Las Arenas de Cabrales, Asturias – everything you need to know

Published by Cass on 09/06/202609/06/2026

Las Arenas is a great base for

Day hikes

Other day hikes

Ruta Vegas de Sotres (part of the GR-202, Ruta de Reconquista)

Our decision for a second hike was to head to Sotres (see below for village info) and then spend the day enjoying a fairly easy hike through the valley here.

From the parking spot to the village Vegas de Sotres is 6km in each direction.

Ruta de Bulnes / Ruta La Canal del Texu (part of the GR-202, Ruta de Reconquista)

The village of Bulnes is reached only by foot or funicular.

Distance 4km each way. Around 2 hour hike.

The hike is considered to be moderately difficult as there are some steep sections. If it’s rained recently, beware of mud.

Ruta Río Casaño

An 7km gentle circular walk to/from the village of La Molina.

Visiting beautiful villages

Las Arenas de Cabrales itself is a beautiful village to enjoy a stroll around. The Río Casaño and the Río Cares meet just outside of town. The are some fun shops to explore here, including hiking supply stores (more hiking shoes in one place than I’ve seen in a long time) as well as souvenir stores and delicatessen / cheese shops.

→ The small tourist information office here is extremely helpful and informative so I highly recommend visiting if you’re not sure what you want to do while in the area.

👣 You can take a great tour of Las Arenas, Bulnes and the Garganta de Cares from Cangas de Onís, Oviedo or Gijon → find more info here

Sotres

Sotres is the highest village in the Picos de Europa at 1,050m above sea level, and like Las Arenas, it is famous for its cheese. It’s a pleasant village to stroll around and there are a few bars and hotels here.

🏨 Sotres would also be a lovely place to base yourself if you love peace and quiet → check hotel options now

Bulnes

If you aren’t hiking up to Bulnes, then the funicular is your friend.

Bulnes sits 650m above sea level and is surrounded by peaks of over 1,600m. Fewer than 50 people live in the village but it does a decent trade in catering to visitors who stop in for the night for for lunch/a drink.

Bulnes is a village of two parts. The funicular drops you off close to Bulnes de Abajo (also known as La Villa). Once you’ve had a drink here you can walk up to Bulnes de Arriba (also known as Barrio del Castillo). If you walk from Poncebos, you’ll probably follow the path La Canal del Texu.

From Bulnes de Abajo you can take a short 10 minute uphill walk to the Naranjo de Bulnes viewpoint (photo above). It’s worth it.

🏨 If staying up here appeals, check out La Casa de Chiflón

Eating cheese

You may have heard of Queso de Cabrales and if you have, you may have deduced that it’s from this region, the Cabrales region. Makes sense. So while you’re here, of course, it also makes sense to try some, right?

Cueva del queso de Cabrales

A short walk from the centre of Las Arenas is this cheese cave where you can take a guided tour through a, yup, cheese cave. You’ll learn all about the historical and modern processes of making this cheese before being given some tasters along with a dash of local cider.

The tour is in Spanish but anyone who doesn’t speak Spanish is handed an Ipad with a translation of the tour.

→ Visit the official site to book your tour

Quesería Vega de Tordín

A short drive out of town you can visit this quesería for a 45 minute tour of their installations and cheese tasting experience. Kids are also invited to interact with the animals on the farm here.

Miradores/look out points

In this spectacular region, it’s barely necessary to find a mirador for great views but none-the-less, there are some worth visiting.

Póo

In Póo, the next village along, you can both pretend not to giggle at the name, and marvel at the incredible views of the Naranjo de Bulnes (Picu Urriellu) from the mirador.

Mirador de las Cuevas

A little further along you’ll find the Mirador de las Cuevas where you can enjoy beautiful views and a little forest frolic should you so wish.

Mirador de las Estazadas

Near the village of Canales is this mirador with delightful views over the gorgeous landscape of mountains and valleys.

Useful information

Where to stay in Las Arenas de Cabrales

🏨 We stayed in the Hotel Picos de Europa and it was fantastic, I highly recommend it. The rooms are perfect, large, clean, great beds, perfect showers (also a separate bath, which we made use of), and the staff are amazing and the food fabulous. 

→ Reserve your stay

→ Check out other hotels

Where to eat in Las Arenas de Cabrales

🍽️ We ate fantastic breakfasts in our hotel, and suppers in two excellent restaurants

Sidrería La Zapica – slightly more upmarket and very popular. We didn’t reserve but I think we were lucky to get a table. 

Santelmo Restaurante – more lowkey, they have a lunch time menu del día and serve food all day, which is handy when you’re exhausted at 7pm after a long hike. 

Also had a drink in Restaurante el coyugu and coffees in Panadería Cafetería Cideres