Sos del Rey Catolico is a small hilltop town on the borders of Aragon and Navarre which was actually very important. We came here from Soria and as the drive had been very tiring I was more than happy to sink into the comfort of a hotel!
A brief history
In March 1452 Queen Juana gave birth here to a son, Ferdinand, who later became Ferdinand II of Spain and one of the Catholic monarchs. At the time the town was known as ‘Sos’. The title of ’Sos del Rey Catolico’ is a later addition.
Three buildings in the town
The original castle was built on this site in the 12th century. Only a tall tower remains and somehow that escaped my camera!
The Sada Palace is late 15th century and it is the building in the middle distance in the picture below.
Next to the palace is the St Martin de Tours Church. The palace was built over a castle and this chapel was the private chapel of the castle. The decorations on the walls are 14th century paintings. The light was poor, for obvious reasons, but this gives some idea of what it looked like.
The Church of San Esteban is next to the castle and has this evocative carved Romanesque doorway. There is apparently a wonderful painted ceiling in the church. However, but entry to the church is only via guided tour and I wasn’t up to that just yet.
Wandering around the streets
There is a rabbit-warren of streets in the town, with stairs, tiny squares, high walls, gates and numerous corners. And at the bottom of the town the Bar Landa served the best spinach croquettes we had on the whole trip!
But even with a map you could lose yourself. I would have liked to wander around more often but I was still too tired.
The Cemetery
The town cemetery is outside the walls, just below the town and looks out over the countryside towards the mountains.
The Parador
The Parador is a new building at the northern tip of the town and gave us a wonderful few days of comfort, excellent service and very good food indeed. Unfortunately I deleted some of the photographs but here is a taste.
And after a day out we found these wonderful cars on our return!
The Parador in Sos del Rey Catolico offers a wonderfully stay – highly recommended – in an extraordinary and historical setting. We would happily return and if you plan to explore in the Pyrenees this is a must-stop!
Foz de Lumbier - London Traveller
[…] was feeling cautiously better and so we set off from the Parador at Sos del Rey Catolico to walk in the gorge at FoZ de Lumbier. The views from the bedroom window were gorgeous and […]
A day trip from Sos - London Traveller
[…] were settled into the excellent parador of Sos del Rey Catolico and set off for a day trip from Sos to visit Undués de Lerda, the Castle of Javier and Sanguesa. […]