Next to mountain tourism, Valdezcaray Station, located in the municipality of Ezcaray in the Mountain range of La Demand, is an ideal place for skiing. This winter sports resort offers sport fans a complete infrastructure with 300 hectares of ski tracks.

The monasteries of San Millan de la Cogolla (Suso and Yuso) present the historical origin of Castilian language to the visitor. La Rioja is a region of numerous and important monasteries, all of them inhabited by different monastic orders. The most famous route of monasteries is the one that runs through Najera, Canes, San Millan de la Cogolla and Valvanera.

Declared World Heritage by UNESCO, the monasteries of Yuso and Suso are the most important ones in Rioja, and two of most famous ones in Spain. In these monasteries, the first words in the Castilian language were written. Suso is the oldest monastery in Rioja. Consecrated in year 984, it conserves the caves in which San Millan lived as a hermit in the VIth century. It is a rustic building in which mozarabic primitive elements stand out. In contrast, the monastery of Yuso surprises the traveller by its great beauty. It was Romanesque in its origins but was reconstructed between the XVIth and XVIIIth centuries. One should not forget to visit the main facade, the Kings Hall, the church, the museum, the library, the vestry and the cloister. Other monuments to visit in the region are the Cathedrals in Calahorra, Santo Domingo and Logroño, the capital of the autonomous community.

Tourism around the wine culture is one of the greatest pleasures to be enjoyed in La Rioja, where one is able to visit an infinity of warehouses, to taste wines, eat, exercise horse riding or play golf.

La Riojan gastronomy is conditioned by its geography, since the banks of the Ebro River, with its fresh fertile valleys, offer a very propitious land for orchards. Fruits, legumes, and vegetables, like mushrooms and asparagus, are all of exceptional quality. The famous and delicious ‘piquillo’ peppers also stand out. Concerning desserts, the Marzipan of Soto, a candy of Arab origins made with sugar and grinded almond, is recognized in all of Spain.

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