Galicia is Spain's north-westernmost autonomous community, facing the Atlantic and the Cantabrian Sea, north of Portugal. Arriving after crossing the parched plains of Castile feels like landing in Ireland: the landscape is lush green, the climate damp and rainy, the coasts cut by deep inlets, the rías, that resemble fjords. The people, the galegos, are known as reserved and wry, attached to their land and to morriña, a longing similar to Portuguese saudade.
History and identity
Galicia was home to the people of the castros, Iron Age hillforts of round houses, and its culture is often called "Celtic", with bagpipes (gaitas) and legends of witches and spirits. In the ninth century the discovery of the tomb of the apostle James made Santiago de Compostela one of Christendom's most important pilgrimage destinations. The language, Galician (galego), is a sister of Portuguese and is co-official with Castilian. For centuries Galicians emigrated in great numbers to Latin America, especially Buenos Aires, where all Spaniards are still called gallegos, and to Cuba: Fidel Castro's father was Galician.
What to see
- Santiago de Compostela, goal of the Way, with its cathedral and UNESCO-listed old town.
- A Coruña, with the Tower of Hercules, the world's oldest Roman lighthouse still in use, a UNESCO site, and houses with glazed galleries.
- Vigo, Europe's largest fishing port, departure point for the Cíes islands with postcard beaches.
- Lugo, the only city in the world surrounded by complete, walkable Roman walls, a UNESCO site.
- Ourense, with its free hot springs, and Pontevedra, with an exemplary pedestrianised old town.
- The Rías Baixas, with Cambados, Combarro and Baiona, and the Rías Altas, with the cliffs of Vixía Herbeira and the Cathedrals beach.
- The wild, stormy Costa da Morte, as far as Finisterre (Fisterra), the "cape at the end of the world", where many pilgrims end the Way.
- The Ribeira Sacra, with monasteries and vineyards plunging down to the Sil river.
Flavours
Galicia has Spain's most famous seafood: pulpo á feira (octopus with paprika and oil), goose barnacles, clams, mussels, scallops and empanada; Galician beef, the breast-shaped tetilla cheese, almond tarta de Santiago and queimada, a flaming spirit drink with a ritual against evil spirits. The standout wine is white albariño from the Rías Baixas.
Getting there
Galicia has three airports, Santiago, A Coruña and Vigo, and is linked to Madrid by high-speed train in just over three hours. Below you will find a map of our guides and the municipalities by province.
Destinations on the map
Guides to the community
A Coruña
A city surrounded by the Atlantic, with the world's oldest working Roman lighthouse and a seafront of glass façades gleaming in the sun.
Lugo
A Galician city entirely ringed by two-thousand-year-old Roman walls that you can walk for more than two kilometres.
Ourense
A city where hot water springs from the ground: free hot pools along the river, a Roman bridge and the spectacular gorges of the Ribeira…
Pontevedra
A pedestrian-friendly city with an old town of granite squares and arcades, at the heart of the Rías Baixas and Albariño country.
Santiago de Compostela
A goal for pilgrims for over a thousand years, Santiago is a city of stone and rain, with one of Europe's most beautiful cathedrals and a…
Vigo
A hard-working city on Galicia's most spectacular ría, with Europe's leading fishing port and the paradise of the Cíes Islands opposite.