Old Monastery of Saint John of the Peña

One of the most impactful visits we've had in the entire Huesca Pyrenees has been the Protected Landscape of San Juan de la Peña. A magnificent place to recommend to our clients. Primarily because it includes a rare combination of nature and culture with the existence of one of the most important monasteries of the High Middle Ages. A place marked by the imprint of centuries of coexistence of Benedictine monks through two Monasteries.

From Santa Cruz de los Serós, near Jaca, you ascend an 8.5-kilometre mountain pass to reach the summit of San Juan de la Peña. Here we can stroll along a network of paths offering 6 viewpoints from which to admire the entire Pre-Pyrenees and the Aragonese Pyrenees. Naturally, the New Monastery is a must-see, but what truly surprised us was the Royal Monastery of San Juan de la Peña, the Old one, which is located in an extremely unique spot at kilometre 7 of the same road, built into the very rock jutting out from the mountain. We had the pleasure of experiencing it through a dramatisation that introduced us to part of Aragón's history. The truth is, the two actors nailed it, frequently changing characters and with a continuous comedic touch.

From the Old Monastery, particular attention should be paid to its Cloister and the Royal Pantheon, where a good number of monarchs of Aragon and Navarre were buried for five centuries. According to Spanish legend about the Holy Grail, it remained in the monastery from 1071 to 1399. The need to attract pilgrims to Santiago, who passed by the nearby Jaca road towards the monastery, advised that the relic be housed here. For the first time in Spain (on March 22, 1071), taking advantage of the presence of the Holy Chalice, the Roman Rite was celebrated here, replacing the Mozarabic Rite.