It was time to move on again, and this time we were travelling from the Parador of Olite to the Parador of Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
Read more: Olite to Santo Domingo de la CalzadaThe route
It was 142 kms between the two towns but we managed to spend most of the day on the journey!
We took the road towards Estella and then turned off for Larraga. I thought it would be fun to try a different road from that used to visit Estella, and it would also allow us to see more of the countryside. We drove through Lerin, but in hindsight it sounds interesting. There were what looked like caves in the rocks outside the town, perhaps for living, or burial, and similar to what we had seen between Soria and Calahorra.
Los Arcos
And then we were in Los Arcos. This town was another important point on the Camino. We parked in the Plaza del Coco and visited the tourist office for a map of the town – you can’t explore without a map! The town dates from the Middle Ages when it was walled, with a castle.
The Basilica of Santa Maria
I had read about an important church in the town, but we had seen a lot of churches on this trip so rather braced ourselves and walked through the door. Well, it is quite astounding!
Inside the Church
Every inch of every wall is decorated… It is the oldest church in Navarre and apparently was originally a Roman mausoleum of the 3rd century, converted to a Christian church in the 5th century. The decoration is Baroque, but there is surprisingly little else on the internet. So, here are the pictures.
The Cloister
The Cloister was quiet, and not particularly atmospheric.
On the road
And then we were on the road again, through beautiful scenery between Los Arcos and Santa Domingo.
Santo Domingo
The centre of the old town is pedestrianised and this is the point where the camino enters the town.
It was a good day, travelling the road from Olite to Santa Domingo. We headed for the parador and settled down to enjoy to enjoy the last week of our trip to Spain.
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