Driving to Riano in Leon

Doable, yes. The best use of your time, possibly not. Other than the background scenery that can be found in plenty of other places in Spain, I’m not sure what the draw is. Riaño itself appears relatively modern with very little to do and no towns of any size nearby. Most importantly, it isn’t near any of the places on your itinerary. You need the weigh whether it’s worth a 4.5 hours one way drive from Madrid to see something that takes a very short amount of time to see.

If your trip was to that area (León, Burgos, Picos de Europa, etc.), then I’m sure it would be worth stopping at, but your trip isn’t.

I understand where you're coming from but it seems like a lovely place to just chill and enjoy the stunning scenery at the end of a busy trip for a couple days.

Enjoy it and please report back how it was after you return. Sorry I can’t suggest any hotels. The closest I’ve stayed to there is in León itself. Hopefully someone who as stayed there or nearby will have suggestions.

My last few trips to Spain I’ve rented through Enterprise, but all the major companies are at Madrid’s airport. Which company you choose is a personal preference.

If picking up the rental car at the airport leaving the city should be pretty straightforward if you head north on the E5 towards Burgos, then head towards Palencia when you get to Aranda del Duero. Since you will be near it, if there’s time, consider a few hours stop in Burgos to see the main plaza and cathedral. There are some free parking lots about a 10 minutes walk from the Santa María arch. The one I parked at is at Blvr. Ferroviario, 2.

Have a nice trip.

Take a look at the town of Pedraza, among my favorite in Castilla la Vieja. Gorgeous film-set worthy town a weekend stop for Madrilenos and a center for roast baby lamb. That area is relatively undiscovered by foreigners and weekdays will be very quiet. We stayed at the cozy,, small and lovely HOSPEDERIA SANTO DOMINGO and had a huge stork next just outside our balcony!!!!! I love that area and it's so close to Madrid that it's easy to visit with a car, not far from Segovia, either......

Nearby, Hospes del Duration nature reserve and the equally gorgeous town of Sepulveda, also a lamb Mecca.

Easy drive from Pedraza along the E-5 highway direct to MAD.

For more upscale overnight amidst their vineyards, ABADIA DE LA RETUERTA--glorious hotel carved from a centuries-old monastery (Hope I got that right). It's near one of the great "lamb temples" of
Spain in Campaspero, MANNIX.

If you are interested in restaurants, and the lamb restaurants of this area, take a look; this is from OAD and I've starred the spots I highly recommend; I've not been to most of them, however. Not sure this is of interest but I thought I'd post it as some of these spots are not well known to North American tourists..

TOP 880 RESTAURANTS
RANK
NAME
CHEF NAME
CUISINE TYPE
CITY
COUNTRY

1
Los Marinos Jose
Fuengirola
Spain
Pablo Sánchez
Marisqueria
2
*****D ’Berto
O Grove
Spain
Marisol Dominguez Garcia
Marisqueria
3
Pepe in Grani
Caiazzo
Italy
Franco Pepe
Pizza
4
*Elkano
Getaria
Spain
Aitor Arregui
Asador - Seafood
5
Trattoria Trippa
Milan
Italy
Diego Rossi
Modern Milanese
6
*****Mannix
Campaspero
Spain
Gemma Garcia
Asador - Lamb
7
Ferme de la Ruchotte
Bligny-sur-Ouche
France
Frédéric Menager
Burgundian
8
*Güeyu Mar
Ribadesella
Spain
Abel Álvarez
Seafood Asador
9
I Masanielli
Caserta
Italy
Francesco Martucci
Pizzeria
10
Bistrot Du Nord
Antwerp
Belgium
Michaël Rewers
French
11
Antica Osteria del Mirasole
San Giovanni in Persiceto
Italy
Franco Cimini
Emilian
12
Alameda
Fuenmayor
Spain
Tomás Fernández & Esther Álvarez
Asador - Steak
13
Askua
València
Spain
David Vázquez
Asador - Steak
14
Hermanos Alba
Málaga
Spain
Victorio Alba & Carlos Alba
Seafood
15
**Kaia Kaipe
Getaria
Spain
Igor Arregui
Seafood Asador
16
*El Capricho
Jiminez de Jamuz
Spain
Jose Gordon
Asador
17
Bar FM
Granada
Spain
Rosa Macías
Seafood Small Plates
18
Casa Julián
Tolosa
Spain
Matías Gorrotxategi

I always rent from SIXt in Spain (lately inn Italy as well) and their service has been outstanding!!!! Over the top great!! They work with you when you collect your car and see if they can give you a better price......we just rented from them in Galicia and they were beyond great in all aspects. I rent automatic with GPS built in.

We’ve ended up flying from Barcelona to Bilboa and renting a car from there. Found a nice place to stay with views of both the water and mountains. Los Casares. Riano is a town that was completely flooded and underwater. The whole population had to relocate. Should be interesting. Not for some, I admit, but adding the north of Spain to itinerary is something we wanted. Thx for those who shared their insights with me.

Just read about old Riaño being flooded by the creation of the reservoir. That would explain why the town looks new. Its story is the same as Granadilla in Extremadura. The villagers were forced to locate too, but the water from the created reservoir never reached the town. Unfortunately, the villagers were never allowed to return. Parts of the old village of Granadilla are currently used by a school. Visitors can walk around the villages and go up into its castle. It was worth visiting if you ever get to that part of Spain. A rental car is needed to get there.

Your lodging in Riaño looks very nice.

It looks like a great base to explore Picos de Europa: make sure to do so!
You could, for example, drive to Caín and back, going one way via Portilla de la Reina and the other way via the more direct route.