Located in the north-east of Navarre, the area is known as “la Navarra húmeda”, a term which makes reference to its predominantly wet climate; the characteristic damp and rain in the region condition both the vegetation and the lifestyle of the people who live there. Geographically and historically the territory is organised into valleys divided up by the rivers that some of the valleys are named after.

It is a mountainous region with peak altitudes in the range of a thousand metres. The “Sierra de Aralar” is actually higher than that (as is Irumugarrieta, 1,427m; Aldaon, 1,411m; Artxueta, 1,343m, etc.). The villages are also located at different altitudes, ranging between 743 metres (Goldaratz) and 239 metres (Betelu).