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Panticosa 2026
  • marta goes places
  • Dean Eckles
  • marta goes places
  • Dean Eckles

Panticosa 2026

A short but fine adventure by marta goes places & Dean Read more
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  • Trip start
    July 29, 2026
    Panticosa 2026

    Arrival in Panticosa

    July 29 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

    It had been ages since I last visited Panticosa. Was I a teenager? Maybe even younger than that? Had I been skiing around here? I can't remember much other than a fun summer camp. In any case, Dean and I were looking for a chill escape from Zaragoza's heat and landed in this cute, pleasant town in the Aragonese Pyrenees.

    Panticosa is way closer to Zaragoza than I remembered. It took us only a couple of hours to get here, although we did stop in Huesca for lunch and to make time before check-in time. The apartment is great, centrally located, simple but new and comfortable, and it has two bathrooms.

    The town is small. We went for a walk, got groceries in the only supermarket in town, and looked for a place to have dinner. Many restaurants seemed to be closed, although we may have arrived too early. We finally landed in A vieja mina, which was pretty decent and had friendly service, and went home early.

    Eating:
    - Olla de Huesca (Huesca): nice Menú del día, with a creative twist.
    - A vieja mina (Panticosa): tasty deer and boar burger and delicious lamb chops.

    Sleeping:
    - Casa Constanza (C/ El Cambaz): clean and comfortable apartment, centrally located.    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026

    Embalse de Lanuza and Sallent de Gállego

    July 30 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    The Lanuza reservoir (Embalse de Lanuza) is a wonderful spot to go swimming, kayaking, or paddleboarding in the area. I had originally planned to go to the Embalse de Búbal instead, which, according to what I read, is a swimming spot as well, but I couldn't figure out the best entry point, so we ended up going to Lanuza instead.

    What a wonderful spot! We didn't consider kayaking or paddleboarding because of Lia, who's only four months old, but it looked like a wonderful place to do any of those things. The swimming area was fenced with buoys and, despite my plans, I ended up deciding it was too cold for swimming after all, but Dean did enjoy the water. The area next to the water has grass and trees, and the view is stunning.

    We accessed through the Embarcadero Suscalar. The parking there is free as long as you're a customer, but that just means they will give you a code if you buy a drink or an ice cream. That being said, the restaurant was nice and had a lot of options, and we enjoyed our lunch there.

    After lunch, we headed to Sallent de Gállego for a small walk and to get more groceries at the supermarket there. Sallent de Gállego is a cute little town next to a small river where people were dipping their feet and enjoying the water by a picturesque medieval bridge.

    Eating:
    - Panadería Panticosa: Nice bakery in Panticosa, where we got pastries for breakfast
    - Embarcadero Suscalar restaurant: nice variety but a bit pricey. Dean's lamb was excellent. My deer meatballs, less so.    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026

    Ibón de Asnos

    July 31 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    I wasn't aware that the ski funicular in Panticosa is also available during the summer to take people up the mountain, but apparently they have been doing so for ages. We decided to take it and hike to the Ibón de Asnos, one of the two glaciar lakes in the area accessible through a hike from the Aramon station.

    The hike wasn't long, but it was somewhat steep. On the way there, it was overcast, but I can imagine it being a bit challenging under the sun. It seems to be popular among families, and we saw several people carrying babies, like us.

    Once we got there, it was lovely. A couple of cows were just chilling by the lake, and we could see some others in the hills, plus several horses. Some people were sitting by the lake as well, and others walked by as they were continuing their hikes. We brought some bread, cheese, and fruits and had our little picnic by the water. After feeding Lia as well, Dean spotted a bunch of birds and kept himself busy trying to confirm one of them was a quebrantahuesos (bearded vulture) while I read a book.

    In the afternoon we came back to Panticosa and stopped at the local ice cream shop before going back home, where we made dinner and had a chill early evening.

    Eating:
    - Helados Panticosa: great artisanal ice cream    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026

    Ibón de Paúles

    August 1 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    One of the touristy activities in the area is taking a little train through the valley to a lake. The Tramacastilla train offers a route to the Ibón de Paúles (also called Ibón de Tramacastilla), but we decided to drive there instead so we could stay in the area for as long as we felt like. You can drive there by purchasing a car pass in Tramacastilla.

