What to do in Cáceres

Cáceres is the Extremaduran province where black vultures nest in holm oaks and the Iberian lynx crossed the border into Portugal. Monfragüe, with 18,000 hectares of national park, holds Europe's largest breeding colony of black vultures on the Tajo river cliffs. From Monfragüe castle and the Peñafalcón viewpoint, Spanish imperial eagles glide past at 30 metres distance, turning every spring morning into wildlife photography without a hide. Tajo Internacional, on the border with Portugal, is the province's other major natural space. The Tajo river runs more than 500 metres below between black slate walls; kayak lets you descend calm-water stretches with views of griffon vultures nesting on the cliffs. The Alcántara area, with its intact two-thousand-year-old Roman bridge, is the departure point for several of these descents. To the north, the Villuercas Geopark reaches 1,601 metres at Rocamador, with mid-mountain routes through chestnut forest and slate villages. The Sierra de Gata in the far northwest concentrates the province's least-crowded hiking routes: the Robledillo de Gata trail climbs through ancient olive groves and cherry orchards to a view of the Sierra de Francia to the north. The Vía de la Plata crosses the province north to south over 230 kilometres suitable for cycle touring, connecting Plasencia with the Badajoz provincial border.