Frias

Frias holds city status granted in 1435 and has around two hundred and fifty residents, which makes it the smallest ciudad in Spain. It occupies a limestone crag above the Ebro, and its houses are built at the very edge with parts of them projecting over the drop on wooden beams, the casas colgadas, held up in a way that looks improbable from below. The castle at the top, built into the rock, has a keep and a hall and is open to visit. Below the town, a medieval bridge with a defensive tower crosses the Ebro on Roman foundations. The setting in the Tobalina valley is green, and the Ebro gorges and the Ojo Guarena caves lie nearby.

What you actually see

• The hanging houses - buildings projecting over the crag edge on beams.
• The rock castle - a fortress built into the top of the crag.
• The medieval bridge - an Ebro crossing with a defensive tower.
• The Tobalina valley - green farmland and river country below.

When to go

April to June and September to November; the valley is green in spring and colourful in autumn. Northern Burgos is cold and often wet in winter. The castle keeps seasonal hours.

Honest expectations

The town is very small and seen in two hours. Streets are steep and cobbled with parking outside. Facilities are limited to a few bars and a small hotel.

Nearby

Ojo Guarena and the Ebro gorges lie west; Burgos is eighty kilometres southwest.