuaga and dine at Taller, you sleep in the same place.
What the website doesn't say
The page does not give prices, check-in and check-out times or whether animals are allowed: ask on 983 681 146 or on the hotel's website.

## Luxury: Spa, tasting menu and out-of-market bottles
Peñafiel has two hotels with spas and a gastronomic table, and wineries that offer private visits. It is a wine getaway for not watching the clock.
Presupuesto orientativo: From €200 por persona y día.
### Dónde dormir in style
- **Hotel AF Pesquera** (Spa hotel): The AF Pesquera is a boutique hotel in a former flour mill of 1922, on Paseo de la Estación in Peñafiel, at the foot of the castle. It is run by Familia Fernández Rivera, the house of Tinto Pesquera and Condado de Haza, and is conceived for wine tourism: sleeping in the Ribera, eating in its gastronomic restaurant and visiting the family's wineries. It has 36 rooms, a spa and a museum cellar with all its wines.
On the flat, under the castle
The hotel is in the flat part of Peñafiel. On foot you reach the Plaza del Coso and the street that climbs to the castle and Provincial Wine Museum in a few minutes. The most special room, El Castillo, has views of the fortress. Valladolid is about 50 minutes away on the N-122.
Rooms named after novels

Standard: 24 rooms with air conditioning, heating, television, safe, desk and bathroom with hairdryer; room service is available.
Deluxe: five, with glass-walled bathroom and a four-poster bed; they are called El Perfume, El Amante, Seda, Lolita and Expiación.
Suites: Bomarzo and Gato Pardo, with a double bedroom and a living room with sofa bed, the ones that suit families.
Gran Deluxe: four two-storey lofts with living room and jacuzzi (El elogio de la sombra, Fiesta, Memorias de Adriano and El Aleph) and El Castillo, the largest, with views of the fortress.

Rates appear in its booking engine.
Al Agua Sana Spa
The spa has a hydrotherapy circuit and sessions for therapeutic purposes, as well as treatments and a small gym.
Origen-es and La Perla
Origen-es is the hotel's gastronomic restaurant, with the grill as the star and local produce, above all from the family estate Dehesa La Granja. It has a tasting menu according to season and a cellar with out-of-market vintages from the family, champagnes and sparkling wines. For something more informal, Taberna La Perla serves a menu of small bites, also to take away subject to availability.
If you prefer to eat out, the Molino de Palacios, a few minutes' walk away, roasts Churra milk-fed lamb to order.
Wineries and bikes
The hotel organises experiences with the family's two wineries in the Ribera del Duero, Condado de Haza and Pesquera; book on 983 88 12 12 or at recepcion@hotelpesquera.com. It has a shop with the family's wines and products, and hires bicycles at reception for the Duero trail. The hotel's energy comes from its own solar panels.
- **AZZ Peñafiel Las Claras Hotel & Spa** (Spa hotel): The convent
The hotel occupies the former convent of the Poor Clare nuns, dating from the 17th century, in the Plaza Adolfo Muñoz Alonso in Peñafiel. Today it belongs to the AZZ chain and has four stars. The cloister, covered with a glass roof, serves as the hotel's great lounge, and the former chapel is now the dining room. It is in the old town, a short walk from the Plaza del Coso and below the castle, which can be seen from the pool. Peñafiel is 56 km from Valladolid and 37 km from Aranda de Duero.
The rooms
There are 64, of two types. The doubles have two beds or a queen bed, and suit couples or solo travellers. The junior suites add a spacious living room and a bathroom with shower and bath to the sleeping area. All have adjustable climate control, full bathroom, free wifi, minibar, safe and flat-screen television. The website does not publish prices openly: you book on it, on 983 878 168 or at recepcion.conventolasclaras@azzhoteles.com. It advertises early-booking discounts of up to 20% and spa, relaxation and winery packs. It does not give check-in and check-out times, parking or pet policy: ask when you book.
The spa
It is the reason for many stays, and the Town Council counts it among Peñafiel's vinotherapy spaces. It has a 60-minute circuit, relaxation areas and treatments sold separately. It is open Monday to Saturday from 12:00 to 20:00 and on Sunday from 10:00 to 16:00. For hotel guests it costs €25 per adult and €15 per child, with a children's timetable to be checked; for those not staying, €31 per adult. Always by appointment, on 674 694 361 or 983 878 168. Cap, flip-flops and swimsuit are compulsory. Outside there is an outdoor pool with a garden and views of the castle.
Eating at the hotel
The Conde Lucanor restaurant is in the convent chapel and serves creative cooking with produce from Castilla y León. In summer the Parrilla Las Claras opens on the garden terrace, beside the pool. Book through CoverManager from the AZZ website. The website does not publish hours or prices.
What to do nearby
From the door you walk up to the Castle and Provincial Wine Museum and down to the Plaza del Coso. For the wine side, the winery visit in Peñafiel combines well with the winery pack or with an afternoon at the spa.
- **Hotel Arzuaga, beside the winery in Quintanilla de Onésimo** (Spa hotel): A hotel right next to the winery
Hotel Arzuaga is next to Bodegas Arzuaga, on the N-122 between Aranda and Valladolid, at Quintanilla de Onésimo, the western end of the Ribera del Duero, about 25 km from Peñafiel. It is a five-star hotel with 96 rooms and presents itself as one of Spain's great wine tourism centres, with a wine-therapy spa and thermal treatments.
Why it is a wine hotel
Because of what surrounds it. In 1982 Florentino Arzuaga bought the La Planta estate: 1,500 hectares with 150 of vineyard and a hunting reserve. The winery offers tours every day by reservation: Sensaciones enológicas, 45 minutes through the cellars with a crianza, €20, at 17:00; Naturaleza en directo, three hours through the estate and the winery with three wines and a seasonal bite, €59, at 11:00, children welcome too; and Descubriendo Arzuaga, winery and vineyard with three wines, €39, at weekends and on public holidays at 12:00. The tastings with tapas at the Taller restaurant, which has a Michelin star, range from the €59 introduction, Tuesday to Sunday at 12:30, to the €85 workshop on Saturdays at 18:00.
How it fits with Peñafiel
Peñafiel, its castle and its Provincial Wine Museum are a good half hour away on the N-122. If you taste at Arzuaga and dine at Taller, you sleep in the same place.
What the website doesn't say
The page does not give prices, check-in and check-out times or whether animals are allowed: ask on 983 681 146 or on the hotel's website.

