Celorio, the most beautiful village of July, hides the Cantabrian's most secret beaches around a monastery

Celorio, a small parish in the municipality of Llanes, has been chosen as the most beautiful village in Spain for July by National Geographic.

Its coast hides more than seven beaches among cliffs and coves, some of them almost inaccessible and virgin.

From the ruins of a Romanesque monastery to a surprising optical effect known as the "Face of Christ", Celorio is a living postcard of history and wild nature.

The history of Celorio is marked by the Monastery of San Salvador, a Benedictine cenobite founded in the early 11th century. On 27 October 1835, the last abbot, Fray Anselmo Petite, lived through the exclaustration of the monastery, an event he captured in a poetic elegy. Of its medieval foundation, only a tower and the arch of a late Romanesque doorway survive. The monastery's library was transferred to the University of Oviedo, where it was burned in 1934 during the Revolution of Asturias. The access used by the monks to descend to the sea, behind the church and down through the ruins of the Torre de las Cámaras, gave its name to the Playa de Los Curas (or Los Frailes).

THE MOST SECRET BEACH ARCHIPELAGO IN THE CANTABRIAN

In just a few kilometres of coastline, Celorio hides more than seven beaches: Palombina, Las Cámaras, Borizu, San Martín, Portiello, La Tayada and Troenzo. The coast is a wonderful, changing cartography. At low tide, some beaches connect with others, revealing banks of sand that did not exist hours before. Borizu, perhaps the most photogenic with its 400 metres of fine sand facing the Isla de Arnielles, was a filming location for the film Remando al viento (1987), directed by Gonzalo Suárez and starring a young Hugh Grant as Lord Byron.

THE MYSTICAL-COASTAL ALLIANCE

There is a coordinate on this coastal topography that is hard to explain without seeing it with one's own eyes. On the cliffs that border Troenzo beach, at a certain point exposed at low tide from La Tayada, a set of rocks on the cliff wall forms a figure that the inhabitants of Celorio describe as the Face of Christ. The profile is clear enough for this casual pareidolia to be easily identified once you are there. This geological chance can be considered an extension of the religious devotion that the monastery represented for nearly a thousand years.

The same mystical-coastal alliance appears at La Capilla beach. At the top of the cliff that guards it to the north, the ruins of a Romanesque hermitage can be seen, of which only the semi-ruined stone arches remain. The beach below is almost virgin: white sand with rock outcrops, surf-ready waves, and two islets in front of the shore which, at low tide, can be reached on foot over the tombolo that joins them to the coast. Other beaches, such as La Nixón and El Penal, are practically inaccessible and only exist at low tide.

For InasTour, the recognition of Celorio by National Geographic underlines the growing appeal of Asturias' unspoilt coastal enclaves among international travellers and buyers seeking a deep connection with nature, history and authenticity.

La costa guarda sus rincones con una marea mágica: cuando baja, unas playas conectan con otras, aparecen bancos de arena que no existían horas antes, y el litoral de Celorio se convierte en una cartografía maravillosa y cambiante.

The election of Celorio as the most beautiful village of the month of July by National Geographic is a recognition of the exceptional natural and historical value of this corner of Asturias. Its coastline, with its hidden beaches, its Romanesque ruins and its geological surprises, offers a unique experience. The legacy of Fray Anselmo Petite and his monastery, the mystery of the Face of Christ, and the beauty of its almost virgin coves invite visitors to discover a place where history and nature merge in an unforgettable landscape.