Deep in the mountainous Ribeira Sacra forests, by the Sil river canyon, stands a thousand-year-old monastery. There are stone cloisters, a green courtyard, and a stately chapel. Outside lie chestnut groves and hazelnut groves, where wild boar dig and grunt at night. The views from the guests’ lounge balcony are spectacular.And it gets better still: to become a guest here only requires checking in at the reception desk, as the monastery Santo Estevo is today a Parador, or government-run hotel. There is a small but lovely spa which feels welcoming after a day or sweaty traipsing around the Sil river valley hiking routes (of which there are many – and they’re mostly long!). Staying at Santo Estevo does not mean staying in moldy cold rooms, sleeping like a dusty bottle of wine on a wooden shelf. The rooms are fabulously spacious, with wooden window shutters and luxurious bathrooms. Eating at Santo Estevo does not mean chestnut mash and gravy from old wooden bowls, but a first-class al fresco dining experience, as the night descends over the valley and the moon rises above the mountaintops. (Parador Santo Estevo, Galicia, Spain; September 2019)