Monasterio de San Pedro de Arlanza

These haunting ruins on a rise above the Río Arlanza show traces of both Gothic and Romanesque elements but the sense of elegant abandonment is what remains with you after a visit. Begun as a hermitage in the 10th century, it grew over the following centuries to become one of the most important monasteries in Castilla. It was abandoned in 1835, when the state decommissioned many churches and monasteries across the country. It's along the quiet BU-905 between Covarrubias and Hortigüela.