Take our virtual guided tour of Horcajo de la Sierra and Aoslos
The town council is open from monday to friday from 9:30am to 3:00pm but is open to the public tuesdays from 9:30am to 3:00pm. The employment and local development agent (Agente de Empleo y Desarrollo Local) is available for advise on starting a business related to tourism in the area. It is also possible to contact with municipality staff by phone (+34 918 686 574) from 9:30am to 3:00pm, monday to friday.
The locality's feasts reflect the old customs of the villages of the area. Horcajo de la Sierra celebrates its feasts in honour of Saint Roque, the 16th of August, with a procession that goes through the village's streets. As part of the celebration there are games for children, popular lemonade and hot chocolate, night concerts and dancing, as well as various cultural and sporting activities. A specially interesting tradition - the ronda- takes place the day before the feast, when the young boys go "serenading" the young single girls, singing Spanish popular songs.
During August's third weekend, a popular meal consisting of lamb stew - the caldereta- is celebrated, with the participation of all of Horcajo's as well as all of Aoslos' inhabitants. Everyone gets together in the Vegas fields, half way between both settlements, to share this traditional dish.
Aoslos' feasts take place on the first weekend of August. Celebrated in a similar fashion to Horcajo, and following the same traditions, several cultural and sporting activities take place, such as traditional dancing, night music, and popular lemonades. However, in Aoslos both young girls and boys participate in the serenading, singing together from door to door.
Aoslos also celebrates a feast in honour of Saint Isidore the Labourer, the patron of the church, the 15th of May. There is a mass dedicated to the Saint in the morning, and a procession through the village's streets.
There are interesting activities and events in the area all through the year. During the next to last weekend of September, the traditional medieval market is organized in Buitrago del Lozoya, where craftsmen and women of the Sierra Norte offer all kinds of products for sale.
During Christmas, it is typical to see the "living Belenes" of Buitrago and El Berrueco, elaborate nativity scene representations, with the participation of many of the villages' inhabitants. Another interesting event is the commemoration of the Somosierra Battle, in which every 30th of November the fight against Napoleon's troops before their entrance in Madrid is dramatized.