Castilla Termal Burgo de Osma

The University of Santa Catalina was founded in 1550 by the Portuguese bishop Pedro Álvarez de Acosta. It was authorized by Pope Julius III as Pontifical University of Santa Catalina and later Philip II, by Royal Decree, took it under his protection, acquiring the dual status of Pontifical and Royal University. The university was closed in 1841 and since then the building had various uses: grain warehouse, Civil Guard barracks, Public Institute and headquarters of university courses. In 2007, Castilla Termal saw the potential of the site and began the restoration, determined to preserve the historical heritage. During three years of work, excavations were carried out under the courtyard until the Santa Catalina spring was found. In 2010 it was inaugurated as the first thermal hotel in the province of Soria.

The 16th century building retains its original Plateresque façade with the image of Saint Catherine of Alexandria in a niche above the entrance doorway, flanked by the arms of the Portuguese founder and crowned by the full coat of arms of Philip II. The Renaissance cloister has been enclosed by a large glazed dome that illuminates the central space. The former university classrooms now house the hotel rooms, restored with respect and rigor. The spa of more than 1,500 square meters is distributed on two floors under the Renaissance courtyard, with the underground baths recreating the hermitage of San Baudelio, a pre-Romanesque jewel of Soria converted into a subway oasis.

El Burgo de Osma is an episcopal town with one of the most important Gothic cathedrals in Castile. Soria's Ribera del Duero offers landscapes of vineyards and wineries. The Cañón del Río Lobos, a natural park with griffon vultures, is nearby. The hermitage of San Baudelio de Berlanga, an 11th century Mozarabic jewel that inspired the hotel's thermal baths, is a must-see. Soria capital with its Romanesque churches is 60 kilometers away.