12 places to visit as a family to explore Asturias’s past

We think it’s good for children to learn about their roots and what life was like in the past, as this will help them appreciate what they have now even more.

As we’d sometimes felt as though we were travelling back in time during our previous trips to Asturias, we decided to organise a tour for them that would be a real journey into Asturias’s past with children.

Discovering the dinosaurs of Asturias

The Jurassic Museum of Asturias – MUJA

150 million years ago, the Asturias coastline was home to dinosaurs, the largest creatures ever to walk the Earth. And to find out all about them, there’s nothing better than a visit to MUJA, a museum shaped like a dinosaur footprint, situated between Colunga and Llastres.

Dinosaurs are creatures that fascinate our children – and, I think, children in general – so our visit to the Jurassic Museum of Asturias was a resounding success.

Even just the museum’s outdoor garden, with its replicas of these incredible creatures, really caught our children’s attention. What’s more, the views of the coast from there are absolutely marvellous.

Once inside, the visit was thoroughly enjoyable, as there’s a wealth of information about the Mesozoic Era, as well as enormous dinosaur skeletons that are truly astonishing.

The Coast of the Dinosaurs

The stretch of the Asturian coastline between Gijón and Ribadesella is known as the ‘Coast of the Dinosaurs’. Throughout this area, the footprints left by the dinosaurs that once lived here have been exceptionally well preserved, making them quite easy to spot.

Making the most of our visit to the MUJA, we went to see the dinosaur footprints at the nearby Playa de La Griega, which is one of the most famous sites. We reached this ichnite site (which is the term used for fossilised dinosaur footprints) easily via a wooden walkway. At the end of the walk, a viewing point allowed us to admire some enormous dinosaur footprints.

If you’re interested, there are a few other places with ichnite sites, such as the cliffs at Llastres, the area around the Tazones lighthouse or the cliffs at Tereñes.

A journey into the prehistory of Asturias

Asturias is full of caves and rock shelters, which contain important examples of prehistoric paintings and engravings.

One of the most important in the world is the Tito Bustillo Cave, so we were really keen to visit it. So, once our youngest son was over 7 years old (the minimum age requirement for a visit), we booked well in advance.

The Tito Bustillo Cave is situated in Ribadesella/Ribeseya, and such is the importance and quality of its cave paintings that it has been declared a World Heritage Site. For this reason, and to preserve the cave, only the Main Panel featuring the paintings can be visited for a few months each year, but the experience is well worth it.

The cave is impressive, not only because of the paintings but also because of the geological formations we saw along the way. The guided tour was very enjoyable, as it’s tailored so that children can also understand what they’re seeing.

After the visit, we went to see the Rock Art Centre.

In search of Asturias’ Celtic past

The Iron Age has also left its mark on Asturias. It was a historical period full of strife, conflict and great insecurity, which led to the creation of fortified settlements known as ‘castro’.

There are around 250 such castros in Asturias, of which we visited two in the Navia Historical Park.

The Castro of Coaña

This castro, also known as ‘el Castelón’, was the first to be excavated and is the largest in Asturias. It is situated in Villacondide, a village in the municipality of Coaña, and stands on a small hill.

Before visiting the castro, we went into the Learning Centre to find out what castros were and get an idea of what we were about to see.

We opted for the guided tour and it was the best choice, as it enabled us to fully understand what we were seeing.

The tour of the hill fort takes you through the excavated areas: the Acropolis and the Northern Quarter, which were protected by a system of ditches and walls. We were impressed to see that around 80 huts have been excavated in the Northern Quarter, so it is estimated that some 200 people lived there.

Having seen a few ‘teito huts’ in the Somiedo Natural Park, we could easily picture what this fort must have looked like in its day. And our children imagined it as the indomitable Gaulish village from Asterix and Obelix.

The Pendia Castro

Fifteen kilometres south of the Coaña Fort, we visited another of the Asturian forts: the Pendia Fort, in Boal. It was handy that we’d already visited the one in Coaña, as this fort is self-guided.

Even just the short walk from the car park in the village of Pendia to the hill fort was well worth it for the beautiful surroundings.

Like the previous one, the Pendia Fort is also situated on a promontory, enabling it to be defended in the event of an attack. But this fort is rather mysterious, as its imposing walls protected a very small settlement, suggesting that it was a very special place.

The villages of Asturias, rooted in the past

In Asturias, we’ve been able to visit loads of villages that seem to have been left behind by time. These are places that our children find utterly fascinating, as they’ve never experienced that way of life, which is actually not so far removed from our own.

