Palencia’s lack of notoriety only adds to its ambience; like its beautiful and haunting Gothic cathedral, it is often called La Bella Desconocida (The Unknown Beauty). Palencia (pop. 80,000) has been the home of Romans, Visigoths, Arabs, and even El Cid Campeador, and its historic center is studded with 14th- to 16th-century churches. Laid-back and unassuming, Palencia is a quiet city well worth a short visit for its museums, churches, and graceful squares.
Palencian life is centered along C. Mayor. From the bus or train station, head past the Jardinillos de la Estación to Pl. León; from there you can see C. Mayor, the fourth street on the right from the rotary.
Palencia has fewer tourists than many of its neighbors, so accommodations are less abundant and more expensive. Hostels can be found off C. Mayor. Reserve ahead, as hostels tend to fill up quickly in the summer.
Cafeterias and restaurants fill the zona vieja and the streets off C. Mayor, and there is an El Árbol supermarket at C. Mayor, 99. (Open M-Sa 9:30am-9pm.)
Catedral De Palencia. Palencia’s greatest sight is its gargoyle-laden Gothic cathedral, known as La Bella Desconocida. The elegant old beauty has an air of mystery about her, with medieval memories of times like the marriage of 14-year-old Catherine of Lancaster to 10-year-old Enrique III in 1388. Visitors can descend to the Cripta de San Antolín, a 7th-century sepulcher containing the remains of the Roman/Visigoth structure upon which the cathedral was built. The cathedral’s museum contains El Greco’s San Sebastián, some 16th-century Flemish tapestries, and a tiny caricature of Carlos V. (From Pl. León, walk down C. Eduardo Dato and turn left at Pl. Carmelitas onto C. Santa Teresa de Jesús; the cathedral is at the end in Pl. de la Inmaculada Concepción. ☎979 70 13 47. Cathedral is open M-Sa 9am-1:30pm and 4:30-7:30pm, Su 9am-1:30pm. Tours of the museum, crypt and cathedral in Spanish M-Sa hourly 10:30am-12:30pm and 4:30-6:30pm, Su 11:15am. Cathedral free. Museum €3.)
Cristo Del Otero. Located on top of a hill on the outskirts of the city, Palencia’s statue Cristo del Otero, built in 1931, is the second tallest statue of Jesus Christ in the world—only Rio de Janiero’s Corcovado is taller. The statue can be reached by a path that winds to the top of the hill. The short walk (approx. 15min.) to the top also offers fantastic views of Palencia and the surrounding countryside of Castilla y León. (To reach the statue, take the B-line bus from Pl. de Leon to Camino La Miranda. Get off at the third stop, Po. de Otero. From the bus stop, continue walking up the street; the enormous statue rises ahead. Follow the street until you reach the park on your right, and take one of the numerous paths to the top.)
Midweek nightlife is tame, but on weekends, plenty of palentinos roam the streets of the zona vieja, off C. Mayor, into the wee hours of the morning. Merlin, C. Conde de Vallellano, 4, packs in a young crowd for drinks, dancing and revelry in what looks like a medieval castle. (Beer €2. Mixed drinks €4. Open Th-Sa 7pm-4:30am, Su 7pm-2:30am.) Disco-Bar Cendal, across from Merlin on C. Conde de Vallellano, is a tapas bar by day, then transforms into a dark, pop music-infused favorite at night. (Beer €1.50. Mixed drinks €4.50. Open M-Th and Su 7:30pm-2:30am, F-Sa until 4:30am.) If you happen to drop by Palencia on September 2, join in the Fiesta de San Antolín. Feasts commemorate the city’s patron saint, while some brave locals head to the cathedral’s crypt for a supposedly auspicious sip of holy water.
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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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