Top choice in Galicia
The highlight of the old town is the fortress-like Catedral de Santa Maria. Begun in the 12th century, it reflects a stoic Romanesque style in most of its construction, though the ornate main portal is reckoned the earliest work of Gothic sculpture on the Iberian Peninsula. Admission covers the lovely Gothic cloister and its viewpoints, plus the main nave and chapels.
Guided visits to the cathedral roof and tower (€8) start at noon and 1pm, Monday to Friday, July to September.
18.29 MILES
From the hamlet of Donón, 4km west of Hío, the windswept, rocky cape Cabo de Home stretches 2.5km south. It's strung with walking trails and a few…
15.98 MILES
The 341m summit of Monte de Santa Trega is a 4km drive or 2km walk (via the PRG122) from town. On the way up, stop to poke around the partly restored Iron…
19.35 MILES
The city’s pièce de résistance, this elegant 31-arched bridge across the Rio Lima is now limited to foot traffic. Most of it dates from the 14th century,…
26.71 MILES
The Edificio Sarmiento, pride of the Museo de Pontevedra, occupies a renovated 18th-century college. Its absorbing collection ranges over Galician…
19.94 MILES
The Soutomaior castle-palace, amid enormous and beautiful gardens, is well worth a 21km drive northeast from Vigo. Displays inside the castle, which dates…
18.07 MILES
This beautiful, 1km-long crescent of sand links the northern Illa de Monteagudo to the central Illa do Faro, with a lagoon behind it.
Santuário de Nossa Senhora da Peneda
22.25 MILES
About 10km south of Lamas de Mouro, straddling a deep ravine, Peneda is one of the park’s most stunning mountain villages, and the serra’s namesake. Its…
1.02 MILES
Valença's fortaleza is in fact two fortresses, bristling with bastions, watchtowers, massive gateways and defensive bulwarks, connected by a single bridge…
1. Igreja de Santa Maria dos Anjos
0.93 MILES
Dating from 1276, this now-decrepit Romanesque parish church inside the fortaleza has a tiny chapel at the back with Romano-Gothic inscriptions on the…
1 MILES
This 14th-century edifice inside the fortaleza, with its neoclassical facade, is one of Valença's best preserved churches.
1.01 MILES
This 1st-century Roman milestone inside the fortaleza is a remnant from the old Braga–Astorga road.
1.02 MILES
Valença's fortaleza is in fact two fortresses, bristling with bastions, watchtowers, massive gateways and defensive bulwarks, connected by a single bridge…
1.05 MILES
Opposite the post office, the Casa da Eira has a handsome Manueline window somewhat marred by a horrendous corrugated tin room that peeks above the…
2.73 MILES
The Parque Natural Monte Aloia's visitors centre stands 5km up from the PO340 on the road to the top of the Monte Aloia.
3.09 MILES
This 746-sq-km protected area covers the forest-clothed hill Monte Aloia (631m) which has several panoramic viewpoints and well-marked, not-too-demanding…
7.73 MILES
On the N101, 5km south of Monção, this grand early 19th-century neoclassical palace has been open to the public since 2010. Visits are by guided tour only…