Bulnes

Bulnes is situated in the stunning surroundings of the Picos de Europa, in the municipality of Cabrales.

When we told our children we were going to visit a village that no road leads to, they were absolutely amazed. And the fact is that Bulnes, situated at an altitude of 1,000 metres, was until recently completely cut off from the rest of the world, as it could only be reached on foot via a steep mountain path.

Today it remains quite isolated, although the current funicular has greatly improved its links with the rest of the world. As we were travelling with children, we took the opportunity to ride the funicular, which they loved as they’d never been on one before.

Once in the village, it was like stepping back in time. A river runs through the village, many of its streets are still unpaved, and all its houses are made of limestone – the same stone as the mountains that surround it.

Although it was very pleasant to stroll around there in summer, we could well imagine how hard it must be to spend the winter there.

Banduxu

We went to Proaza to walk the famous Senda del Oso trail and, after completing it, we drove up a narrow, winding mountain road to visit Banduxu, one of the most picturesque villages in Asturias.

As we drew nearer, the view of Banduxu could not have been more idyllic. It sits atop a promontory, surrounded by spectacular scenery with the mountains as a backdrop.

Once there, we enjoyed a pleasant stroll through one of the best-preserved medieval villages in Asturias, with its tower, palace, church, traditional buildings and distinctive cemetery.

Discovering the traditional trades

To discover trades that are gradually being lost, there’s no better place than the municipality of Taramundi, which has been declared a ‘Zone of Artisanal Interest’.

Os Teixóis

The small hamlet of Os Teixóis is situated in a narrow valley, crossed by a stream, with lush vegetation on all sides.

We went to explore this hamlet, as it is actually an ethnographic site. Its traditional architecture and the water-powered machinery used in its workshops have been restored, and it was a great opportunity for our children to learn about some of the trades of the past.

We explored Os Teixóis on a guided tour. Our children were absolutely fascinated by the tour, learning how craftsmen made knives and other tools, how they worked with iron, and how they ground grain. All this was done with the help of machines that still operate today using water power.

The visit was very enjoyable, as they explained the different machines to us and we were able to see them in action. What’s more, they paid special attention to the children, who felt very much included in the visit. It was undoubtedly a magical experience that took us back to another era, and we learnt a great deal about these trades that are gradually being lost.

The Mills of O Mazonovo

Another of the surprises in the municipality of Taramundi was the large collection of mills at O Mazonovo, which boasts the largest number of mills in Spain. It is situated 400 metres from the village of Taramundi and provided a great opportunity to see some of the mills in action and discover what they were like.

The visit was very interesting because we were able to operate some of them ourselves; there were even a few setup so that the children could have a go at running them. We were able to see for ourselves the effort required to grind the grain and, for a while, experience what it was like to be a miller. A highly recommended and informative visit.

In the footsteps of the ‘Indianos’ in Asturias

From the mid-19th century to the early 20th century, more than 300,000 Asturians set off for the Americas in search of new opportunities. Only a small percentage of them returned having made their fortune and, once back here, they built colourful houses.

Colombres

We went to visit Colombres, in the municipality of Ribadedeva, and as soon as we set foot there, we were struck by the number of ‘Indianos’ houses in the village. They are all different, each in a different colour and style, reflecting the tastes of their owners.

We began our tour by visiting Quinta Guadalupe, a magnificent blue mansion with rich, well-preserved décor, surrounded by a beautiful garden featuring exotic plants. This house is also the headquarters of the Archivo de Indianos Foundation – Museum of Emigration, which allowed us to learn more about the lives of these emigrants, most of whom never returned as millionaires.

We continued our visit by exploring these magnificent mansions, such as the Casa Roja, in the upper part of the town; the Casa de Piedra, situated very close to the former; the Cantu, which stands out for its bluish colour; and the Quinta Buenavista.

Somao

Somao is situated in the municipality of Pravia, and, although small, it also boasts a significant heritage of ‘indianos’ houses, which is why it was the next place we visited to see them.

The most iconic building in the whole village is the Casa Amarilla, whose name says it all about the colour of its façade, and which our children liked best of all. It is a truly beautiful building, with a tower topped by a spire that gives it an elegant touch.

The next house we went to see was La Casona – not for the house itself, but for the Modernist mausoleum with blue roofs situated on the same estate. It was commissioned by one of the house’s owners to house her husband’s remains.

We also went to see the Chalet de Solís, near the Casa Amarilla, as well as Villa Radis, built on part of the estate that once belonged to La Casona.

Mar Vara