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Historical
background:
The kingdom of Aragón emerged in the 11th century and
came to dominate the north-east of the Iberian peninsula,
including Catalonia, and much of the Mediterranean. The marriage
of Ferdinand II of Aragón to Isabel of Castile in 1469
merged the two kingdoms, effectively creating Spain as a nation-state.
What to See
In terms of monuments, the city of Saragossa or Zaragoza;
its great Basilica del Pilar; its cathedral, La Seo; and its
Moorish palace, the Aljaferia, are the important sights. The
other provincial capitals, Huesca and Teruel, have their appeal
but are best seen on your way to somewhere else. The Pyrenean
town of Jaca has Spain's earliest Romanesque cathedral. The
Piedra Monastery in the west of Saragossa province is interesting
for its enormous grounds. Routes to follow include the castles
of Teruel, or the villages of "Tambor y Bombo,"
where Easter is celebrated by what seems to be the entire
population beating drums non-stop for days on end. But the
great attraction of Aragón is its outdoors. The Aragonese
Pyrenees are the big draw, with the National Park of Ordesa
and the Natural Parks of Guara and Posets-Maladeta, and the
Aragonese part of the pilgrimage route to Santiago. Other
attractions are the pre-Pyrenees; the Cinco Villas (five towns);
the semi-desert of the Monegros; the Ebro on its way to the
Mediterranean; the mountainous Maestrazgo; or El Moncayo.
What to Do
Skiing and other winter sports in the Pyrenees; trekking,
hiking and walking in many parts; adventure sports, from climbing
to canyoning and hang gliding to rafting; hunting and fishing
throughout the region; horseriding; birdwatching and other
forms of nature observation;
When to Go
The festival of Huesca's patron saint, San Lorenzo, is
on August 10th, and the celebrations last around a week altogether.
The pagan-seeming carnival celebrations in the Pyrenean village
of Bielsa are unlike anything else in Spain. Easter is spectacular
in the city of Saragossa, or in the "Tambor y Bombo"
towns of Teruel. The climate in mid-summer can be oppressive,
unless you get enough altitude under your feet.
Where to Stay
Casas
rurales, somewhere between a small country hotel and
a bed and breakfast, are especially enticing in this region,
but you have plenty of other, more conventional alternatives. See
the particular province you are interested in for more information.
Huesca
Hotels
Zaragoza
Hotels
Hotels
in Zaragoza Province
Teruel
Hotels
Eating and Drinking
Not surprisingly, given the differences between the three
provinces, their gastronomy varies, though not as much as
you might expect. Exotic dishes to look out for include the
garbure, a legume stew with fowl, which sounds like
a heavy, peasant's dish to me (I have never actually seen
it), and migas, breadcrumbs fried up with garlic and
bits of pork, a stomach-filling breakfast dish. There is good
game, especially boar and venison, and asadores specialising
in roast lamb (especially ternasco) abound. The further
south you go, the more important the pig and its products
become, from ham to chorizo. Among local wines, the
Cariñena D.O. is especially interesting, but Calatayud,
Campo de Borja and, to a lesser extent, Somontano are also
names of interest. Dedicated gourmets should head for the
area of the Monegros between Saragossa and Huesca provinces.
The provinces
Huesca
The northernmost of the three Aragonese provinces stretches
up into the Pyrenees, and so is attractive to skiiers, walkers,
hikers and mountain lovers in general. Though historically
rather backward, it has developed a modern tourist infrastructure
and so can offer, as well as snow sports, more recently fashionable
activities like rafting and canyoning.
Saragossa
The richest of the three Aragonese provinces is not the
most interesting, though it does have fascinating rural areas,
and the capital itself is well worth at least an overnight
stop. Much of the province, however, is fairly dreary farmland,
cereal country, which you may want to speed through. Its main
attractions are the city of Saragossa itself, the mediaeval
Cinco Villas (five towns), the Moncayo Nature Reserve, the
Piedra Monastery, the walled city of Daroca, and the birthplace
of Francisco Goya, Fuendetodos.
Teruel
The poorest of the Aragonese provinces has suffered so
heavily from rural depopulation that it is almost possible
to drive all the way through it, and it is not small, without
seeing another soul on the road. It does have a number of
attractions, including a number of spectacular castles and
the "Tambor y Bombo" villages. Theme park addicts
will not want to miss Dinopolis
(http://www.dinopolis.com), dedicated to dinosaurs and palaentology.
But the greatest appeal of the province of Teruel lies in
the dramatic mountains of El Maestrazgo, with their associations
with El Cid.
Aragón Links
Aragón
Links Directory
Covering both the region and its provinces, with the
accent on tourist information.
Selected Links
Turismo
de Aragon (http://turismoaragon.com)
Gorgeous website of the regional tourist board.
Web
Sites in Aragonese
To say that Aragonese is a minority language is an understatement,
it being spoken by around 10,000 people. But if your Spanish
is of a reasonable level, Aragonese is pretty easy to follow,
and browsing these links is at least a different form
of time-wasting.
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Because
of Henry VIII's first wife, the unfortunate Catherine of Aragon,
most people have at least heard the name of this once powerful
kingdom. But as a region of modern Spain, it is one of the least
known and most difficult to define. Long separate from the Catalonia
which made it so wealthy in the past, its three provinces are
geographically quite different from each other, but have a common
denominator — rural neglect. While this is sad for the
locals, it means these areas have much for the visitor to discover.
From north to south, Aragón consists of Huesca, dominated
by the Pyrenees; Saragossa, a preeminently agricultural province;
and Teruel, so depopulated and forgotten that its inhabitants
have had to launch a campaign with the plaintive slogan "