ONE lesser-visited region in Spain has been named as one of the best places to visit next year.
Conde Nast Traveller declared Navarra, also called Navarre, as one of the ‘Best Places to Go in Spain and Portugal in 2026’.
The publication said: “We often make a point of covering lesser-known sites in every region and in 2026 we want to encourage readers to check out a new project focused on rural areas in Navarra.”
The landlocked region located innorthern Spain, shares borders with the Basque Country, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain.
Its capital, Pamplona, is home to around 200,000 residents.
And it’s famous for its San Fermín festival which is celebrated each year from July 6 to 14 with parades, music, dancing, and bullfights.
The most well-known event is called Encierro or Running of the Bulls.
It involves hundreds of people running in front of six bulls down a stretch of narrow streets which ends in Pamplona’s bullring.
The city also has a pretty Old Town, Cathedral, the Renaissance-like fort Ciudadela, Plaza del Castillo, and the Museum of Navarre.
It’s not just Pamplona, there are other smaller cities within the region, like Barañáin,Burlada, andEstella-Lizarra.
The region was even once an independent kingdom and known as the Kingdom of Navarre.
Eventually it as split with Lower Navarre merging into France, and Upper Navarre becoming a province of Spain.
Aside from the cities, Navarre also has a semi-desert region called Bardenas Reales which is around 162 square miles.
The desert has plenty of hiking trails and places to go biking – but unique rock formations aren’t to be climbed on themselves as they are part of an eco-system.
In contrast, part of Navarre encompasses the Pyrenean valleys.
It has high mountain peaks like Mesa de los Tres Reyes as well as green valleys, forests and even caves.
During the winter, the Pyrenean valleys become a great and popular spot for skiers.
From Navarre, travellers can easily get to other cities like San Sebastian and Bilbao, Madrid and Barcelona.
For four days last summer, professional beer sommeliers and experienced brewers gathered in Estoril,Portugal, for the World Beer Challenge.
The international contest declared which beers were the greatest in the world across a number of categories.
One of the winners of the 2024 gongs was Spanish beer Ambar Especial, which picked up a perfect 100/100 score from all 125 judges, who came from 29 different countries.
The beer is made in the city of Zaragoza inSpainand claimed the gold in the International Lager category at this year’s event.
It’s a city that is often overlooked by people heading to north Spain, with visitors more commonly heading to places likeBarcelona, or the beaches of San Sebastian.
Plus, here’s another Spanish region undiscovered by Brits despite seaside views and ancient Roman cities.
And the Spanish coastal region with fewer than 2,000 Brits a year that has ‘endless’ beaches