Baltanás: Wine Cellars, Culture and Holiday Apartments

The Barrio de Bodegas de Baltanás contains 374 underground wine cellars carved into Cerro del Castillo across six levels. When choosing a holiday apartment in Baltanás, you can prioritise the areas according to your preferred combination of culture, regional products, outdoor activities and scheduled events.

Culture

The Museo del Cerrato Castellano is housed in two buildings that together form a single museum space of 1,640 m². The permanent exhibition is located in the Palacio-Antiguo Hospital de Santo Tomás. There, the museum presents an art gallery, a collection of religious art, a section on the history of the Cerrato and archaeological remains. The history section covers the development of the Cerrato from prehistory to the Early Modern period. The museum displays particularly interesting pieces from the Iglesia de San Millán and the Ermita de Revilla de Baltanás. The Museo del Cerrato Castellano has been adapted for visitors with reduced mobility.

The Hospital de Santo Tomás is an 18th-century Baroque building with a distinctive façade and a courtyard. The Casas blasonadas de Baltanás include former aristocratic houses whose façades display coats of arms. The Iglesia de San Millán is a Renaissance building constructed in the 16th century, with three naves. Inside are Gothic tombs, a Baroque high altar from the 17th century and an Ecce Homo by Gregorio Fernández.

The Ermita de Nuestra Señora de Revilla stands in the centre of Baltanás and is a Baroque building constructed between the 17th and 18th centuries. Its altar features a statue of the patron saint dating from the 14th century.

Wine and Townscape

The Barrio de Bodegas de Baltanás is protected as a Bien de Interés Cultural in the category Conjunto Etnológico. At the same time, it is considered an important example of a traditional wine-production system. The district’s horizontal paths run along the contours of the slope; in some areas, there are five wine-cellar levels arranged one above another.

La Zarcera offers a wine-tourism centre, a tavern serving wine and regional products, and a shop with authentic products from the Cerrato. Visits to the Barrio de Bodegas organised through La Zarcera must be booked in advance and are designed for groups of at least four people.

Trails and Festivals

The Cabaña Real Burgalesa passes through the municipality of Baltanás. Shepherds’ huts bear witness to their use as accommodation during transhumance. The Ruta por el Cerrato Interior passes through Baltanás and showcases examples of civil architecture from the 16th and 18th centuries.

The “Las Chinchas” downhill track is signposted and includes information on its use, including suitable equipment and the required federation membership. The Fiesta de San Gregorio takes place every year on 9 May and includes a procession and a communal meal. Cheese and wine take centre stage at the Feria del Cerrato in Baltanás; various producers from the province are given an opportunity to present their products there.

The Oficina de Turismo de Baltanás provides information about Baltanás and the Cerrato Palentino, as well as about the wine and wine-cellar tradition, museums and other historical, cultural and natural attractions.

Other places: Venta De Baños, Prádanos de Ojeda, Paredes De Nava, Mudá, Loma De Ucieza, Melgar De Yuso, Dueñas, Cervera De Pisuerga

For the higher-level travel overview: Palencia.