## As a family: A ship-shaped castle and a house with actors

Peñafiel is not just wine. With children, the castle and the Ribera House Museum make a morning, and under-12s do not pay at the castle.

### What works best
The castle, with a guided visit and the 34 m tower

The Ribera House Museum, one-hour dramatised sessions at weekends

The Plaza del Coso, for running on the sand

The Valbuena monastery, with its cloister

### Sleep
La Casa del Coso, for two families together, with a yard and barbecue

### Eat
Molino de Palacios: lamb to share and home-made desserts

### Keep in mind
The climb to the castle is short but steep

The winery tastings are for adults

### Qué hacer as a family
- Peñafiel Castle and Provincial Wine Museum
- Plaza del Coso
- Ribera House Museum, a Dramatised Visit
- Monastery of Santa María de Valbuena

## With young children: A short morning in the town

With small children, stay in the town: everything is a few minutes' walk away.

### What works best
The Plaza del Coso and its wooden balconies

The Ribera House Museum, told by actors in an hour

The castle, free for under-12s

### Sleep
La Casa del Coso, with kitchen and yard

### Eat
Molino de Palacios, on the flat, at the entrance to the town

### Keep in mind
The castle is visited with a guide: a good hour for the smallest

The slope up to the castle is better with a carrier than a pushchair

### Qué hacer with young children
- Peñafiel Castle and Provincial Wine Museum
- Plaza del Coso
- Ribera House Museum, a Dramatised Visit

## With friends: Roast Lamb, a Castle and Ribera Wine

Peñafiel is a simple plan for friends chasing Ribera del Duero wine: a ship-shaped castle with a wine museum inside, wineries at the edge of the town and roast-lamb restaurants made for sharing.
A weekend fits Peñafiel well: the castle and the wine museum in the morning, a roast-lamb lunch at an asador and a winery tasting in the afternoon. Sleeping in a whole house such as La Casa del Coso lets you dine together and split the cost among several people. If the group is into wine, the tasting among the vines at Carraovejas is the most complete.

### What works best
The tasting among the vines at Pago de Carraovejas, opposite the castle: two to three hours, four to eight wines and bites, from €85 with booking

The winery visit in Peñafiel, at Protos or at the family-run Peñafalcón: tour and guided tasting, two hours, from €30

The castle and Provincial Wine Museum, with a guided visit of an hour and a half and €6.60

The Plaza del Coso, the square bullring with wooden balconies, for a free stroll

### Where to sleep
La Casa del Coso: a whole house with balconies onto the square, four bedrooms, a kitchen and a patio with a barbecue, for up to eleven people; the option for a big group

The Hotel AF Pesquera, a 1922 flour mill at the foot of the castle, with 36 rooms, a spa and bike hire

### Where to eat
Molino de Palacios, an asador in a mill beside the Duratón, with wood-oven roast lamb to order; lunches only

Ágora de Protos, a wine bar beneath the castle, for a wine with a bite before lunch

### Keep in mind
The roast lamb has to be ordered in advance: say how many you are

La Casa del Coso asks for a 30% payment to confirm and a €200 deposit

Wineries are visited by reservation; don't leave the Sunday tasting to the last minute

### Qué hacer with friends
- Peñafiel Castle and Provincial Wine Museum
- Plaza del Coso
- Visit a Ribera del Duero Winery in Peñafiel
- Tasting among the vines at Pago de Carraovejas, facing Peñafiel castle

## Consejos

### Order the roast lamb
In the roast houses it is served to order: say so when you book a table.

### Book the winery before you set off
Almost all work by appointment, at weekends too.

### Go up to the castle before lunch
The last morning visit goes in 40 minutes before 14:00.

### Buy at the winery
Winery shops are open at weekends; taking the bottles with you works out well.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### How much does Peñafiel castle cost?
€6.60 for the joint ticket to the castle and the Provincial Wine Museum; free for accompanied under-12s.

### What day is the castle closed?
Mondays, and 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 and 6 January.

### Can I visit wineries on a Sunday?
Yes, by reservation. Peñafalcón has no fixed hours and Protos opens its shop on Sunday from 10:30 to 14:30.

### How long does it take from Valladolid?
A little under an hour along the N-122.

### Is it a good plan with children?
Yes, in the morning: the castle, free up to age 12, the Plaza del Coso and the Casa Museo de la Ribera.

### Where can I eat roast lamb in Peñafiel?
In the village's roast houses, such as Molino de Palacios, always to order.