Skip navigation and go to Contents
Carrusel de imágenes presentando Navarra

Peaceful holidays

The Central Zone

The Central Zone of Navarre has interesting accommodation on offer: hotels, campsites and rural houses and, for special stays, the hospices at the monasteries of Leire and Codés, or the 'Príncipe de Viana' Parador Nacional (State-run hotel) in Olite.

Waking up in the Middle Ages, feeling as if you reign over the Kingdom of Navarre, is not difficult if you stay in one of the rooms of the Old Palace of the 'Príncipe de Viana' Parador Nacional in the small town of Olite, the town chosen by King Carlos III 'the Noble' as his favourite residence. It is a pleasure to sit in one of the viewpoints of the Palacio Nuevo (part of the castle) in Olite and look to the horizon with its gentle hills that are home to surprising villages such as the mediaeval fortress of Ujué.

It is relaxing to listen to the whistle of the wind that blows between the towers of the castle along a winding route, similar to that of the Pilgrim's Way that crosses the Central Zone of Navarre from east to west via towns with a considerable monumental heritage like Sangüesa, Puente la Reina, Estella-Lizarra and Viana.

This area is the ideal place to enjoy a quiet conversation with a pilgrim or with the local resident who watch visitors pass through, or a sunset in April through the arches of the church of Santa María of Eunate.

Other spots worth discovering are the Foz (gorge) of Arbaiun, where an imposing silence blends with the majestic flight of the lammergeyer (or bearded vulture) and the griffon vulture, which has the largest colony of its species in Europe here. Alternatively, the spring of turquoise blue water that flows out of the karstic rock of the Urbasa-Andía Natural Park.

After a quiet day, there is nothing better than enjoying the products of the market gardens of Navarre, a good roast, glorias from Sangüesa or rocas del Puy in Estella-Lizarra, the last two being exquisite desserts. Near Sangüesa is the Hospice of Leire in the monastery of San Salvador at the foot of the Sierra de Leire; it is a spot where scenic beauty and the historic importance of the site go hand in hand.