Getaways from Soria: day trips and destinations close by.

Soria looks to Aragón, Navarre and La Rioja

Soria looks as much to Aragón, Navarre and La Rioja as to Castile, and its routes reflect it. To the north-west, the N-234, the Burgos road, passes beside the Urbión pine forests: via Vinuesa you climb to the Laguna Negra, and continuing along the road you reach Covarrubias and Silos. To the west, the N-122 follows the Duero to El Burgo de Osma, where the SO-920 leads to Ucero and the Río Lobos canyon, and continues via Aranda to Peñafiel.

To the east, the same N-122 crosses into Aragón via Ágreda and reaches Tarazona and the Moncayo in under an hour; from there, via Tudela, you enter the Bardenas Reales, and further north is Olite. To the south, the A-15 drops to Medinaceli and the A-2: on one side, Sigüenza; on the other, the Monasterio de Piedra. To the north, the N-111 climbs the Piqueras pass and drops to Logroño, the gateway to San Millán de la Cogolla, Haro and Laguardia.

From Soria you need a car for everything on this page. To the Laguna Negra, at Easter, on bank-holiday weekends and in summer, the last stretch is done on the shuttle bus from the Paso de la Serrá car park, or on foot.

Río Lobos and El Burgo de Osma, the most characteristic of Soria

Under an hour is Tarazona, at 55 minutes: the cathedral with a guide and the climb to the Kiborion, the Jewish quarter and, in the afternoon, the Moncayo beech forest.

Between one hour and an hour and a quarter are the most characteristic plans of Soria: the Río Lobos to the San Bartolomé hermitage, at 61 minutes, with lunch in El Burgo de Osma; Sigüenza, from the castle to the Doncel, at 65, and the Laguna Negra, at 73, which can be seen in a morning although it calls for a night.

The bulk of the long Sundays is between an hour and a half and two hours: the Monasterio de Piedra and the Bardenas by 4x4 with lunch in Tudela, at 95 minutes; Olite and Ujué and San Millán, Yuso and Cañas, at 105; Covarrubias and Silos, at 109, with a night facing the monastery to hear vespers unhurried, and Peñafiel with its wine castle and Laguardia, at 115. Haro is exactly two hours away.

From two hours it is best to sleep away: Sepúlveda and the Duratón, at 122 minutes; Burgos and Atapuerca, at 133; Patones, the Hayedo de Montejo and Buitrago, at 150, and Segovia with a balloon at dawn, at 169.

Piedra, the Iris Cave and the birds of prey, even in the cold

In winter the plans are stone and indoors. Sigüenza is at over a thousand metres and cold, but the cathedral does not close at midday at weekends. The Monasterio de Piedra opens every day of the year, with its waterfalls, the Iris Cave and the birds of prey display. With snow or ice on the Moncayo, the Tarazona plan stays in the city.

In spring, the Río Lobos has the river full and the Bardenas are at their best: in July and August they have no shade. It is also the season for the Riojan monasteries of Yuso and Cañas.

In summer the sierra rules. The Laguna Negra with a night in Vinuesa lets you go up early, with the water still, and do the glacial lagoons route to Pico de Urbión: 13 kilometres and about four hours. The floor of the Río Lobos canyon is cool even when the plateau burns.

Autumn is the best season around Soria. In October and November the Moncayo beech forest turns red, the Piedra park changes colour and the Río Lobos poplars turn yellow; in September and October, the grape harvest arrives at Laguardia and its cellars and for a night in the Rioja Alavesa.

Tarazona in the morning and the Peña Roya beech forest before heading back

• A short Sunday: Tarazona, the cathedral and the beech forest. 55 minutes along the N-122: the cathedral with a guide in the morning, lunch in the city and the Peña Roya beech forest before heading back.
• In autumn: Piedra and the thermal lake. 95 minutes away: the park in its October and November colours and, in the afternoon, a dip in the thermal lake at Termas Pallarés, in Alhama.
• With two nights: Alquézar, canyons and Somontano. Three and a half hours away: the Vero with a guide, the walkways over the river, the rock art of Colungo and a Somontano winery.