Canfranc is located at 1040 meters above sea level in the Aragón Valley or Canfranc Valley, at the foot of the Somport pass, a road border crossing between France and Spain. Currently, the Somport international tunnel has come to replace the port, being one of the ends of the Somport-Sagunto axis.
The municipal term of Canfranc occupies an area of 71.6 km². It consists of two population centers, Canfranc (1040 m) and Canfranc-Estación (1190 m), the latter located in the area called Los Arañones where the Canfranc International Station is located.
To the north of it are the winter sports resorts of Candanchú and Astún, although they belong to the municipalities of Aísa and Jaca, respectively.
The municipality has a mountain climate, with minimum temperatures below 0 °C for much of the year, with the risk of frost persisting until well into spring, when the snow still lingers. The average annual rainfall is 1,900 mm and the average annual temperature is 8.7 °C.
The Rinconada de la Canal Roya megalithic complex is located in the municipality of Canfranc, which includes the La Rinconada dolmen, a burial mound and a circle of stones. The stone mound has an outer diameter of 17 m and its height is 2.5 m. It is formed by andesite rocks.
Likewise, there are two dolmens on the Esplanade of Barranco de las Blancas; The large western dolmen preserves five lateral slabs and the lid, with the slab facing south lying down, which could have a window.
In the eleventh century, and on the side of the road to France, Canfranc was born as a border town. In the middle of a deep valley, with scarce agricultural resources, its inhabitants dedicated themselves to trade, basing their economy on transactions between Aragón and Bearn, including the reception of travelers and pilgrims since the Aragonese Way of Saint James runs through here. It is known that in 1095 there was a private inn; It is possible that later this was passed to Santa Cristina, giving rise to the Hospital of this name in Somport. According to some authors, its population would be mainly composed of Franks and the place name could be related to this circumstance.
The kings of Aragon granted Canfranc important concessions due to two circumstances: being a border point and the poverty of its lands. Thus, in the second half of the fourteenth century, Pedro IV granted the so-called “wine privilege”, through which the inhabitants of Canfranc could transport white and red wine without paying the corresponding tax.
The old town of Canfranc, despite the devastating fires of 1617 and 1944, still preserves part of its old monumental heritage. The remains of the castle, of medieval origin and enlarged in the 16th century, are preserved on a rock; the façade of the Torre de Aznar Palacín from the 14th century; the parish church of the Asunción, with its four baroque altarpieces; and the monumental complex of the Trinity founded in the 16th century by Blasco de Les to care for the poor and pilgrims.
The strategic and military importance of the Canfranc valley, given its proximity to the border, was the cause of the construction of various forts and military positions, among which the Coll de Ladrones Fort (17th-19th centuries) and the Torreta de the Fusiliers (19th century).
Canfranc consists of two population units, the original town, called Canfranc or Canfranc Pueblo with 77 inhabitants (4 km north of Villanúa and 16 km from Jaca), and Canfranc-Estación or Arañones, located 4 km further north with 463 inhabitants. Between them they added 558 inhabitants at the beginning of 2020.
The Canfranc International Station is a railway station located in the Spanish municipality of Canfranc (Huesca), very close to the border with France. It was inaugurated on July 18, 1928. Declared a Site of Cultural Interest, it has been listed as a monument since March 6, 2002. The station has logistics services.
It only has Media Distancia services, operated by Renfe, which connect it with Zaragoza. It also offered international connections with France, but these were suspended on March 27, 1970 when a freight train derailed on the French side causing the L'Estanguet bridge to collapse, with the consequent interruption of service between the two countries. Since that date , passenger transport is done by road with a bus that puts the S.N.C.F.
Currently, a complete reform of the railway complex of the Canfranc esplanade is being undertaken with the aim of transforming the historic passenger station into a hotel and rehabilitating the rest of the buildings in one of the three sub-sites of the Aragón Railway Museum, new stations of travelers, visitor center of the Camino de Santiago, housing and facilities for tertiary use, in addition to the urbanization of two large pedestrian squares, green areas and car parks. Read More
Distance between:
Madrid to Canfranc229 Miles / 369 Kms Barcelona to Canfranc167 Miles / 269 Kms
42.71649,-0.5254869