Hotels in Riosa

Riosa

Riosa is a small Asturian municipality tucked into the foothills of the Cantabrian Mountains, about 25 km south of Oviedo along the Nalón river basin. The area rose to prominence during the 20th-century coal-mining era — the Pozo Fortuna and surrounding collieries once defined daily life here — and that industrial heritage still shapes the local identity. Stone villages like La Vega de Riosa and Villanueva sit against forested ridges that reach above 1,800 m at the Sierra de la Magdalena.

Visitors come primarily for mountain access. The Parque Natural de Las Ubiñas-La Mesa borders the municipality to the south, offering waymarked trails for hikers and a habitat for the Cantabrian brown bear — one of fewer than 300 individuals remaining in the Iberian Peninsula. The Angliru climb, a notoriously steep Alto used in the Vuelta a España cycling race since 1999, rises just east of the municipal boundary, drawing cyclists who want to tackle its 23.6% maximum gradient. Autumn weekends attract mushroom foragers working the oak and chestnut woods.

Riosa has no commercial airport; the nearest is Asturias Airport (OVD) at roughly 45 km northwest. Local accommodation is limited — rural guesthouses (casas rurales) handle most overnight stays, as the town has no large hotel stock. The AS-228 regional road links Riosa to Oviedo in under 40 minutes by car.