Short break: 3 nights in Asturias
A long weekend to meet us, fall for Piloña and stand at the feet of the Picos de Europa — Asturias' most famous landmark.
This is the perfect first taste. Three nights is enough to slow down, breathe in the valley air and see why we never wanted to leave. You'll walk straight from our door, drive the back roads of our own comarca and finish with a day among the lakes and limestone giants of the Picos de Europa. Short, but enough to make you start planning your return.
For a stay of this length, we'd suggest settling into one of our rooms — breakfast included, dinner with us whenever you'd like it and nothing to think about beyond where the day takes you.
Day 1 — Arrival & welcome to the valley
Arrive at El gran sueño, unpack and let the pace shift down a gear. There's no better way to shake off the journey than to stretch your legs on the doorstep.
We recommend our Local Walk 8: Pintueles — a 3.4 km circular trail (about 45 minutes) that leaves directly from the plaza in front of the hotel. It climbs gently through the woods between Busllería and La Roza, past the little Church of San Cristóbal, and brings you back to our front door with the valley laid out below you. It's the route our own dogs helped chart, and the one most of our guests come to love.
Dinner at El gran sueño — settle in at our table for a relaxed first evening, getting to know us and the food of the region without having to go anywhere at all.
Day 2 — Road trip around Piloña
Today belongs to our home comarca. Follow our Road Trip 1: Piloña — 105 km / 3 hours of driving, but a full day to enjoy at your own pace.
You'll climb to Monte Cayón for sweeping views of the Sierra del Sueve and the Picos de Europa, drop down to the Sanctuary of the Virgin of the Cave tucked into its dramatic rock, and wander Infiesto, our quiet little capital, with its Calle del Quesu (Cheese Street), old wash station and the surprising clock collection at the Casa del Tiempo.
Lunch at El Rincón, Espinaredo (Piloña) — authentic Asturian cooking served under an hórreo in one of the most beautiful villages in the Principality, surrounded by twenty traditional granaries and the Espinareu river.
After lunch, carry on to the fairy-tale picnic area of La Pesanca, the thousand-year-old parish of Villamayor, and the Borines valley — cradle of Asturias' most famous mineral waters and home to the Ordum brewery.
Dinner in Infiesto or back at El gran sueño — depending on how full lunch leaves you, and how reluctant you are to change out of walking shoes.
Day 3 — Picos de Europa: Cangas de Onís, Covadonga and the Lakes
The day many guests circle on the calendar before they even arrive. Follow our Road Trip 5: Picos de Europa II — Cangas de Onís & Covadonga to the spiritual and geological heart of Asturias.
Stand on the Roman bridge of Cangas de Onís with the Sella running beneath you, climb to the Sanctuary of Covadonga with its pink basilica wedged into the mountain, and — if the day is clear — drive up to the Lagos de Covadonga, where Enol and Ercina sit at 1,100 metres surrounded by grazing cattle and limestone peaks.
Lunch in San Juan de Parres at Casa Pedro — traditional Asturian food with a modern twist, just five minutes outside Cangas de Onís. We recommend the carne de vaca vieja (aged beef). It's worth the booking.
Back to El gran sueño in the late afternoon. A quiet last evening with us — a glass of something local, a final dinner, and the satisfying tiredness of a weekend well spent.
Day 4 — Departure
Breakfast, a slow goodbye, and the promise — most guests find — that you'll be back for longer next time.
