Roncal: a town to enjoy nature and architecture

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We continue with the route of towns through Spain , making a stop in Navarra to visit Roncal . A town that, since 2021, has been one of the most beautiful towns in Spain. Obviously, it is a distinction that it honors because this municipality has many attractions, being a clear example that you can enjoy nature , architecture , art and rich gastronomy .

The village

Rocal is a municipality that gives its name to the valley in which it is located. Its municipal term has an area that does not reach 39 square kilometers. Located within the geographical area called Montaña de Navarra, it sits on both sides of the Esca River , in the Navarrese Pyrenees .

The first thing that catches your attention when touring the municipality are its cobbled streets , which also have the particularity of being distributed in the shape of a "Y". In them, you can find numerous attractions such as stately buildings such as Casa Sanz, Casa López or Casa Gambra, among others.

The route through Roncal also takes us to the mausoleum of Julián Gayarre , who was a great Navarrese tenor, who triumphed in all the great operas and whose remains rest in this town for which the sculptor Benlliure made the funeral work.

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You should not leave Roncal without seeing the Church of San Esteban , which dates back to the 16th century and whose style is Gothic-Renaissance. A construction in which the nave with the chapels between the buttresses and the pentagonal head of the star-shaped vaults stand out.

Continuing with art and religious monuments, Roncal also has the Hermitage in honor of Our Lady of the Castle where there is an image of the Virgin with the child in Romanesque style; the Hermitage of San Juan , which was rebuilt in 2006, and the Hermitage of San Sebastián , in Navarzato.

Gastronomy

In Roncal you can taste the rich gastronomy of Navarre, but above all the Roncal cheese deserves special attention, which is made with raw sheep’s milk of the latxa breed and which is differentiated by its slightly spicy flavor and buttery texture.