Monasteries in Spain

A late medieval convent in Belalcázar, in the north of the province of Córdoba, declared a Site of Cultural Interest in 1982 and a silent witness to several centuries of history.

The Granada Charterhouse, a monastery founded in the 16th century, is one of the high points of Spanish Baroque architecture and an unmissable visit in the city.

One of Spain's great art galleries, housed in the former Convent of La Merced and essential viewing for anyone wanting to discover Murillo, Zurbarán and Valdés Leal.

A former Franciscan convent built over a Nasrid palace within the Alhambra, where the Catholic Monarchs once lay at rest and where travellers now stay.

A former 12th-century Cistercian monastery beside the River Piedra in Nuévalos, where Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque styles sit side by side in one of the most visited spots in Aragon.

A Cistercian monastery in Sástago, in the Ribera Baja del Ebro, protected as a monument since 1924 and an essential stop for anyone exploring the heritage of the province of Zaragoza.

The ruins of a medieval monastery beside the Sía ravine, near Gavín, forgotten for centuries and rediscovered in the winter of 1997.

A Romanesque castle-abbey crowning Monte Aragón, cradle of the Royal House of Aragon and one of the most remarkable monasteries of the Middle Ages, now lying in ruins opposite Huesca.

Tucked beneath a huge overhang of rock, the monastery where the legend of Aragon was born holds a Romanesque cloister with extraordinary capitals and the pantheon of the kingdom's first kings.

A monastic complex set 1,200 metres above sea level at the foot of Peña Montañesa, in the heart of Sobrarbe and just a few kilometres from Aínsa: history and mountains in a single landscape.

A 12th-century Cistercian abbey near Vera de Moncayo, and an essential stop for anyone exploring the Tarazona y el Moncayo district.

A former Benedictine monastery in Cangas de Onís, a jewel of Asturian Romanesque architecture with three stepped apses, now a Parador hotel.

A Dominican convent in the very heart of Salamanca, on the Plaza del Concilio de Trento, and a natural stop for anyone exploring the city on foot.

A former Franciscan convent in Segovia that now houses the Artillery Academy, an intriguing example of how a religious building can take on a new life while remaining part of the city.

In Villacastín, the Convent of Santa Clara holds almost four centuries of Poor Clare life within walls raised in the 17th century at the behest of the Counts of Molina de Herrera.

A convent in Medina del Campo that has been home to the Discalced Carmelites since 1981, with a Latin-cross church and an austere nave covered by a barrel vault.

A Trappist abbey just 10 km from Burgos, a Historic-Artistic Monument since 1931 and linked to the UNESCO-recognised legacy of the Camino de Santiago.

A convent of Poor Clare nuns in Belorado, also known as Nuestra Señora de Bretonera, recognised as an associated element of the Camino de Santiago.

A former 12th-century Cistercian monastery, now partly in ruins, whose church blends Cistercian Romanesque with late Gothic, close to the Way of St James as it crosses the province of León.

The Royal Monastery of Santo Domingo de Guzmán, in Caleruega, invites you to take your time discovering one of the monastic sites of the province of Burgos.

A convent of Salesian nuns on Calle Barrantes in Burgos, a quiet corner of cloistered life that invites you to discover the city's more secluded side.

Santa María de Bonaval, a Cistercian monastery founded in 1164 in Retiendas, offers a glimpse into more than eight centuries of history in the province of Guadalajara.

The Convent of Nuestra Señora del Rosal, in Priego (Cuenca), is an unassuming stop for anyone touring the villages of Cuenca province and keen to discover their heritage.

The Toledo convent of Santa Isabel de los Reyes, a worthwhile stop for anyone keen to discover the religious heritage of the Imperial City.

A convent in Almagro, in the province of Ciudad Real, whose name brings together the dedication to the Assumption and the name of Calatrava. A worthwhile stop for anyone exploring the town at a leisurely pace.

Beside Sigüenza's Alameda, this Gothic-Renaissance monastery is still home to a community of Poor Clare nuns and retains the gentle rhythm of convent life.

Right on Passeig de Sant Joan, the church and former convent of Las Salesas together make up the most important work by the architect Joan Martorell i Montells.

A Benedictine monastery within the Sanctuary of El Miracle, in Riner, where a small community of monks linked to Montserrat keeps monastic life alive.

