Discover Padilla De Abajo

Padilla de Abajo is located in the west of the province of Burgos, in the Odra-Pisuerga comarca, on wide river plains between the Odra and Pisuerga. Buildings from different eras, the history of Roman roads and routes through the river landscape give the trip several distinct points of interest.

The Ermita de Nuestra Señora del Torreón

The Ermita de Nuestra Señora del Torreón is located 500 metres northwest of Padilla de Abajo, on the road to Padilla de Arriba. This late Romanesque building has a single-nave layout and a semicircular apse. A Latin inscription serves as the basis for dating it to 1298; the hermitage was built largely in the 13th century and later altered.

The church and its Baroque high altar

The Archdiocese of Burgos lists the Iglesia de los SS Juanes as a Bien de Interés Cultural. Another point of interest in the village’s history is the monumental Baroque high altar of the Iglesia de los Santos Juanes. It dates to around 1700 and is structured around four Solomonic columns. It also features sculptures and reliefs of the saints to whom the church is dedicated.

The Vía Aquitania: route and history

The Vía Aquitania runs from Grijalba through Padilla de Abajo and Melgar de Fernamental and on to Osorno. It follows the Roman road of the same name, which connected Italy and France. The sequence of villages through the province is thus linked to a larger historical connection whose history extends beyond individual places.

As the Spanish continuation of this road, the Vía XXXIV Ab Astúrica Burgalam was known as the route between Bordeaux and Astorga. It is listed as number 34 in the Itinerario Antoniano; the name De Hispania in Aequitania was also used for it. The Castilian section of the Vía Aquitania was designated a new historic route by the Comisión Jacobea and the Junta de Castilla y León. The route’s various names point to different contexts: its course through villages, its Roman history and its historical classification in Castile.

Roman milestones

Roman milestones are small columns that marked distances in Roman miles along Roman roads. One Roman mile is equivalent to 1,480 metres. The two Roman milestones in Padilla de Abajo were discovered in the village in 1968. They may have belonged to the Roman road running from Astorga to Bordeaux, which is also called the Vía Aquitania. This attribution remains a possibility.

Routes along the rivers

Routes along the Odra and Pisuerga rivers start from Padilla de Abajo. Mountain biking routes head towards Burgos and Citores del Páramo. This lets you distinguish between the river landscape and the designated directions when planning your trip. Before setting out on a specific outing, check the route and the conditions along it.

If you are looking for hotels for a trip to Padilla de Abajo, the different themes can help guide your plans: architecture, the history of Roman roads or routes through the river landscape.

Discover more destinations: El Berrón, Cadiñanos, Zazuar, Briviesca, Miranda De Ebro, Valdelateja, San Vicente del Valle, Quintanilla San García

For the broader travel overview: Burgos.