Galicia
This parador in the 500-year-old Monterrei Castle, opened in 2015, successfully mixes historic atmosphere, contemporary comfort and superb views from its hilltop site. The 12 large rooms (seven in the main palace, five in the priest's residence) combine sections of thick stone wall with pale wood panelling, up-to-date bathrooms, coffee-makers and soft beds and furnishings.
Dinner (menú €28) is respectable if not spectacular. Disappointingly, the wine list doesn't include any local vintages.
Mosteiro de Santa Maria das Júnias
26.66 MILES
Built on the site of a 9th-century pre-Romanesque hermitage, this lovely 12th-century Benedictine monastery in a remote river valley fell under the sway…
Looming on a hilltop outside Verín, the main structures of the doughty Monterrei Castle, including the mighty keep and the counts' palace, date from the…
14.35 MILES
The lovely Torre de Menagem (castle keep) stands alone on a grassy embankment behind Chaves' main square, the only major remnant of a 14th-century castle…
26.93 MILES
One of the prettiest, best-preserved villages in the western half of the park, Dine is home to a tiny archaeological museum, which documents the 1984 find…
14.09 MILES
Reached by a drawbridge and bordered by a park with floral designs, hedges and grand old oaks, the 17th-century Forte de São Francisco is the centrepiece…
24.45 MILES
Moimenta has a lovely core of granite houses roofed in terracotta, plus a small baroque church – a rare dose of luxury in this austere corner of Portugal…
14.43 MILES
Chaves’ handsome, 140m-long Roman-era bridge makes a lovely place for a car-free stroll. The span was completed in AD 104 by order of Emperor Trajan …
14.34 MILES
Small but interesting, this regional archaeological-ethnographic museum has lots of Roman artefacts, plus a collection of pre-Roman jewellery, bronze…
Looming on a hilltop outside Verín, the main structures of the doughty Monterrei Castle, including the mighty keep and the counts' palace, date from the…
0.38 MILES
On the approach road to the Castillo de Monterrei, Terra do Gargalo is a modern winery producing good reds and whites. It's run by noted Galician fashion…
4.12 MILES
An old winery with modern installations a few kilometres west of Verín, Crego e Monaguillo produces a notably good red (Crego e Monaguillo Tinto) from the…
14.09 MILES
Reached by a drawbridge and bordered by a park with floral designs, hedges and grand old oaks, the 17th-century Forte de São Francisco is the centrepiece…
14.34 MILES
Small but interesting, this regional archaeological-ethnographic museum has lots of Roman artefacts, plus a collection of pre-Roman jewellery, bronze…
14.35 MILES
Built on the site of an earlier Visigothic church, Chaves' Igreja Matriz sports a medieval bell tower and a Renaissance-style main portal.
14.35 MILES
The Torre de Menagem now houses a motley collection of military gear in the Museu Militar. There are lovely views from the rooftop terrace, reached by a …
14.35 MILES
The lovely Torre de Menagem (castle keep) stands alone on a grassy embankment behind Chaves' main square, the only major remnant of a 14th-century castle…