Province of León

A settlement area of Roman legions, the province of León boasts a great historical and artistic heritage resulting from its Roman, Visigothic, Arab, and Christian pasts.

Thus, in the eponymous capital, we can contemplate the primitive walls dating from the Roman domination era and also admire places like the Renaissance convent of San Marcos, which currently houses the national parador of León; the Collegiate Church of San Isidoro, Romanesque; or the cathedral of León, a Gothic architectural jewel. The Casa Botines, currently the social headquarters of a banking entity, was designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí and planned to be a fabric warehouse on the ground floor and offices and homes on the upper floor.

Meanwhile, regions of the province of León like Ponferrada or El Bierzo offer a wide range of historical sites to visit for cultural visits. Ponferrada preserves a small and beautiful old town. One can also visit Las Médulas there, ancient Roman open-cast gold mines that are excellently preserved. In Astorga, many preserved Roman spaces stand out: the greater and lesser baths, the Aedes Augusti, the Roman sewers, the domus mosaic, the camp ditch or the forum, whose remains can be seen under the Main Square, the space by which it was replaced. In addition, the province boasts the so-called "Route of the Monasteries", running between the regions of Sahagún and Tierra de Campos, where we find architectural treasures such as the monastery of Gradefes, Cistercian from the year 1177.

The national park of the Picos de Europa is another great tourist attraction to visit in the province of León. It is a natural environment of Atlantic forest considered a biosphere reserve. This park features the largest limestone formation in Atlantic Europe.

Furthermore, one can start the Camino de Santiago in León. It is barely 300 kilometres from Santiago de Compostela; hence many pilgrims choose this province to start the trail.

Leonese gastronomy offers us delicious cured meats known as "chacinas".