The best routes with waterfalls to enjoy in Asturias

Asturias offers endless possibilities for enjoying nature. And in all of them, whether on the coast or inland, water is an omnipresent element, whether in the form of rivers and streams, seas and lakes, fountains, clouds and rainbows, or simply waterfalls...

Water accompanies you everywhere: when you look out over the coast, for a contemplative gaze or to practise water sports, and the same happens in rivers. And it is also present when you go walking, because many hiking routes pass through places where water plays a very important role, embracing you with its murmur and its freshness.

Here we propose 6 routes with waterfalls for you to go hiking in truly paradisiacal places!

The Oneta waterfalls are in the council of Villayón, in an idyllic corner of western Asturias. To reach them you have to start from the village that gives them their name: Oneta. A pleasant, short walk will take you to discover this natural wonder, just a kilometre and a half from the village.

The waterfalls are a set of three waterfalls staggered over a few metres and which mark the river Acebo, one of the untamed rivers of western Asturias that form a landscape of rocks, pools and Atlantic vegetation.

In the midst of these landscapes, you will suddenly discover that the flow of water plunges vertically down a considerable height, giving rise to a waterfall of incredible beauty: the Firbia, the most accessible and impressive of the three. Around it, the abundant rock formations form a cirque over which the waters break thunderously, with great acoustic and aeolian power - with continuous gusts of air and sprayed water - due to the great fall.

Mosses and ferns grow on the rock walls and the waterfall is surrounded by oak, birch and chestnut trees.

Below the Firbia there are two waterfalls of lesser height but no less beautiful: the Ulloa and the Maseirua, also surrounded by lush vegetation of ash and alder trees.

A natural spectacle in a simple stroll!

The Xurbeo waterfall is barely a kilometre from the village of Murias, in the council of Aller. It enjoys a well-deserved reputation as one of the most beautiful in the whole of Asturias, and the truth is that it is really easy to see for yourself. A short, easy stroll will take you to this charming spot hidden on the side of a valley carved out by the river Negro.

All around, a lush green mantle cloaks the slopes of the mountains that flank this valley. Meanwhile, the village of Murias, with its family orchards, descends steeply down the mountainside. So the route is a kind of gallery formed by oak and chestnut trees, in addition to the riverside forest, which traces another gallery over the river.

After so much gallery, you will see the waterfall, open, white, glistening on the dark stone, with small lateral jumps that widen and embellish it.

A simple stroll for a great discovery!

Just 14 kilometres from the capital of the Principality, Oviedo/Uviéu, is this natural treasure, which is safely tucked away in the Trubia Valley.

When it joins the river Trubia, the Guanga flows agilely between the rocks, creating a succession of waterfalls, some of them double, which make up an authentic Cantabrian jungle scene, where in addition to the murmur of the water, you can immerse yourself in the lushness of the Atlantic forest, with its abundance of oaks, chestnut trees, birch trees, ferns, etc.

This route is not recommended for children, as it is quite steep and the terrain is slippery in some areas, unless you go by Perlavia and return by the same route, as the path is much more stable here.

On this route, which can be circular or linear and is approximately 5 kilometres long, you will come across old mills, and in what was once the village of Guanga, there are still some houses and granaries. In short, you will take a walk through the vestiges of what was once a way of life that is now extinct.

Very close to the path of the bear, to Trubia with its industrial heritage, or to the Pre-Romanesque of Tuñón, the route to the Guanga waterfalls will make you feel in communion with history, legend and nature!

The Tabayón del Mongayu waterfall is located in the heart of the Redes Natural Park, in one of the 7 Biosphere Reserves of Asturias and very close to the village of Tarna, in the council of Caso.

The route that will take you to the waterfall starts in the village of Tarna, and crosses a beautiful beech forest, which will take you to the foot of this great waterfall in the middle of the mountain, no more and no less than 60 metres high.

Your walk to Tabayón will be a succession of beautiful landscapes with an abundance of white heather, beech and birch trees and some hundred-year-old oaks, while you can also enjoy the presence of holly trees, as well as a unique fauna.

And always the omnipresence of the almighty river Nalón, which rises in this area, specifically at the source of La Nalona, and which in its 140 kilometres of journey until it flows into the Cantabrian Sea, gives you spectacular landscapes.

This is undoubtedly one of the most popular and beautiful routes in the Redes Natural Park!

The landscapes of Los Oscos are an invitation to peace and tranquillity. If we also season this natural cocktail with a seductive route with a waterfall included, the climax of happiness is served. This is the sensation you will have on your walk to the Seimeira, a waterfall that you reach from the recreational area located between Santalla and the village of Pumares.

The starting point already gives you an idea of the idyllic landscapes that you will cross on this route, which runs along the river, and where the arrival at the abandoned village of A Ancadeira puts the first note of magic in your path. A note of magic that is accentuated when you reach the Valle del Desterrado, a place full of history and legend that will be completely enveloping.

Amidst the sounds of a thousand waters and enchanted forests, you approach the Seimeira, where the river falls from a height of 20 or 30 metres onto a hard rock...
If you are in the mood to walk a little further, you can reach the village of Busqueimado and enjoy sitting in the shade of the two enormous texos that flank its chapel.

On the way back to Pumares you will have the feeling of having discovered paradise on earth!

Taramundi is another of the water paradises you can find in Asturias, and of course, it has its own Water Route with a waterfall included.

A circular route that starts in the capital of the council, takes us to the Windmill Museum, which will offer you an impressive spectacle with all its devices in operation, to go into the hillside, and soon reach the Salgueira waterfall, one of the most beautiful in the west of Asturias.

After refreshing yourself for a while with the watery effluents of the waterfall, you can continue your route to the picturesque village of Os Esquíos. But your itinerary through dream villages will not end here. As Veigas and Os Teixois still await you before you return to Taramundi. These are two villages of indescribable beauty and relaxed atmosphere that will make you feel you are in another world.

The Salgueira waterfall route shows you much more than this great sculpture of water and stone!