Cabrales, Asturias: municipality guide

Cabrales is a municipality in eastern Asturias, in the Eastern Asturias comarca. Its capital is Carreña, although the largest town is Arenas. With about 1,880 inhabitants, it is the municipality with the most rugged terrain in Asturias, with half of its territory in the Central Massif of the Picos de Europa.

The municipality of Cabrales highlighted in gold (eastern Asturias) on the map of Asturias

What to see in Cabrales

The Naranjo de Bulnes or Pico Urriello (2,519 m), a mountaineering legend, is Asturias’ most emblematic mountain. Its unmistakable limestone silhouette, visible from much of the municipality, attracts climbers and mountaineers from all over the world and is the undisputed symbol of the Picos de Europa.

The church of Santa María de Llas, in Las Arenas, with late-Romanesque remains, is one of the oldest churches in the municipality and a fine example of the area’s medieval architecture.

Other places of interest: the Cares trail (ruta del Cares), the path carved into the rock that starts at Poncebos and is one of the most famous hikes in Spain; Torrecerredo (2,648 m), the roof of the Cantabrian Mountains; the Covaciella caves, with rock art; the 17th-century Cernuda palace; and the dairies where Cabrales cheese, internationally famous, is handcrafted.

Half of Cabrales’ territory lies within the Central Massif of the Picos de Europa, making the municipality the gateway to some of the most spectacular mountains in the peninsula. Villages such as Bulnes, Sotres —the highest in Asturias— and Tielve preserve traditional high-mountain architecture.

Cabrales cheese deserves a special mention: several dairies in the municipality open their doors to visitors to show the production process and the maturing in natural caves, an experience that combines gastronomy and landscape like few others. The active tourism offer —canyoning, climbing and guided routes through the Picos de Europa— rounds off the visit at any time of year. In winter, the snow-capped peaks offer a completely different, equally spectacular face of the municipality.

Getting there

Access to Cabrales is via the road linking Cangas de Onís with Panes, which follows the Cares valley up to Arenas and Carreña. From Oviedo, the usual route passes through Cangas de Onís, and from Cantabria access is via Panes. The Bulnes funicular, which departs from Poncebos, connects with the village of Bulnes, which has no road access.

The municipality of Cabrales and its main towns · the capital, Carreña de Cabrales, in gold

Municipality map: data © OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Own rendering, no Google, no cookies.

Festivals and gastronomy

The most notable festivities are La Salud, held in Carreña on the Sunday following 8 September; Nuestra Señora, in Sotres; and Las Nieves, in Bulnes, in August. At the table, Cabrales cheese reigns supreme: a protected-designation-of-origin blue cheese made from cow’s, goat’s and sheep’s milk, matured in the natural caves of the Picos de Europa, which has given the municipality international fame. Alongside it, mountain cuisine offers fabada, hearty stews and local meats.