Page 431 - Lonely Planet Europe’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

related activities. For have been recognised by
more on things to see and Unesco as World Herit-
TRIP HIGHLIGHT
do in Logroño, see p405. age sites.
1 Logroño The Monasterio de
Small and low-key 4 p412, p435 Yuso (%941 37 30 49; www.
Logroño is the capital of The Drive » It’s only a short monasteriodeyuso.org; adult/
La Rioja. The city doesn’t drive of 28km (25 minutes) child €6/2; h10am-1.30pm &
receive all that many from Logroño to Nájera along 4-6.30pm Tue-Sun) contains
tourists and there aren’t the N232, which transforms into numerous treasures in
the A12 motorway around the
all that many things to halfway point. its museum. You can only
see and do, but there is visit as part of a guided
a monumentally good tour. Tours last 50 min-
selection of tapas bars. In 2 Nájera utes and run every half-
fact, Logroño is quickly hour or so. In August it’s
gaining a culinary repu- The main attraction of also open on Mondays.
this otherwise unexciting
tation to rival anywhere town, which lies on the A short distance away
in Spain. Camino de Santiago, is is the Monasterio de SPAIN 31 ROvING LA RIOjA WINE REGION
Based in the small Suso (%941 37 30 82; admis-
village of Fuenmayor (10 the Gothic Monasterio sion €4; h9.30am-1.30pm &
minutes west of Logroño), de Santa María la Real 3.30-6.30pm Tue-Sun). It’s
(admission €3; h10am-1pm &
Rioja Trek (%941 58 73 54; 4-7pm Tue-Sat, 10am-12.30pm believed that in the 13th
www.riojatrek.com; wine experi- & 4-6pm Sun), in particular century a monk named
ence €28 per person) offers its fragile-looking, early- Gonzalo de Berceo wrote
three-hour wine ‘experi- the first Castilian words
ences’ where you visit a 16th-century cloisters. here. Again, it can only
The monastery was
vineyard and bodega and built in 1032, but was be visited on a guided
participate in the process significantly rebuilt in tour. Tickets, which must
of actually making wine the 15th-century. be bought in advance,
yourself. It also offers can be reserved by phone
family-friendly wine- The Drive » The dry and can be picked up at
landscapes around Nájera the Monasterio de Yuso.
become greener and more
rolling as you head southwest The Drive » It’s a 23km
LINK along the LR113 and LR205 for (20 minute) drive along the
delightfully quiet LR204 to
YOUR 18km (20 minutes) to San Millán Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
de Cogolla. In the far distance
TRIP mountains, which are snow- The scenery is a mix of vast
capped in winter, rise up. sunburnt fields, red tinged soils,
t Northern Spain vineyards and patches of forest.
Pilgrimage
Drive alongside pilgrims 3 San Millán de
on the road to Santiago Cogolla 4 Santo Domingo
de Compostela. You can The hamlet of San Millán de la Calzada
join ‘the Way’ in Logroño. The small, walled old
de Cogolla is home to two town of Santo Domingo
u Historic remarkable monaster- is the kind of place
ies, which between them
Castilla y León
where you can be certain
A quick skip south to helped give birth to that the baker knows
the Castilian (Spanish)
Soria will let you do this all his customers by
captivating inland tour in language. On account of name and that everyone
their linguistic heritage
reverse. will turn up for María’s
and artistic beauty, they
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