León

León is a city in Castile and Leon in northern Spain, with a population of 121,000 in 2023. It's on the Way of St. James pilgrimage route to Santiago, and has a vast cultural, historical and architectural heritage. The Roman legions conquered this area around 29 BC and set up a large military camp, which evolved into a garrison town from 74 AD. This they called Legio, just so the troublesome Celts understood who was in charge, and who got to keep the gold wealth mined at Las Médulas. When Rome weakened, they were supplanted by the Germanic Visigoths then by the Umayyad Caliphate, which in the 710s-720s captured most of Spain until checked at Covadonga near Oviedo. An autonomous Kingdom of León emerged in 910 AD, eventually to merge with Aragon and then with Castile in 1194. In the Middle Ages power and money drained away to Madrid, but the pilgrimage route to Santiago was boosted, and fine buildings such as the cathedral were embellished. There was relatively little later industry so the old city centre has been preserved. It's become a university town and is the chief city of its province, but nowadays the seat of government of Castile and León region is Valladolid. Climate: the city is on a plateau at 837 m, so even in summer you might need a sweater in the evening. Winter norms are from −1°C to 13°C, and dawn can be frosty with slippery roads. Spring warms up nicely from 10°C to 25°C and is a good time to visit. Summers are warm and dry, about 16°C to 35°C, but the altitude prevents sweltering heat. Oficina de Turismo Regional de León is the tourist office, by the cathedral. It's open M-Sa 09:15-14:00, 16:00-18:30, Su 09:30-14:30.

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León is the starting point of From Leon to Santiago in two weeks and The Camino del Salvador and it’s a stopover point on Saint Jean Pied de Port to Finisterre, The Camino de Santiago in 31 days, The Camino de Santiago in 35 days, The Camino de Santiago in 26 days, From Brugos to Santiago in three weeks, Winter route via valcarlos and The Camino Aragonés. You can reach Santiago de Compostela in 14 days, Oviedo / Uviéu in 5 days and Fisterra in 16 days.