• Region: Extremadura
• Province: Cáceres
• Declared a Natural Park: 1979
• Upgraded to National Park: 2006
• Park surface area: 18.852 hectares
• Z.E.P.A (1988) Special Bird Protection Zone
• Biosphere Reserve 2003

Points of interest

The area of Monfragüe National Park is noted for its importance as a breeding area for a selection of rare and protected birds, Black vulture, Black stork, Imperial eagle and Bonelli’s eagle.

Add to that the worlds most endangered wild cat, the Lynx which also resides here and one can see why it was upgraded from a natural to a national park.

The park altitudes range between 450 – 750m, covering an area 30km long and 7km wide. The habitat types are oak woods, scrub land, rocky out crops, river and reservoir plus dehesa.

The area has also become famous as a starlight destination. The Starlight Foundation is a non-profit organization that was founded in 2009 to promote the protection of the night sky and the development of “astrotourism” and there is an ever growing list of starlight destinations in Spain to visit.

The two rivers, Tajo and Tiétar, cut in from the east with their confluence inside the park. Rugged cliffs offer an ideal breeding ground for large birds of prey with extensive nearby plains for them to feed.

The impressive list of vertebrates for the park holds some 280 species.

The Via Verde (Greenway)

Travel this 17.62 km greenway passing through Monfragüe national park and the Biosphere Reserve

Flora

Dehesas of evergreen Holm oak (Quercus rotundifolia) and Cork oak (Quercus suber) are an example of how man and nature can work together. These open fields with dispersed mixed oaks are where local and endemic wildlife thrive.

Scrublands hold Rockroses (Cistus ladanifer, C. salvifolius), Heathers (Erica sp), Spanish lavender (Lavandula stoechas) and Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo).

Rocky areas hold Prickly juniper (Juniperus oxycedrus), Turpentine tree (Pistacia terebinthus) and Wild olive (Olea sylvestris).

River banks have Alder (Alnus glutinosa) and Southern nettle tree (Celtis australis).

Other shrubs and small trees are Phillyrea latifolia, Phillyrea angustifolia, Acer monspessulanum and European serviceberry (Amelanchier ovalis).

Find a hotel in the Monfragüe National Park

Fauna

Impressive raptors in the Monfragüe National Park can be seen overhead in any part of the park and surroundingss, including the endangered, Black vulture (Aegypius monachus), Imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti) and Bonelli’s eagle (Hieraaetus fasciatus). Griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) are numerous with fewer numbers of Egyptian vulture, Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), Short-toed eagle (Circaetus gallicus), Booted eagle (Aquila pennata), Eagle owl (Bubo bubo), Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) and Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus).

Two more on the endangered list are Black Stork (Ciconia nigra) and Red-necked nightjar (Caprimulgus ruficollis).

Other birds to look out for ( depending on the time of year) are White stork (Ciconia ciconia), Black-winged kite (Elanus caeruleus), Black kite (Milvus migrans), Bee-eater (Merops apiaster), Red-rumped swallow (Hirundo daurica rufula), Blue rock-thrush (Monticola solitarius), Black-eared wheatear (Oenanthe hispanica), Sardinian warbler (Sylvia melanocephala), Dartford warbler (Sylvia undata), Azure-winged magpie (Cyanopica cyana), Golden oriole (Oriolus oriolus), Woodchat shrike (Lanius senator), Hoopoe (Upupa epops), Rock bunting (Emberiza cia), Cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis), Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia), Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus), Purple heron (Ardea purpurea) and Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax ).

Monfragüe National Park is one of a handful of locations in Europe where White-rumped Swift (Apus caffer) breeds.

Mammals

Some mammals of the park are Red, Roe and Fallow deer, Mouflon, Wild Boar, Fox, Badger, Wildcat, Genet, Polecat, Beech marten and Iberian hare also the very shy Otter (Lutra lutra) and Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon) plus the rare and elusive Iberian Lynx (Lynx pardinus).

Also in the area

• Outside the village are ruins of the 12th century Castle of Monfragüe and Chapel of Our Lady overlooking the river Tagus.
• Puente del Cardenal is built from granite rock beginning around 1450. The bridge has two semicircular arches and circular cutwaters.
• Murciélagos Caves contain prehistoric remains including a series of schematic cave paintings.
• Dont miss the road that passes by the “Salto de Gitano”

Information/Visitors Centers

Centro de Visitantes Norte Parque Nacional de Monfragüe (Located close to Camping Monfragüe. Carretera de Malpartida de Plasencia a Trujillo (EX-208), km 9, Malpartida de Plasencia)

The Monfragüe National Park North Visitor Information Centre opened in May 2018 and is located in Malpartida de Plasencia. This 2,000 m2 building, integrated into its natural surroundings, has two areas: one, the Visitor Information Centre as such, with lobby, rooms with explanatory panels (850 m2), audiovisual room, multipurpose room and shop, and another one for management and administration.

Visiting its facilities will help you plan your visit to Monfragüe, discover its different ecosystems and the birds that can be seen in its territory (one of the most valuable aspects of the National Park) and get to know the dehesa, Extremadura’s most characteristic agro-sylvo-pastoral system representing a perfect balance between the environment and forestry, agricultural and livestock farming uses.

The area around the Visitor Information Centre, with views of Sierra de Béjar and Gredos mountain ranges, has been marked with fully accessible footpaths, bicycle parking facilities, viewpoints, picnic areas, and explanatory signs.

Winter: Monday-Sunday: 9:30 am to 5:30 pm
Summer: Monday-Sunday: 9:30 am to 7 pm
Open every day, except December 24th, 25th and 31st and January 1st.

Monfragüe National Park Nature Interpretation Centre (in the town of Villarreal de San Carlos).

The Interpretation Centre of Nature offers the opportunity to discover Monfragüe in an original way and has three different exhibition rooms.

Winter: 9.30 am – 6 pm.
Summer: 9.30 am – 7.30 pm.
OPENING TIMES: Everyday throughout the year, apart from 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January.
(The switch from winter to summer opening times takes place when the clocks change.)

Villarreal de San Carlos
Address: Villarreal de San Carlos, 16, 10695 Serradilla, Cáceres

An excellent interpretation centre for the Monfragüe National Park well worth a visit.

Torrejón el Rubio

The village of Torrejón el Rubio has a good tourist office with staff that know the area well.

Ronda Today

Everything you need to know before you visit Ronda “The city of dreams” in Andalucia. https://www.rondatoday.com/

Visit Cádiz

Planning on visiting Cádiz? Tourist information. Monuments. Hotels. Activities. City guides: https://visitingcadiz.com/

The Caminito del Rey

Find tickets for the Caminito del Rey: https://www.caminodelrey.es/

Wildside Holidays – Spain

Take a trip on the Wildside! Discover the wildlife and nature of Spain, its Natural and National Parks and find the top wildlife, activity and walking holiday companies.

Iberia Nature Forum

Struggling with identifying those bugs and beasties? Why not check out the Iberia nature Forum! https://iberianatureforum.com/

clive

I’ve been living in this lovely area of Western Andalucia for the last 20 years or so and dedicate most of my time to the running of English language tourist information websites for the towns of Cádiz, Ronda, Grazalema, the famous or infamous Caminito del Rey, and also Wildside Holidays, which promotes sustainable and eco-friendly businesses running wildlife and walking holidays in Spain.