Once Easter is over, it seems like an eternity until the next holiday. If you are lucky enough to live – or work – in one of the autonomous communities that celebrate a long weekend this coming month, you can take advantage of it to take a short trip without having to leave Spain.
In addition to May Day, Workers' Day – one of the eight national holidays – some areas have more days of rest during the month. The next day, the 2nd, is the day of the Community of Madrid. As it falls on a Thursday, the luckiest this year will be able to take advantage of the opportunity to extend their vacation until the following week. In Galicia, Galician Literature Day is celebrated on Friday the 17th, so you will also enjoy a long weekend. On the other hand, the city of Barcelona and other Catalan towns celebrate Easter Monday, the 20th, –another three-day weekend–, while in Castilla-La Mancha Corpus Christi is commemorated on Thursday the 30th, and its day of the autonomous community on Friday the 31st.
Below, we leave you five destinations, not always known or remembered when organizing a vacation, but with great architectural, natural and artistic value. They are ideal to visit during these holidays.
This first proposal is a municipality made up of eight small population centers, some with only nine inhabitants. The towns that make up La Vall de Boí are home to a highly valuable Romanesque-style architectural complex, with a total of eight churches and a hermitage from the 11th and 12th centuries that UNESCO has recognized as a world heritage site.
Thanks to this distinction, in 2000, it has been possible to preserve and make known churches that were in danger of falling into abandonment due to the rapid depopulation of the area. The Center del Romànic, based in the town of Erill la Vall, organizes different routes with guided tours of the towns and their historic buildings.
Due to its location, more than a thousand meters above sea level, it is a perfect destination to escape the heat that could begin to be felt strongly in the middle of spring. Hiking and mountain lovers will find paradise in La Vall de Boí, with more than 80 kilometers of marked routes for all levels – and two of them adapted to people with reduced mobility.
Another great natural tourist attraction is the Aigüestortes National Park, the only one in all of Catalonia. Surrounded by peaks that exceed three thousand meters in height, ponds, ravines and waterfalls, it is an unparalleled place to let yourself be carried away by the love of nature in its purest state. In addition, it is a destination with Starlight distinction, that is, it is perfect for seeing the starry skies since it suffers almost no light pollution.
This coastal municipality is located less than 50 kilometers from Santiago de Compostela. Its seafaring tradition and proximity to the ocean make it a very good place to taste seafood and fresh fish from the Atlantic. In Rianxo we find the Museo do Mar, dedicated to the fishing customs of the area in all its facets.
It is worth getting away from the center of Rianxo to visit the remains of Castelo da Lúa, especially to admire the views, and to walk along the Té River bridge and A Torre beach. For even more spectacular views of the valley, the Arousa and Muros e Noia estuaries, Santiago de Compostela and the Cíes Islands; The Pico Muralla viewpoint is the most complete option. Located at almost 700 meters above sea level, in the Rianxo wind farm, it offers the most impressive panoramic view of Galicia.
Rianxo was home to three renowned Spanish writers: Castelao, Rafael Dieste and Manuel Antonio. The first, who worked as a doctor in the city, has a literary route in his honor called Roteiro de Castelao, which tours the different monuments and historical places of his life in Rianxo and nearby towns in the municipality.
Very close to what was his house we find the Rafael Dieste House, restored in 2019 and converted into a museum. You can also visit the house where Manuel Antonio was born and spent part of his childhood, a three-story house that houses a photographic exhibition on its ground floor that brings us closer to the Rianxo of the 1920s.
On the occasion of the celebration of Corpus Christi, the streets and facades of Lagartera are decorated down to the last millimeter with beautiful handmade embroidery of all possible shapes and colors, very typical of the town. These dates are a good opportunity to learn about the historic artisan tradition of Lagartera and take the opportunity to buy a unique textile piece in the world. The Lagarterans dress for the procession in traditional costumes and decorate their portals for the occasion with altars to the baby Jesus – some figures date back to the 18th century –, all kinds of embroidered textiles and aromatic plants such as fennel, basil or mint.
Apart from admiring the unique beauty of the Corpus Christi day procession, there is much more to discover in Lagartera, a town that exudes art. The Marcial Moreno Pascual Municipal Museum has an extensive collection of ceramics, oil paintings, mirrors, embroidery and traditional costumes; in addition to a permanent exhibition of the traditional work of the painter and sculptor after whom it bears the name. The Church of El Salvador, from the beginning of the 15th century, combines the architectural styles of late Gothic, Baroque, Mudejar art and Toledo rigging. The central of its three naves is crowned by an impressive apse facing east, so that the faithful can admire it while heading towards the city of Jerusalem.
This Rioja city lives mainly from the footwear industry. The history of this form of craftsmanship can be learned in depth at the Basilio García Footwear Museum, which ranges from the oldest manufacturing traditions – with shoes from the 3rd century BC – to the latest trends and technologies. Internationally recognized brands such as Skechers or Callaghan have a factory in Arnedo and, from the latter, we can go through all their evolution and most emblematic products.
The palaces of Arnedo are another point of great tourist and architectural interest. Among others, the palace of Archbishop Argaiz, a 17th century Renaissance building made mainly of brick, which currently serves as the city's house of culture; or the Baroness's palace, an imposing modernist building decorated with wrought iron with plant motifs, stained glass windows and a large interior garden. And, although it is not a palace, the Vico monastery, home of the community of Cistercian nuns who preserve it thanks to the production and sale of delicious sweets, emanates great beauty and artistic and architectural interest.
The hometown of the renowned architect Antoni Gaudí has a wide range of art nouveau architecture with almost 80 buildings – although the prodigal son of Reus was not in charge of any of them. The modernist route takes us on a pleasant walk through the center to see 29 of the modernist buildings in the Reus catalogue. It is free and accessible to do on foot without getting tired. Of the visits indicated on the modernist route, Casa Navàs, by Lluís Domènech i Muntaner, stands out, which is one of the best examples of European modernist architecture thanks to its impeccable conservation. Also of great interest and heritage value is the Institut Pere Mata, a psychiatric hospital – which still provides its services – with a pavilion classified as a cultural asset of national interest and reserved for tourist visits.
Eight different brands of vermouth are born from Reus, the drink par excellence to whet your appetite on terraces during good weather. The fame of Reus vermouth is so great that the city has dedicated two museums to it, the Museu del Vermut and the Casa del Vermut i el vi, both located in beautiful buildings of – evidently – modernist style.
Finally, Reus is known as “the capital of commerce”. And the urban center is home to two municipal markets, as well as shops of all kinds and the street market stalls on Mondays and Saturdays. Visiting them is a great opportunity to get to know the small local businesses while walking around and discovering the beauty of the city.
