Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¼´Ê±¿ª½±

The church of San Martin de Tours in Fromista, Castile and León, Spain.

© only_fabrizio/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Iglesia de San Martín

Top choice in Castilla y León


Dating from 1066 and restored in the early 20th century, this beautifully proportioned church is one of the loveliest Romanesque churches in rural Spain, adorned with a veritable menagerie of human and zoomorphic figures just below the eaves. The interior is a study in simplicity save for the column capitals, which are richly decorated.

There are two buses daily from Palencia (€3.50, 30 minutes), but most people visit en route between Palencia and the north.


Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¼´Ê±¿ª½±'s must-see attractions

Nearby Castilla y León attractions

1. Iglesia de Santa María La Blanca

7.76 MILES

This extraordinary fortress-church, an important landmark along the Camino de Santiago, rises up from the Castilian plains between Frómista and Carrión de…

2. Iglesia de San Pablo

18.66 MILES

Across the park from the train station, this church has a Renaissance facade and an enormous plateresque altarpiece in the main chapel.

3. Museo Diocesano

18.8 MILES

Within the 18th-century Palacio Episcopal, this museum showcases art from the Middle Ages through to the Renaissance. Pride of place goes to works by…

4. Catedral

18.89 MILES

The sober exterior of this vast house of worship (one of the largest in Castilla) belies the extraordinary riches within – it's widely known as 'La Bella…

5. Iglesia de San Miguel

19.02 MILES

This church stands out for its tall Gothic tower with a castle-like turret. San Miguel's interior is unadorned and austerely beautiful. According to…

6. Villa Romana La Tejada

20.69 MILES

One of a number of Roman villas uncovered in the quiet plains northwest of Palencia, La Tejada has some low-lying ruins and a series of attractive floor…

7. Villa Romana La Olmeda

22.48 MILES

Villa Romana La Olmeda contains some of the most beautiful remnants of a Roman villa anywhere on the Iberian Peninsula. The villa was built around the 1st…

8. Basílica de San Juan

24.11 MILES

In Baños de Cerrato, close to the singularly unattractive rail junction of Venta de Baños, lies Spain’s oldest church, the 7th-century Basílica de San…