Staying in castles, monasteries, palaces...places to let the imagination fly in past times where kings, maidens and gentlemen strolled their elegant costumes or shining armor around the courtyard of weapons, halls or chambers.The magic of enjoying unique places that is, in short, the Tourism Paradores.
Spain pioneered this concept of hotel network and much has it rained since that 1910 when the government of Canalejas, knowing the great potential that Spain had for travelers, commissioned the Marques de la Vega Inclan a hotel structure, nonexistent then in our country, in whose establishments hikers and travelers were accommodated, while improving the international image of Spain.
Difficult task had to find the marques in a Spain very different from the current one and it would not be until 1926, when the monarch Alfonso XI himself II chose the first site in the middle of a place of singular beauty of the Sierra de Gredos, between Madrid and Avila, a construction similar to the classic hunting lodge.Two years of work were enough to value this senorial building in the Alto del Risquillo that gives beautiful panoramas of the Tormes Valley, the Sierra de Piedrahita and Bejar, and the Gredos massif.Yes, on October 9, 1928, exactly 90 years ago, the Tourism Inn of Gredos was inaugurated, the first of a network of emblematic accommodations.
Historical-artistic heritage
After the inauguration of that first hotel, the Board of Paradores and Hosterias del Reino was established, setting all thereafter looks in the singular buildings, with a long history and an enviable monumental heritage, as well as those located in geographical places of great natural interest.
The next to open their doors were those of Oropesa, in Toledo in 1930 ; Ciudad Rodrigo, in Salamanca, in 1929; Ubeda in Jaen in 1930; and Merida, in Badajoz, in 1933.The Civil War was a strong setback but after the fight was over, the project was resumed strongly to boost tourism.
The largest expansionary process occurred in the 1960s, coinciding with the development of infrastructure such as roads, railroads, airports and ports as well as the significant increase in tourism that the country experienced.In those years, the Paradores network went from 40 to 83 establishments.
9,000 pieces Inventories
There were still hotels in emblematic buildings that were not part of the Paradores Network.It would be in the 80s when some of the accommodations of the National Tourism Company chain joined those of Oropesa or Gredos.The Parador de Santiago, known as the Hostal de los Reyes Catolico, located in the Obradoiro square mixes history, art and tradition and is one of the main references of Paradores.
With the arrival of the 90s, Paradores lives a change fu ndamental.On January 18, 1991, the joint-stock company« Paradores de Turismo de Espana, S.A.» publicly owned and whose sole shareholder is the General Directorate of State Heritage.
Nowadays Paradores has a valuable historical-artistic heritage, perhaps the most important in the hands of a hotel chain throughout the The world, with 45 enclaves and buildings considered Assets of Cultural Interest.In addition, it has an artistic collection with more than 9,000 inventoried pieces ranging from archaeological remains to a broad representation of Spanish art of the twentieth century, passing through classical works or tapestries, as well as furniture.
Ten best Paradores in 2018
The Parador de Cangas de Onis , in Asturias, has been chosen this 2018 the best establishment of the hotel chain by the users of the TripAdvisor travel platform On the banks of the Sella River and surrounded by the spectacular Picos de Europa, this located in the old Monastery of San Pedro de Villanueva built in the eighth century.In its architecture coexist pre-Romanesque and Baroque, fruit of the different transformations made in its nearly 1,300 years of history.The rooms and the garden next to the river they are the ideal environment to organize a The Parador is two kilometers from Cangas de Onis and is an ideal starting point if you want to visit the Natural Park of Los Picos de Europa, the Sanctuary and the lakes of Covadonga, and even charming coastal towns such as Llanes or Ribadesella./p>
Full list
1- Cangas de Onis (Asturias) .Old eighth-century monastery, surrounded by the Picos de Europa.
2- Alcala de Henares (Madrid) .17th-century student convent and hostel located in the former Colegio Mayor de San Jeronimo.
3- Plasencia (Caceres) .On the banks of the Jerte, it is in the convent of Santo Domingo.It is a strategic enclave of the Ruta de la Plata.
4. Santo Estevo (Orense) In the Ribeira Sacra, the monastery has three cloisters, Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance.
5- Hostal Reyes Catolicos (Santiago de Compostela) .Plaza del Obradoiro, was born as a hospital in 1499.
6- Nerja (Malaga) .Hotel set on a cliff.
7- Lorca (Murcia) .Located in a castle, retains remains archaeological sites of a synagogue, an Islamic cistern and an Almohad wall.
8- La Granja (Segovia) .It is made up of the House of the Infants and the Headquarters of Corps.
9- Alcaniz (Teruel) .Castillo-convent of the 12th and 13th centuries.
10- Oropesa (Toledo) .It was the manor house of Alvarez de Toledo and served as a refuge for soldiers, religious and nobles.
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