A former Benedictine abbey built between the 9th and 14th centuries, once the most important in the County of Barcelona, with a cloister that alone makes the visit worthwhile.

An ancient monastery in the Ripollès that gives its name to the town around it and which, until the year 945, was the only convent for women in the whole of Catalonia.

Clinging to the Serra de Verdera above the bay of Llançà, this great Benedictine monastery holds one of the most original Romanesque churches in Catalonia.

A Benedictine abbey perched 720 metres up on the mountain of Montserrat, a symbol of Catalonia, a destination for pilgrims and home to one of the oldest boys' choirs in Europe.

The Royal Monastery of Santa Maria de Pedralbes is a Gothic complex in Barcelona that, for eleven years, housed part of the Thyssen-Bornemisza collection.

The archetypal Cistercian abbey and former burial place of the kings of Aragon, Poblet is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is still home to a community of monks in the heart of the Conca de Barberà.

An abbey of Benedictine nuns perched on a slope of Montserrat, a place of silence and prayer renowned for its handmade ceramics: vases, painted tiles and small sculptures.

Perched on top of La Mola, this 11th-century Romanesque monastery, a half-scale replica of Sant Cugat, rewards the climb with reddish stone, silence and views over the Vallès.

An 11th-century Benedictine monastery with a church carved into the rock, beside the Rossinyol waterfalls on the Cingles de Bertí cliffs (Barcelona).

A former 15th-century Franciscan convent on the outskirts of Alcántara, now a guesthouse where you can sleep within walls steeped in more than five centuries of history.

The Convent of San Benito is one of Alcántara's landmark buildings, in the province of Cáceres, and a fine excuse to explore this town in Extremadura.

In the heart of the La Vera district, the monastery and palace residence where Charles I of Spain and V of Germany spent the last two years of his life in retirement after abdicating.

Sanctuary of the Virgin of Guadalupe, patron saint of Extremadura, this World Heritage monastery brings together six centuries of history and art, from Gothic to Neoclassical.

In Serradilla, a convent of Augustinian Recollect nuns houses the Cristo de la Victoria, one of the most revered images in Extremadura and a protected gem of the heritage of the province of Cáceres.

A Benedictine monastery founded in the 10th century in the heart of Santiago de Compostela, now a seminary, centre of learning and museum closely linked to the history of the Camino.

In Vilasantar, the Romanesque church of Santa María de Mezonzo is the great surviving witness to a former Galician monastery, perfect for a quiet stop.

A Cistercian monastery of royal foundation in Ourense, now Trappist, whose economic and social influence shaped the surrounding area and lands much further afield for centuries.

A Cistercian abbey in La Rioja known as the Monastery of Light, home to one of the first female Cistercian communities on the Iberian Peninsula and still inhabited by nuns.

In La Rioja, two monasteries, Suso and Yuso, preserve fifteen centuries of monastic life begun by the hermit Millán, along with a key legacy of medieval culture.

Founded around the tomb of Saint Aemilian in the 6th century, Suso preserves the memory of the Glosas Emilianenses and of Gonzalo de Berceo: one of the places where the Spanish language took its first steps.

Standing on its namesake square in Madrid, the Convent of the Comendadoras de Santiago is considered the first convent built in the capital and the only one that survives in its entirety.

Palace, basilica, royal pantheon, library and monastery all in one: Philip II's great Renaissance dream, dubbed the Eighth Wonder of the World, set in the heart of the Sierra de Guadarrama.

A former convent in Estella standing on a hill beside the River Ega, in a commanding position that overlooks the whole of this Navarrese town.

Former Monastery of the Visitation, built in 1902 by Florencio Ansoleaga in the heart of Pamplona's Old Town and given a new lease of life after the departure of the Salesian nuns.

The first Cistercian foundation in the Kingdom of Navarre, this 12th-century monastery in Carcastillo preserves one of the purest Cistercian ensembles in Spain, complete with monks and vineyards.

A Catholic convent right in the centre of Valencia, dedicated to Saint Ursula, that invites you to pause and discover a quieter side of Valencia amid streets bursting with life.

A jewel of the Valencian Renaissance, this Hieronymite monastery founded by the Duke of Calabria, which some regard as a forerunner of El Escorial, now houses the Valencian Library.