General Information
Mountain, central area and riverbank
The historic region of Navarre lies in the north of Spain. It borders France in the north, Aragon in the east, Castile and Leon in the south, and with La Rioja and the Basque Country in the west.
This one province region can be divided into three different areas: mountain, central and the Pamplona basin and riverbank. These three areas are further divided into regions. The Pyrenees are in the north separating Navarre from France. The highest peaks lie in the east and decrease in altitude westwards coinciding with the Basque mountains, in the Bidasoa river depression. The highest summit in the region is the Mesa de los Tres Reyes (The Three Kings' Table) that reaches 2,434 metres. In between the Pyrenees lies the vast valley of the Aragon river. The mountains that rise just before the Pyrenees are the Huesca mountains, and include the Peña de Izaga, Idokorri, Zarikieta, Artxuba, Izko, Sarbil, Satrustegui, San Miguel and Urbasa sierras. The south of the province is dotted with lower peaks that include the Olivete and San Gregorio mountains. The waterways of Navarre are dominated by two river basins: the Mediterranean that flows via the Ebro river, and the Cantabrian that includes the Araxe, Leizaran, Urumea and Bidasoa rivers. The tributaries of the river Ebro include the Ega, Amezkoa, Aragon, Eska, Irati, Cidacos, Arga, Alhama and Queiles rivers. The Ebro forms a vast valley in the south, with Tudela as its capital. Las Bardenas, an extensive stretch of plains lies in the northern part of this area bordering with Aragon. The beautiful valleys throughout the region attract frequent tourist visits. Particularly worthy of note are the valleys of Baztán, Roncal, Salazar, Bidasoa, Cinco Villas-Malerreka, Ultzama-Basaburua and the valley of Larraun.
Transportation
Network connections
All the towns in the historic region of Navarre are connected by an excellent road and rail network, in spite of the difficult mountainous conditions for construction. The connections are continually being improved.
The main road link is made up of the AP-15 motorway and the N-121 A-road that connects Tudela, Tafalla and Pamplona. The main routes lead to the Basque Country, (towards Vitoria-Gasteiz), via the 240 A-road, and via the AP-15 motorway through Lekunberri, that links up with the Bilbao-Behobia motorway. The airport of Noain carries out Navarre's air transport, and lies on the outskirts of Pamplona.
Administration
Historic Register
Navarre is an historic one province region, whose province is also known as Navarre, and whose capital is Pamplona.
The Reintegration and Improvement Act (13/1982), from the 10th of August ensured that Navarre became an historic autonomous region. The Autonomy Statute was duly approved in 1982. The most important elements of this self government are the Government and its Parliament.
Population
Over half a million inhabitants
The population of this autonomous region according to figures from the Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE) as of the 1st of January 2004, after having reviewed the Inhabitants register is 584,734.
The population of Navarre tends to centre around the areas of most economic growth. Consequently the poorer areas in smaller towns and villages have a lower population density. The most populated cities are Pamplona, Tudela, Tafalla and Burlada, to name but a few.
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