Mills on the Río Negro, hermitages and churches give Manzanal de los Infantes its distinct character. The area also has river beaches, woodland paths and an archaeological clue to its long history of settlement. When planning your visit, it is worth considering these as separate highlights: the mill trail, the hermitages and the riverside activities are not simply one and the same route.

Mill Trails and Hermitages

More than 15 grain mills can be found in the municipality along the Río Negro corridor between Lanseros de la Encomienda and Otero de Centenos. The Ruta de los molinos del río Negro is a ten-kilometre walking route. Its length provides a practical basis for planning your day. The Molinos del Río Negro route also includes a naturally well-preserved black alder grove along the river.

Those who want to focus on religious buildings can choose a different theme: the Ruta de las ermitas. It leads to a group of eleven hermitages in the municipality. This gives you a choice between a walk focused on mills and a route to the hermitages, without treating them as one combined trail.

Churches and Historical Traces

The heritage buildings include the parish church of Santa Eufemia and the Ermita de la Vera Cruz in Donadillo. In Dornillas, the local cemetery is located at the Ermita de San Tirso. These sites add specific examples of the municipality’s religious architecture to the routes.

The church in Manzanal dates from the early 13th century. The church in Lanseros combines Romanesque and Renaissance styles. The surviving fabric of the Iglesia de San Miguel Arcángel is considerably more limited: the single-nave church is built of masonry, but only the nave’s outer wall remains.

The history of settlement goes back a long way, too. A castro discovered in Lanseros shows that the area has been inhabited since Roman times. This historical connection sits alongside the later churches and hermitages, giving your exploration of the municipality another point of reference in time.

Río Negro, Forests and Outdoor Activities

River beaches have formed along the banks of the Río Negro within the municipality. Water sports are possible there, as are walks along the riverbanks. There is also a designated bathing area with a picnic spot on the Río Negro in Manzanal de los Infantes. If you plan to visit, check the current conditions beforehand.

Traditional paths pass through oak woods, pine plantations and groves of centuries-old chestnut trees. Walkers exploring the wooded landscape may encounter deer. The Ruta BTT de La Carballeda runs through the municipality as a circular route and is signposted in both directions.

The Lanseros–Sejas mushroom route is a separate proposal: it is planned as a route from Manzanal de los Infantes along the right bank of the Río Negro. The proposed route passes through meadows and oak woods to the Ermita de San Tirso in Lanseros. It remains a planned route, so it should not be confused with the walking or mountain-biking routes described above.

Festivals and Travel Dates

The festival in honour of Blessed Juan de Santo Domingo is held on 16 February and the last Sunday in August. If you would like to plan your trip around one of these dates, check the relevant programme: the details of future celebrations may vary.

For your stay, you can choose a focus: the mills and paths along the Río Negro, the hermitages and churches, or the river and woodland landscape. The festival dates also offer a possible reason to plan your travel around them.

Discover more destinations: Ricobayo, Losacino, Mámoles, Pedrazales, Viñas, Ribadelago, Trefacio, Carbellino.

For the wider travel overview: Zamora.