By Alfredo Muñiz
Where is Asturias?
The Principality of Asturias is in the North of Spain, in Europe, very near Galicia. The capital of Asturias is Oviedo and it is the beginning of the Camino de Santiago Primitivo, the Primitive Way of Saint James. The Asturian king Alfonso II was the first important pilgrim to go to venerate the body of the apostle.
Don Pelayo was an Asturian nobleman who led the resistance against the Muslim invasion of the Iberian Peninsula in the 8th century. He is considered one of Spain’s national heroes and is credited with founding the kingdom of Asturias, of which he was its first king. The battle of Covadonga was the beginning of THE RECONQUEST of Spain. The legend says that was a miraculous victory under the patronage of the Virgin of Covadonga.
The cross of victory from Pelayo times is in the Asturian flag as the symbol of the Principality
What to see in Asturias?
Asturias is a Natural Paradise, a destination full of options to enjoy leisure and free time, adapted to all preferences. You can go hiking in a National Park and go to a wonderful beach in the same day.
You have delicious flavors and cultural places where you must go.
The best Asturian beaches for Summer
Salinas is capital of surf, during the Summer you can have fun in an International Longboard Festival with music, sports, gastronomy and parties.
The patron saint of Salinas is the Virgin of Carmen, there is a procession and the people introduce the Virgen in the see the 16th. of July.
The beach of San Lorenzo in Gijón is probably the most touristy place in Summer but with great activities for evenings.
The Beach of silence, in Cudillero, the landscape is amazing and you will feel at peace.
From Poo to Llanes there is a beatiful path along the coast and you can discover gorgeous beaches.
Ribadesella is a smart holiday village with good beach and outstanding restaurants.
In the mountains
The Picos de Europa is a National Park with a lot of routes for hiking and climbing. The most important hill is el Urriello o Naranjo de Bulnes.
The patron saint of Asturias is the Virgin of Covadonga that is in the Holy Cave in the Park; very near is the fountain of the seven taps. If a single woman drinks from the seven taps she can get married within a year.
In Asturias there are 5 Natural Parks with forests, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, wild animals and a rich variety of trees and flowers.
Somiedo is where you can find bears and teitos, a kind of thatched houses.
Redes with forest trails to travel to a real fairy tales where you can find the last urogallos that survive in the most hidden places.
Fuentes del Narcea, where there are more oaks in Europe.
Ponga where is the river Sella and the famous competition and party of the canoes organizes in August every year.
Las Ubiñas – La Mesa you can find bears, wolves, wild pigs, deer, beeches trees, oaks and so on.
For Winter there are two ski resorts: Pajares and Fuentes de Invierno.
Monuments, Churches and Cultural Places
Pre-Romanesque in Asturias: 6 World Heritage Sites
- The church of Santa María del Naranco in Oviedo, Woody Allen filmed some scenes of his film “Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona”.
- The church of San Miguel de Lillo
- Church of San Julián de los Prados or Santullano
- Cámara Santa, Holy Chapel in Oviedo Cathedral, the beginnig of the Way of Saint James.
- Church of Santa Cristina de Lena.
Looking for art in Oviedo
In Oviedo the Museum of Bellas Artes is a must go place to enjoy with master pieces of Picasso, Dali, Goya, Sorolla, Tapies, El Greco, Zurbarán, Murillo, Carreño de Miranda, and so on.
If you go for a walk in Oviedo you will find like an outdoors museum of scultures in the streets, for instances Woody Allen by Santarúa, Mafalda by Quino, Culis monumentalibus by Úrculo, “La Maternidad” by Botero or typical Asturians characters.
Museums and cultural places in Gijón and Avilés
The International Niemeyer Cultural Center in Avilés (in the photo) and the old city of Avilés.
The Museum Barjola, The Evaristo Valle, La Universidad Laboral or the monument “El elogio al horizonte” in Gijón.
El Camino del Norte o de la Costa goes through Gijón and Avilés.
Asturian flavours
The tipical drink is the Asturian cider: a true intangible cultural heritage of humanity. It is made in the llagares with apples (cider cellars). It´s a drink of conviviality, with a strong social and gastronomic spirit.
The wine of Cangas is the unique wine with oficial PDO.
Alfredo Muñiz with his novel “El testamento del Gallo” on sale in Amazon
The most popular dishes are the stewpots, el pote asturiano with beans, a kind of cabbage and pork.
The cachopo, is a dish characteristic of Asturian cuisine. It consists of two large veal fillets and includes ham and cheese, and typically has a side of french fries (patatas fritas). The dish is eaten fried and hot after being breaded in eggs and breadcrumbs, and it is usually served garnished with potatoes, peppers, or mushrooms. Casa Repinaldo in Candas won the prize to the best cachopo in 2025. There are multiple variations of this dish, including fish cachopos, chicken or pork cachopos stuffed with seafood, meat, mushrooms, peppers, cheese, asparagus, etc.
The pitu de caleya is the chicken that is running in the countriside and eating natural food, the meat is not as white as the chicken from the farm.
Las guisanderas is a group of women that only prepare the traditional dishes in their small restaurants, usually in villages, as in the old times with slow techniques.
The Fabada, beans with sausages of pork, black pudding and ham.
Fishes, sea food and very good meat, ternera asturiana and gochu asturcelta. Centollo or spider crab; lobsters, llocantaro o bugre, oricios, hake, tuna, sardines, salmon, angula, andaricas o nécoras, pixin o rape, virrey, bonito, besugo, salmonetes, ñocla, chipirones de potera, llamparés, amasueles or clamps (almejas), pastel de cabracho, and so on.
The campanu is the first salmon fished each year in the Asturian rivers. They organize an auction and usually a restaurant pays a lot of money for it. Last campanu with a weight less than seven kilos, it was selled for more than 10,000 euros.
Cheeses: there are four official PDO: Cabrales, Gamonedo, Afuega´l Pitu y Casin.
The famous chef José Andres was born in Asturias and he is selling in Unites States the cheese Rey Silo AsturBlue Mamá Marisa.
In the photo you can see Cabrales cheese.
Desserts: rice pudding, carbayones, moscovitas, casadielles, princesitas, frixuelos or cheese cake.
Alfredo Muñiz.
El testamento del Gallo by Alfredo Muñiz, on sale in Amazon.
