Picos de Europa National Park
Soaring limestone massifs, emerald river gorges and cowbells echoing across high pastures — Picos de Europa is the kind of landscape that makes you question why you ever went to the Alps. Spain's oldest national park packs an astonishing variety of terrain into a compact area straddling Asturias, Cantabria and León.
The Cares Gorge Trail
The Ruta del Cares is the park's signature walk: a 12-kilometre path carved into sheer limestone cliffs above the turquoise Río Cares, connecting Poncebos to Caín. It's mostly flat, fully signposted and utterly jaw-dropping — waterfalls thread through the rock face and griffon vultures ride thermals overhead.
Start early from Poncebos (accessible by car or bus from Arenas de Cabrales) to beat the summer crowds and catch the gorge in cool morning light. The return journey on the same path feels like an entirely different walk as the sun shifts.
Fuente Dé Cable Car & High Plateaus
On the Cantabrian flank, the Teleférico de Fuente Dé lifts you 753 metres in four minutes to the Áliva plateau at 1,823 m, where chamois graze and the views sweep across three provinces. From the top station, a network of trails fans out toward the Horcados Rojos peaks.
Back in Asturias, the village of Sotres (1,045 m) is the highest inhabited settlement in the park and the perfect base for quieter high-altitude walks. The road up from Arenas de Cabrales is a thriller in itself.
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