Camping in Valladolid: Ribera del Duero, pine forests and monumental Castile
For several periods Valladolid was the de facto capital of the Crown of Castile and seat of the Spanish court before Madrid definitively took on that role. That past has left a notable monumental heritage: the Plaza Mayor, the first with a regular layout built in Spain and the model for those that came later in the Americas and in other Peninsular cities, the National Museum of Sculpture with the finest collection of polychrome religious sculpture in the world, the house of Cervantes and the house of Zorrilla, and a cathedral that Herrera designed with excessive ambition and which was left forever unfinished.
The province of Valladolid is, above all, wine country. The Ribera del Duero has its historic heart here, on the banks of the river between Peñafiel and Aranda. Peñafiel, with its elongated castle on a rocky ridge that looks like a stranded ship, houses the Provincial Wine Museum and is the visual symbol of the designation. The wineries of Pesquera, Quintanilla de Onésimo and Valbuena de Duero offer visits and tastings that let you understand at first hand why the Ribera del Duero is one of the most highly valued designations of origin in the world for red wine. Combining campsite life with a wine route is one of the most original propositions in the province.
The Tierra de Pinares, in the south-east, is an extensive stone pine forest covering thousands of hectares which in autumn smells of resin and pine cones. Arroyo de la Encomienda, Olmedo and Mojados are quiet villages with Mudéjar churches that do not appear in the guidebooks but surprise the curious traveller. Medina del Campo, with the Castillo de la Mota where Isabella the Catholic died, Tordesillas, where the treaty that divided the world between Spain and Portugal was signed, and Medina de Rioseco with its churches full of Flemish altarpieces are day trips that add historical depth to your stay.
Campsites in Valladolid are few in number, which reflects that the province has not committed decisively to camping tourism. Its proximity to the regional capital and to highly attractive cities such as Segovia, Salamanca or Burgos means that many travellers include it as a stage on a wider route. Urueña, the book village on a walled hill in the Tierra de Campos, is a charming oddity with a specialist bookshop in every alley. Lamb roasted in a wood-fired oven and the wines of Ribera del Duero are the perfect combination for dinner after a day on the road.
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