    The Ibón de Paúles is a lovely glacial lake turned into a power-generating reservoir. The water was warm enough to swim in, and we also did a short hike around it. The real hike is longer, but the water was low, so we were able to walk over the dam. The views were gorgeous!    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026

    El Salto de Sallent

    August 2 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Our plan for the day had originally been to take the "El Sarrio" to the Ripera Valley, but we failed to buy tickets early enough, and they were sold out by the time we tried to get them. This is one of the tourist trains that take visitors around the area, and it sounded like a fun activity. Next time!

    Instead, we went to El Salto. This is a short, easy hike from Sallent de Gállego to a beautiful waterfall. You can get into the water, and some people were swimming, but it was quite cold when we got there, and I assume it's even colder most of the time. It was crowded, but the scene was lovely.

    You can do this hike to the waterfall and back, or do a loop if you prefer. The first half is prettier. On the way there, the route is marked with signs listing some interesting fun facts about the plants. For example, people take the branches of the "espino albar" during the night of San Juan and put them in their windows as a form of protection against lightning.

    After the hike, we went back to Sallent for lunch and a little walk.

    One interesting thing about Sallent is that it's the hometown of Fermín Arrudi Urieta, a 2.29-meter-tall man born in 1870, known as "The Sallent Giant" (or, internationally, as "The Aragonese Giant"). He was the tallest European man at the time. His town remembers him fondly, and he has a sculpture and a street named after him.

    We really liked Sallent and would love to go back.

    After lunch, we went back to Lanuza to chill by the water before heading back to Panticosa.

    Eating:
    - enBoca (Sallent de Gállego): nice restaurant with excellent lamb and sepia. Service was quite slow.    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026

    Balneario de Panticosa

    August 3 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    For our last day in the area, we visited the surroundings of the Balneario de Panticosa. This is an historical bathhouse, still in operation, but since we were with Lia, we skipped the inside and the spa and went for a little walk around the lake. The area is beautiful!

    The first building of the bathhouse dates from 1694, although the thermal activity was known since Roman times. The main buildings and gardens were built in the 19th century, when it became a very popular destination that welcomed many celebrities of the time. Nowadays, it's still a destination, but many reviews say the space is a bit outdated. I would consider visiting it some other time, but we'll have to wait until Lia turns three.    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026
    Pozas de Belsué
    Pozas de BelsuéPozas de BelsuéPozas de BelsuéOrós Bajo

    Pozas de Belsué

    August 3 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C

    Before going back to Zaragoza, we wanted to stop at some natural pools and get into the water.

    First, we tried going to the Orós Bajo waterfall. It´s a lovely place, but it was quite crowded by the time we got there, so we decided to keep going, stop for lunch in Sabiñánigo, and continue to the Pozas de Belsué.

    The plan ended up being lovely! The Pozas de Belsué are some cute natural pools accessible after a 15-minute walk from the parking spot. By the time we arrived, only a few people were there. The water wasn't too cold, and we even gave Lia a bath! I'd definitely go back, although I'd also return to Orós Bajo with a bit more planning.

    Eating:
    - Chévere (Sabiñánigo): nothing remarkable, but it was one of the only spots open on Monday.    Read more

  • Panticosa 2026

    Panticosa 2026 (Highlights)

    August 3 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    - Embalse de Lanuza. We loved the area, and the Embarcadero Suscalar restaurant was decent.
    - Sallent de Gállego. Lovely town with a good number of restaurants.
    - Ibón de Asnos. Beautiful spot. The hike from the Panticosa funicular is short but a bit steep and exposed to the sun.
    - Ibón de Paúles. Lovely, good for sitting, picnicking, and swimming, and easily accessible by car.
    - El Salto. Beautiful, short hike with a gorgeous waterfall.
    - Pozas de Belsué. Great place for swimming, beautiful and not too cold.    Read more

    Trip end
    August 3, 2026