Camping in Ourense: natural hot springs, Ribeira Sacra and inland mountains
Ourense is the only Galician province without a coastline, but it makes up for that absence with a personality of its own and natural resources with no equivalent in Spain. The hot springs of the city of Ourense are its most distinctive feature: hot water springs that well up naturally on the banks of the River Miño, with free-access facilities such as Outariz, Muíño da Veiga and Burgas do Pereiro. Bathing in thermal water in the open air beside a river, in the depths of winter or at the end of a summer afternoon, is an experience that makes Ourense a destination for rest and recovery without the need for spa facilities or high prices. The hot springs have been in use since Roman times and remain an everyday part of life in the city.
The Ribeira Sacra of Ourense is the most spectacular landscape in the province. The Sil canyon, which in places is more than three hundred metres deep, is flanked by vineyards grown on terraces on extremely steep slopes, work that has earned international recognition as heroic viticulture. Mencía wines, with their fresh, fruity profile, and white godello wines are ambassadors of a winemaking tradition that goes back to the medieval monks. The monasteries of Santo Estevo de Ribas de Sil (now a state-run parador set in the rock) and San Pedro de Rocas, one of the oldest in Galicia, dug directly into the stone of the mountain, are visits that combine history, architecture and nature in a unique way. Catamaran trips along the canyon let you see from the water the scale of the landscape and the vineyards hanging above the river.
O Invernadeiro natural park, in the south-east of the province, is one of the most unspoilt areas in Galicia: with no paved roads inside and no permanently inhabited settlements, it is a reserve for wolves, roe deer and wild boar, and a hiking destination for those who want nature without compromise. The Queixa and San Mamede sierras complete an arc of inland mountains that offers mountain bike routes, Atlantic high-mountain landscapes and viewpoints over the Miño and Sil valleys. La Limia, to the south, is a region of lagoons and reservoirs with its own ethnographic tradition.
The towns of Ourense have a charm of their own. Allariz, recognised as one of the prettiest villages in Galicia, has a granite old town beside the River Arnoia with museums, crafts and a riverside park. Celanova, with its Benedictine monastery and the small pre-Romanesque oratory of San Miguel de Celanova, is a must-visit for lovers of medieval art. Ribadavia, capital of the Ribeiro region, is a town with a medieval Jewish quarter and one of the oldest wine fairs in Galicia. The Way of St James along the Camino de la Plata enters the province of Ourense and crosses landscapes of hills and hamlets before joining the French Way at Ourense city.
Ourense's cuisine is inland and seasonal: empanada de zorza, androlla with cachelos, bica de Laza, chestnuts roasted at the autumn magosto and Cea cheeses with designation of origin. The wines of Ribeira Sacra, Valdeorras and Ribeiro have their own designations and wineries open to visitors. The province's campsites are a base for exploring the Ribeira Sacra, hiking in O Invernadeiro or combining nature with the hot springs and gastronomy of Ourense city, a combination that turns a stay of several days into a complete experience of the most authentic Galicia.
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