Oviedo Tourist Attractions
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Oviedo lies on the slopes of a hill some 30km/20mi from the north coast of Spain, on a fertile plateau enclosed by the foothills of the Cantabrian Mountains.
From the Parque de San Francisco to the Plaza Mayor
Parque de San Francisco
The central feature of Oviedo is the Parque de San Francisco (area 6 hectares/15 acres), at the northeast corner of which are the Plaza de la Escandalera and the premises of the Consejo Regional de Asturias. To the north, in Plaza del Progreso, is the Theater. From the Plaza de la Escandalera Calle de Uría, Oviedo's main street, which is particularly busy in the afternoon and evening, runs northwest to the Northern Station (Estación del Norte).
Plaza Mayor
From the Plaza de la Escandalera the busy Calle de Fruela runs southeast to the arcaded Plaza Mayor. At the southwest corner of the square is the former Jesuit church of San Isidoro (1578), and on its north side the Ayuntamiento (Town Hall; by Juan de Naveda, 1662).
Plaza Daoiz y Velarde
Southwest of the Plaza Mayor in Oviedo the quiet Plaza Daoiz y Velarde is surrounded by Baroque houses.
Cathedral
The Basílica del Salvador is a 13th to 14th C Gothic cathedral with a 16th C tower standing at 82 m.
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Around the Cathedral
Plaza de Alfonso
In front of the cathedral is the spacious Plaza de Alfonso II, in which are a number of notable buildings.
Plaza Porlier
Beyond the Plaza de Alfonso, in the little Plaza Porlier, the 18th century Palacio de Camposagrado, now the Audiencia (Law Courts). Also in Plaza Porlier is the 17th century Palacio de Toreno.
University
Just south of the Plaza Porlier, at a street intersection, is the plain building occupied by the University, founded in 1608 by Archbishop Fernando Valdés Sala (with a bronze statue of the archbishop in the courtyard).
Palacio de Valdecarzana
At the west corner of the Plaza de Alfonso stands the 17th century Palacio de Valdecarzana.
Casa de la Rúa
In the middle of the southeast side of the Plaza de Alfonso II is Oviedo's oldest secular building, the Casa de la Rúa (15th century), adjoining which is the church of San Tirso, originally dating from the ninth century but rebuilt in its present form in the 18th century.
Museum of Fine Art
To the south of San Tirso, in Calle de Santa Ana, is the Baroque Palacio de Velarde, now occupied by the Provincial Museum of Art, with a collection which includes works of the Renaissance and Baroque periods as well as pictures by contemporary Asturian painters.
Bishop's Palace
On the south side of the cathedral in Oviedo can be seen the Bishop's Palace (16th-18th century)
Archeological Museum
Behind the Oviedo Cathedral, in the cloister of the old Convento de San Vicente (founded in the eighth century and rebuilt in the 15th), is the Archeological Museum. The ground floor is devoted to pre-Romanesque and Romanesque art, mainly from Asturias, including the altar-stone of Santa María de Naranco; on the first floor are Roman coins, sculpture, mosaics and other relics of the period of Roman rule in Iberia; and the second floor displays Stone Age material from the surrounding area.
Santa María la Real
From the Archeological Museum a passage leads into the Plaza Feijido, on the left of which stands the late Renaissance church of Santa María la Real (1592), with the tombs of prominent local people.
Convento de San Pelayo
Immediately north of the cathedral in Oviedo, Santa María la Real and the Archeological Museum is the large Convento de San Pelayo (11th-18th century).
Santullano
In the outlying district of Santullano (reached by way of Calle G. Conde, on the Gijón and Avilés road) is the largest pre-Romanesque church in Spain, San Julián de los Prados, measuring 25 by 30m (82 by 98ft). An unusual feature is the two-level apse, with the altar on the lower level and a concealed chamber above it.
Surroundings
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Cueva de Candamo, San Roman
Cueva de Cándamo at San Román is located 20km/12.5mi northwest of Oviedo. Features: A series of chambers leading to a large hall; some 60 figures of animals (paintings and engravings); fine sinter formations.The paintings here are thought to date back to the Upper Paleolithic period, some 18,000 years ago.
Map of Oviedo Attractions
Map - Oviedo
