
Hospedería Valle del Ambroz Hotel
Why we like it: Four-star hotel in a 17th-century Trinitarian convent, with 26 rooms, cloister, library, restaurant and a seasonal pool.
Itinerary · 2 nights
Two nights in Hervás when the chestnut trees turn yellow: the Vía Verde by bike from Béjar, the Jewish quarter with a guide, the chestnut grove and the Otoño Mágico festivities.
Part of Hervás and the Ambroz ValleyThe Central System
The plan
Designed for leaving Madrid on Friday at 17:00 and sleeping two nights in Hervás on an October or November weekend. Book the bike, the meals and the guided visit first.
Friday
Leave the car outside the Jewish quarter and walk down. Dinner at Sésamo, on Calle La Cuestecilla, open Friday and Saturday from 21:00 to 22:30: book.
Saturday
Bicis Ambroz takes you up to Béjar and you ride 23 km down among chestnut trees, almost all downhill, to the Iron Bridge in Hervás. About two and a half hours; from €23 with bike, helmet and transfer.
Seasonal Extremaduran cooking, with tasting menus and à la carte, on Calle Braulio Navas. Open at midday Wednesday to Sunday: book.
With Visitas Hervás, official guide: the history of the Jews and conversos of Hervás, the Travesía del Moral and the Fuente Chiquita bridge, in the last light. You pay what you think it was worth.
Sunday
If it is picking season, ask at the tourist office about access to the Castaños del Temblar, in Segura de Toro, trees 700 and 800 years old. Or take the Castañar Gallego visit with a biologist with Visitas Hervás. If it coincides, join an Otoño Mágico activity.
The Dávila palace, with sculpture, painting and a garden, is open on Sunday from 10:00 to 14:00 and is free. Have something on the Corredera and set off for Madrid: you arrive about 19:00.
Hervás is about 290 km from Madrid, a little over three hours by car, in the north of the province of Cáceres. In October and November the Ambroz Valley is another place: the chestnut groves and oak woods turn yellow and red, the air smells of damp earth and the eight villages of the valley celebrate the Otoño Mágico, with routes, markets and activities every weekend. Two nights are enough to ride the Vía Verde down by bike, get to know the Jewish quarter with a guide and walk into the chestnut grove.
There are two routes of similar length. By the A-5 to Navalmoral de la Mata, the dual carriageway to Plasencia and the A-66 north. Or by the AP-6 and Ávila to Béjar and the A-66 south, entering the valley from above. Without a car it isn't practical: there is no train and the valley buses are few.
| Accommodation | Where | For whom |
|---|---|---|
| Hotel Hospedería Valle del Ambroz | Former Trinitarian convent | Four stars, cloister and library; from €74.95 a night |
| El Jardín del Convento | Plaza del Convento | A country house with a garden and homemade breakfast, seven rooms and a cottage |
| Hotel Spa Sinagoga | Avenida de la Provincia | Three stars with a spa, convenient for arriving by car |
The autumn festival of the Ambroz Valley, which in 2026 reaches its 29th edition, from 4 October to 29 November. Every weekend there are hiking routes, music, mycology, markets, children's activities and sport in one of the eight villages: Abadía, Aldeanueva del Camino, Baños de Montemayor, Casas del Monte, La Garganta, Gargantilla, Hervás and Segura de Toro. Some activities require registration: check the programme on the Hervás Tourism website before you leave.
It is a good family weekend: the Vía Verde is almost all downhill and Bicis Ambroz has children's bikes, trailers and seats; the Jewish quarter is explored like a maze; and the Otoño Mágico programmes children's activities.
Map
Plan the trip
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
How you travel
The plan stays the same. What changes is where you sleep, how you get there and how much you spend.
Hervás is beside the A-66, an hour and a quarter from Salamanca and an hour and twenty from Cáceres, and the car opens up the rest of the valley: Segura de Toro, Cáparra, Baños de Montemayor or Granadilla. In the village, leave it outside the Jewish quarter and walk.
Hervás is the end of the prettiest stretch of the Vía Verde de la Plata, the old Ruta de la Plata railway. You do not need to bring a bike: Bicis Ambroz takes you up to Béjar or Puerto de Béjar and you ride down at your own pace. If you come with your own, you can continue down the valley to Aldeanueva del Camino or Plasencia.
Where to stay
We show you what suits the way you travel.Change how you travel

Why we like it: Four-star hotel in a 17th-century Trinitarian convent, with 26 rooms, cloister, library, restaurant and a seasonal pool.

Why we like it: A 19th-century family house with a garden, glazed gallery and seven rooms plus a small cottage, on the Plaza del Convento; homemade buffet breakfast.
Why we like it: Three-star hotel in the centre of Hervás with spa, seasonal outdoor pool, restaurant with daily menu and views of the chestnut groves.
Services for this trip
Areas, for any way of travelling
| Area | Who it's for | Average night |
|---|---|---|
| Jewish Quarter | Half-timbered houses, narrow streets and rural houses | |
| La Corredera | Square, restaurants and the tourist office | |
| The Convent | The Hospedería and the church of San Juan Bautista |
Where to eat

What to order: the Extremaduran-style pig's trotter ravioli, the house's classic bite, and seasonal mushrooms; or one of the tasting menus

What to order: the seasonal menu with produce from the valley; ask for a table in the dining room if it rains and on the terrace if it is fine

What to order: the season's Extremaduran game menu, from €55, or the traditional menu with Extremadura wines
Tips
Book everything at once: in autumn, the morning bikes, Nardi and Sésamo fill up on Saturdays.
Going on a November weekend without looking at the programme: some Otoño Mágico activities have limited places.
Questions
A little over three hours by car, about 290 km via Plasencia or via Ávila and Béjar.
In October and November, coinciding with the Otoño Mágico.
At the Hospedería Valle del Ambroz, at El Jardín del Convento or at the Hotel Spa Sinagoga.
Yes, from Béjar to Hervás it is almost all downhill and there are bikes and trailers for children.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/extremadura/hervas-and-the-ambroz-valley/itineraries/autumn-hervas-ambroz-valley-from-madrid