Orense province was not part of our Rias Baixas main goals, but as its location is perfect to “break” the long trip from Madrid, we did stop both in the way to Galicia, and also in our way back.
On the way out, the break was done in the Verin area. The town itself is not really impressive but a nearby hill dominating the whole area hosts a Parador and a castle (owned by the Casa de Alba, famous noble family in Spain) which did interest us.
Moreover, we learned that many of the water brands that we drink in Spain originate in that area (for instance, Cabreiroa), and that one of the top designers also take even the name from there (Roberto Verino)
On our way back, we stopped in Orense, which is the province capital. It did surprise us for two main reasons: first, we arrived on an August friday night, and it had lots of activity in terms of restaurants and people having fun; and second, the way they have taken advantage of the thermal waters underneath, by creating both public and private thermal baths which have been incorporated as a habit by many locals, and also attract tourists (us, for example) to the city.
The last day in Rias Baixas was time for Combarro and Pontevedra.
Combarro is a quiet fishing village, which still keeps the charming atmosphere of the old times, with the small (and not that small) stone fishermen houses, and many horreos near the sea.
Before heading to Pontevedra, we also visited Cabo Home. The views from there are stunning, although we could not enjoy them at their best due to the bad weather (windy, rainy, foggy)
Pontevedra happened to be a really nice big city. The city centre is worth a visit, with tens of nice churches, and the arcades in most of the streets make it nice to visit, especially with rain, as you can find protection under it. The visit to Pontevedra was also amazing in terms of food, as we had a good local recommendation (Casa Soto) which was our goodbye to seafood for a while.
The Ria de Arousa is another must when visiting the Rias Baixas. I would say it is the most famous for its seafood, and hence quite well organized to show the visitor what it is all this about.
We started in O’Grove, also known as the seafood paradise. As it was early in the morning, we payed a visit to the market in a rather rare activity done by some tourists to see a normal market beyond our normal range of action. I have done that in Asia, UK, and now also in Spain. If we had visited O’Grove in the evening, we would have visited the “Lonja”, which is the fish market directly from the fishers.
We continued our trip in the Isla de la Toja, which is small island next to O’Grove, famous for its spa, making use of the thermal waters present there. It is also known for its soap factory, and for the expensive houses in the island. As a curiosity, there is a small church with the outer fassade made of shells.
The route in the Ria continued in Cambados. One of the nicest places we visited in this trip. Yet another small fishing town, but with signs of a rich past. Several impressive pazos, a church in ruins, the library, and a nice fisher neighbourhood completes the picture. Lunch in Casa Pintos, a high quality, low variety place, will also stay in our minds for a while.
Last but not least, we headed to the rocky edge of Isla de Arosa, near the lighthouse, a very beautiful area, although some signs of the consequences of the Prestige accident back in 2002 could still be seen.
A natural return from the south of Galicia is to drive the coastal road towards Bayona, and enjoy dinner in any of their taverns.
I also learned something I was totally unaware of: one of the vessels that “discovered” America, La Pinta, ended up in Bayona. So, Bayona citizens in the late 15th century were the first ones in getting news of the new discovery. Apart from that, Bayona is one of the top summer destinations in the area, with two really nice areas to be explored.
First, the Castle of Monterreal, now hosting a Parador Nacional, which is a fortress governing the town, and with a clear strategic importance in the old time, to defend the town from the different attacks, including pirates as Francis Drake.
The old town is also worth a visit, as the many taverns concentrated in just a few hundreds of meters create a very lively atmosphere, which warms your visit, literally.
Miño river is the natural border between the north of Portugal and Spain, and is a perfect daytrip if you are in the Rias Baixas.
We started in Tui, a medieval town with an important cathedral, part of the Jacob’s way, and just in front of a major fortress on the Portuguese side: Valença do Minho, which can be reached by crossing the Tui International Bridge. I personally did not like Tui a lot, but the views from Valença do Minho and its fortress did make my day (although the too touristic feeling with the streets full of shops trying to sell literally anything was not that fun).
After that, we headed to La Guardia, which is right in the Miño’s mouth, on the Spanish side. Apart from enjoying lunch in a nice place we found by chance, we climbed to Santa Tecla Hill (with the car), with breathtaking views of the area from the top, and totally worth stop by the ruins of the Celtic settlement on the way up.
