The province of Cuenca is clearly divided into three large natural areas: Serranía, La Mancha and La Alcarria. The geographic differences of each zone are notable, and until recently they were also quite distinct with regard to culture, economy, social norms and urban aspect. These latter differences are disappearing as modern life influences ways of life and types of work, resulting in a certain uniformity. Nevertheless, in many of the outlying villages in Cuenca’s three natural areas, interesting popular constructions can still be found, as well as traditions of clear ethnographic value that have been conserved throughout the years. 

La  Serranía 
The Serranía, in the mountainous northeastern part of the province, is an important link to the Iberian Range, to which it is connected by the Sierra of Albarracín.



The result is a magnificent and impressive area where craggy zones are interspersed with beautiful hidden valleys. Highlights include spectacular gorges, whimsical geological formations, surprising sink holes and lakes, and rich varieties of indigenous vegetation. La Mogorrita (1866 m.) is the highest point not only in the Cuencan Serranía, but in the entire province. Hundreds of rivers criss-cross these mountains, with the Júcar (and its tributary the Cabriel) as the king of them all. The Tajo and Guadiela rivers bathe the northernmost sector of the province.

La Alcarria
To the west of the mountains, we pass through the transitional area of El Campichuelo and come to La Alcarria. Here the land rolls and reddens. Hillocks are soft and mellow, although some of them rise up powerfully like those in the Altomira range (1,180 meters), watershed of the Tajo River.



The southern border of La Alcarria is delimited by the Altos de Cabrejas, which form the edge of the Montes de Toledo range. Land of wicker, bees and honey, aromatic plants and olive trees, the character of La Alcarria is undeniably sweet and romantic.

La Mancha
Nearly the entire southern half of the province corresponds to La Mancha, with a transitional section in the center featuring the Júcar River valley, and Alarcón Reservoir. This is the most populated zone in Cuenca, with the most cities, and a more vigorous economy, not only in the food and agriculture sector, but industry as well. Grains (wheat, barley and corn), grapes and sunflowers, together with unique zone-specific crops like garlic and saffron, strongly define the agriculture character of the area, lending the countryside a multicolor flair.



La Mancha is a land of great contrasts and endless flatlands, but also of powerful castles on top of rugged knolls and enormous wetlands where flocks of migratory birds nest.