Experience the best of Salamanca

Salamanca stands on the River Tormes on the high plateau of western Castile and León and is built in a warm golden sandstone that glows at sunset. Its university, founded in 1218, is the oldest in Spain and among the oldest in Europe, and the old city, listed by UNESCO, is full of students. The Plaza Mayor, a Baroque square of arcades and medallion portraits, was built in the 18th century and is the city's living room.

The Old and New Cathedrals stand side by side, and a carved astronaut hides among the stone figures of the New Cathedral's doorway. On the richly carved university façade, visitors look for a tiny stone frog. The Casa de las Conchas is covered in carved scallop shells, Casa Lis is a museum of Art Nouveau glass and toys, and a Roman bridge crosses the Tormes. The walls of Ávila and the walled town of Ciudad Rodrigo make good day trips.

Jamón ibérico from nearby Guijuelo, farinato, a spiced pork sausage, and hornazo, a meat pie eaten at Easter, are local specialities, and the lentils of La Armuña are cooked in winter stews. The bars around the Plaza Mayor fill at night. On the high plateau winters are cold and frosty, and summers are hot and dry.