For our first anniversary, my husband and I took a 2-day roadtrip around the Picos de Europa national park and hit three of Spain’s comunidades, or regions, along the way.
Of course, we live in Castilla y León, so that’s where we started: on our way to our BnB in the mountains, we stopped at Riaño, known for its huge panoramic reservoir. The town is literally in the middle of it, up on a hill, so the views are amazing. It’s a small village that has more life in the summer and around Christmastime, but it was still worth a quick stop for coffee and some pictures, as well as to see ‘the most beautiful bench in Spain’. I can’t say for sure if it is indeed the most beautiful, but it was pretty charming:
We then made our way to Cantabria, where we stayed in a village called Tama.
It was near Potes, a picturesque village (ample oppprtunities for photos!), where we had lunch and went up the Torre del Infantado for more amazing views. The theme of this trip is pretty much amazing views!
Tama was near our main destination, the Balneario de la Hermida, where we spent an hour at the spa and sauna. Tucked in between the mountains, the location is gorgeous, but unfortunately I did not get any pictures because it was already dark by the time we arrived!
The next day, after a relaxing morning, we headed to the Monasterio de Santo Toribio de Liébana, located outside of Potes, and again, up in the mountains. The monastery itself was quaint and calming, but it is the mirador de San Miguel located 7 minutes away by foot that is really worth the visit. They built a viewing platform and even put a “selfie stick” in the perfect position for beautiful photos.
Our last stop was Llanes, on the northern coast in Asturias, where we had lunch and walked on the Paseo de San Pedro, which stretches from one end of town to the other and is up on a hill, offering views of the sea on one side and the town and mountains on the other. We also walked around the city center and visited the Ermita de la Virgen de la Guía before heading home.
All in all, it was the perfect 2-day mountain getaway and being able to visit three comunidades was an added bonus.
