Things to do
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Arco de Santa María
At the end of the Santa María bridge, this gate in the old city wall is the formal way into the cathedral quarter, its facade lined with stone statues of local heroes, El Cid and the Emperor Charles V among them. Rooms upstairs hold exhibitions and an old council chamber with a carved Mudéjar ceiling. Twenty minutes is enough, and the gate is floodlit after dark.
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Atapuerca
Excavated caves in the Sierra de Atapuerca, east of the city, have yielded fossils spanning roughly a million years of human presence, and the sites are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Visits are guided and must be booked in advance through the Museum of Human Evolution, with buses up to the sierra from the visitor centres. Each guided tour lasts about an hour and a half.
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Burgos Cathedral
Gothic spires of openwork stone rise over the old town from a cathedral listed by UNESCO. Inside, the Golden Staircase, the star-vaulted lantern over the crossing and the chapels ringing the ambulatory reward a slow circuit with the audio guide. El Cid and his wife Jimena are buried beneath the lantern. Allow ninety minutes, and come early on a weekday for the quietest nave.
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Cartuja de Miraflores
Carthusian monks still occupy this charterhouse in a wooded park east of the city, and the church is open to visitors. An alabaster royal tomb carved by Gil de Siloé fills the centre of the nave, with his gilded altarpiece rising behind it. Allow an hour. The walk out follows the river through parkland, and there is little else nearby, so bring water.
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Casa del Cordón
A carved Franciscan cord loops around the doorway of this palace on Plaza de la Libertad and gives the house its name. Columbus was received here by the Catholic Monarchs after his second voyage. Today it houses bank offices and an exhibition space, so the visit is mostly the facade and, when a show is on, the courtyard. Allow fifteen minutes, longer if an exhibition is running inside.
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Castle of Burgos
Climb the hill behind the cathedral to reach the castle park, where the ruined walls give the widest view over the spires, the river and the plain beyond. A small interpretation centre and a deep medieval well can be visited inside the walls. The park itself is open to walk; allow an hour including the climb, and expect wind at the top.
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Church of San Nicolás de Bari
Up a flight of steps beside the cathedral, this small church holds a stone altarpiece from the Colonia family workshop, with tiers of carved figures crowded around the saint. It is easy to miss on the climb towards the castle, and it is one of the finest pieces of carving in Burgos. Twenty minutes covers it, and it pairs naturally with the walk up the hill.
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Monastery of Las Huelgas
Cistercian nuns still live in this royal convent on the western edge of the city, founded as a burial place for the kings of Castile. Visits are guided, and they take in the church, the cloisters and a museum of silk garments recovered from the royal tombs, rare survivals of medieval clothing. Allow a little over an hour and join the next tour at the door.
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Museum of Human Evolution
Glass and steel by the river hold the finds from the Atapuerca hills, among them some of the oldest human fossils found in Europe, laid out in a building filled with daylight. Two hours covers the main floors. It is closed on Mondays, entry stops half an hour before closing, and admission is free on Wednesdays. Visits to the Atapuerca sites are booked here too.
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Paseo del Espolón
Pollarded plane trees shade this riverside promenade running between the Arco de Santa María and the Teatro Principal. Its bandstand, statues and flower beds make it the natural route into the old centre from the bridges. Come in the early evening, when local families walk it before dinner and the cafes along the edge fill up. A stroll from end to end takes about thirty minutes, with benches along the river side.
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Santo Domingo de Silos
Gregorian chant draws visitors into the hills south east of Burgos to this Benedictine abbey, where the monks sing the offices in a church open to the public. The two-storey Romanesque cloister, with its carved capitals and a tall cypress in the garden, is the reason to make the drive. Time the visit for vespers in the early evening, and check the abbey's hours before setting out.
