Oviedo City Guide

The Cathedral of Oviedo 

The Cathedral is perhaps the most emblematic site in Oviedo. The Santa Iglesia Basilica Catedral Metropolitana de San Salvador de Oviedo has been a pilgrimage Mecca for centuries, thanks to the fact that it houses the most important collection of relics of Christianity in all of Spain.

These precious artifacts are kept securely in the Holy Chamber, along with other icons of the Asturian past such as the Don Pelayo cross. The importance of the cathedral was such during the Middle ages that there was an expression that went: “Whoever goes to Santiago and not to the Savior (Cathedral of Oviedo), visits the servant and not the Lord.”

The architecture of the cathedral, the works of art it hoards and its secluded cloister will delight anyone, no matter how religious they may be. In the square that the cathedral overlooks you will find one of the many statues that decorate the streets of the city: La Regenta.

The Historic City Center 

Strolling through the historic center of Oviedo, the large houses and palaces are demonstrate the economic power and opulence that the city once enjoyed. That rich past is still alive in places like Plaza del Fontán. On one of the sides of the square you will find “La bella Lola”, the statue donated by the Torrevieja town hall, twinned with Oviedo.

Next to the Plaza del Fontán there is an open-air market on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. In that same square are the bars and restaurants where the people of Oviedo gather to have a drink before eating and to greet the vendors from Fontán, the sculpture located in the middle of the square. The word “fontán” in Asturian means “puddle”. The Plaza del Fontán is located in the space occupied by an old lagoon next to which a market was held in the Middle Ages. The lack of sanitation led to the decision to dry it in the 16th century, but with little success. When “the miracle worked”, a laundry was built. 

In addition to the Fontán another square you have to visit the Constitution Square that surrounds the town hall building. 

Santa María del Naranco, San Miguel del Lillo and San Julián de los Prados.

The Holy Chamber of the cathedral, despite being a pre-Romanesque construction, preserves few traces of that past. The centuries and the restoration-reconstructions have almost completely erased them. But other examples of this style are not lacking in the capital of Asturias. Santa María del Naranco, San Miguel de Lillo and San Julián de los Prados are the best known but not the only ones. 

Mount Naranco 

The pre-Romanesque period is one of the great symbols of Asturias and one main things to see in Oviedo. It is no coincidence that in the Asturias tourism logo, the green meadows of the region are framed by the Santa María del Naranco trifora window. There are six pre-Romanesque period monuments in Asturias have been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Of these, five no less are in the capital of the Principality. 

You will have to climb the Naranco mountain a bit. Make sure you get all the way to the top to see the Christ the Redeemer statue, and enjoy fabulous panoramic view of the Asturian forest. 

Plaza Trascorrales

Trascorrales Square is another essential point of the city. The bright colors of the buildings and the tranquility that is breathed are more than enough reasons to pay a visit. There is also a statue here. One so characteristic that it has given the square a second name: plaza de la burra. In the center of the square is the statue of the milkmaid accompanied by a donkey, recalling that milk, cheese and vegetables were sold in this square.