A Solar Eclipse Will Bring Tourists to Spain’s Rural Gems

When a solar eclipse leaves a swath of Spain in darkness on Aug. 12, tourist hot spots like Valencia and Ibiza will be swarming with visitors eager to bask in almost two minutes of totality.

The path will also cross quieter, but no less beautiful, rural stretches of the country often called La España Vaciada, or Emptied Spain, because of significant population declines in the last few decades as people have moved to large cities or abroad.

These enclaves are far from empty, however. In the history-rich region of Castilla y León, stone villages, often clustered around a church or castle, emerge like islands in the wheat fields. Lesser-visited but still vibrant regional cities like León and Burgos offer a chance to witness the eclipse against a medieval backdrop. The whole region’s dependably clear summertime skies combine with its open horizons to provide vantage points for the cosmic spectacle.

All along the path of totality, the authorities are racing to set up official outlooks with the capacity to accommodate vehicles and large crowds. The Spanish central government told the Castilla y León region to expect up to two million visitors for the eclipse.

I visited four of the nine provinces in Castilla y León in mid-May to scout out places not only to see the eclipse but also to experience the food, culture, history and natural wonders of a destination many travelers to Spain never see.

But it’s also a place of exquisite beauty. The Spanish poet Antonio Machado described Soria in 1912 as “where it seems the stones dream.”

Those visions take shape in the region’s quintessentially Castilian landscapes — cropland, scattered groves of oaks and blue skies crossed by an occasional stork — and create a feeling of openness.

Eclipse travelers will find it has also has lush mountains and loads of hiking trails to explore.

A network of paths crisscrosses Río Lobos Canyon, a limestone valley where griffon vultures circle overhead. Hikers can also visit the mysterious hermitage of San Bartolomé, associated with the Knights Templar, hidden at the heart of the gorge.

Not far from the city of Soria, in the rugged Urbión peaks, beautiful glacial lakes like the Laguna Negra (the Black Lagoon), cradled in dark granite walls amid dense pine forests, beckon to visitors who are willing to take a hike.

Each province in the larger Castilla y León region is famous for its own tapa. In Soria, bars serve crispy torreznos, deep-fried chunks of pork belly, for just a few euros. La Tablada in Navaleno and El Portalón in San Leonardo de Yagüe, both close to the canyon, are good places to taste this specialty.

Burgos: A Way Station for Pilgrims

Pilgrims in hiking boots wander the streets of Burgos, beneath the lacy French Gothic spires of its 13th-century cathedral. The city is an important stopover on the roughly 500-mile Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route, and you’ll spot plenty of people with walking sticks along the Paseo del Espolón, a tree-lined promenade along the Arlanzón River.

If Soria tempts visitors with torreznos, Burgos whets appetites with morcilla, a blood sausage mixed with spices, onions and rice. Most bars around the central Plaza Mayor serve crunchy slices of this ubiquitous delicacy as a tapa with bread, with some variations like Casa Pancho’s famous morcilla with a fried quail egg.

Morcilla with two fried eggs is a specialty of the restaurant in Hotel Landa, one of the most popular places to stay in the region (115 to 310 euros, or roughly $130 to $355, a night).

This family-owned hotel began as a roadside bar, gradually growing into an inn. In the 1960s, the founders had two ideas that continue to attract visitors today.

First they purchased and dismantled an imposing 14th-century tower from the nearby village of Albillos, then pieced it back together stone by stone as the centerpiece of the complex. Second, they built a stunning, shimmering swimming pool covered by a neo-Gothic vault, which draws people from all over Spain.

Even if the hotel is fully booked, you may still be able to get a feel for the place. Landa’s restaurant, with its two dining rooms, one warm and cozy and the other with a castle-like feel, takes only same-day reservations, so you won’t be squeezed out months or weeks ahead of time (plates range from €10 to €30 euros, and the morcilla with eggs is €15.)

Palencia: ‘Chosen by Nature’

Because totality will arrive in late afternoon, when the sun will be low, those who can find a spot with a clear horizon and no mountains or any other obstacles will enjoy the best views of the eclipse.

The province of Palencia abounds with such open viewing spaces, as well as semi-hidden Romanesque churches with intricate carvings and frescoes dating to the 11th century.

The San Martín de Tours church presides over the town of Frómista, another stop on the Camino. Outside, pilgrims doze on benches, while others enjoy a well-deserved beer at the sidewalk tables. Hungry hikers and other visitors can treat themselves to the delicacies of Hostería de los Palmeros (the prix fixe menus range from €65 to €95), an exceptional restaurant serving traditional specialties like stewed baby pigeon served inside a small resin birdhouse.

The open areas around Frómista are perfect viewing points for the eclipse, said Eva Villaver, an astrophysicist and the deputy director of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands, who was born in Palencia. Her team of researchers will be in the city teaching young people to use telescopes.

Rural pockets like Frómista, where light pollution is practically nonexistent, have an extra advantage for this eclipse, Dr. Villaver added. Once darkness falls for the night, there will be a cosmic encore: the Perseid meteor shower.

It is a place that has been “chosen by nature,” she said.

León: Peaks With a Surprise Past

The province of León, where the land becomes rougher, features one of the most spectacular landscapes in Castilla y León.

At first sight, the rugged, reddish peaks of Las Médulas look like a result of erosion, but they are actually vestiges of open gold mines dating to the Roman era. The Romans used an aggressive engineering technique: carving tunnels into mountain, then flooding them with pressurized water to make them collapse.

Wildflowers and shrubs compete with charred oaks and chestnut trees along the hiking trails of Las Médulas, which was devastated by wildfires last year. This year, the authorities are worried that extreme dryness and soaring temperatures make fires a possibility as visitors descend on the region for the eclipse.

In the city of León, cecina, a prosciutto-like cured beef, takes center stage. Butcher shops and restaurants all over specialize in the meat, but try it at Los Cazurros, a traditional tavern where it’s served on its own or on toast with goat cheese and pepper jam.

As with Burgos, León is organized around a central Gothic cathedral, which stands out for its nearly 19,000 square feet of kaleidoscopic stained-glass windows.

The city’s designated official viewing point, the parking lot of the convention center, is a little less lofty than the cathedral, but it will be an excellent spot to experience the 1 minute 49 seconds of darkness. Professional astronomers from the European Space Agency and amateur spectators will gather at 7:33 p.m. on Aug. 12 to look up (with the appropriate safety glasses, of course). One of them, the historian Xuasús González, 45, has been eagerly waiting for this eclipse since 1995, when he learned about it in high school. He hopes astronomy will be a catalyst for tourism in an often overlooked region.

“People used to look for beaches or mountains,” Mr. González said. “Now they also look for places with starry skies and minimal light pollution.”