Location: Galicia Map
Hotels, motels and where to sleep
Restaurant, taverns and where to eat
Santiago de Compostela is a medieval town situated in Galicia region in North- west Spain. In the old times it was third most popular site for pilgrimage among Christians after Jerusalem and Rome. Historic center of Santiago de Compostela is situated around central Praza do Obradoiro.
Old Zone
The greatest tourist and cultural
wealth of Compostela is in its old area ( "casco pelo" ). This is
where we find the Cathedral (a must see), squares, museums, churches
or other points of interest.
Praza do Obradoiro
Tel. 981 5835 48
Open: 7am- 9pm daily
Service: 7:30am, 8:30am, 9am, 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 6pm, 7:30pm
Museum of the Cathedral
Tel. 981 5693 27
Open: daily
Closed: lunch, Sun pm, 1 and 6 Jan, Easter Fri pm, Easter Sat pm, 25 Jul, 15 Aug, 25 Dec
Magnificent Gothic Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela stands on square known as a Praza do Obradoiro. This church was erected in the 11th- 13th centuries on a site of an older 9th century basilica constructed by Alfonso II. The Cathedral is devoted to Saint James. Twin towers of the Santiago Cathedral soar to a height of 74 m (243 feet). Western facade below was added in the 18th century in a Baroque architectural style. The building stands on the Plaza del Obradoiro and around it are others such as the Quintana (divided into the 'living' and the 'dead'), Platerías (traditionally known by the jewelry shops here they were) and Azabacherías (also for their stores).
Monasterio de San Martino Pinario is a Roman Catholic Monastery dedicated to a Christian saint Martin.
Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos in Santiago de Compostelo is a former hotel that was constructed by Roman Catholic monarchs to house Christian pilgrims what were sick or injuried. This beautiful building is easily recognized by an elaborate Plateresque doorway.
Streets and squares
Once you have visited the cathedral, get
lost for a while in the streets of the old area, taking into account
that the busiest streets are sometimes not the most beautiful. There
are many alleys that will surprise you and where you will find
fantastic shops or cafes. Some outstanding streets are the Franco (
Rúa do Franco , the most tourist), where you can take some wine or
eat well if you have money, if you move and stroll through the city
you will find fantastic places and with reduced prices; there are
also the rúa do Vilar or rúa Novaamong many. Due to the network of
streets and the short length of them there are many places also
highly recommended for tourists. In addition to those mentioned,
there are others such as the Plaza del Toural (Praza do Toural) or
the Plaza de Cervantes (Praza de Cervantes).
Parks
Compostela is also a city that stands out for the amount of its
green areas and parks. In addition to the existing ones to the
outskirts or other points, some that we can visit without moving
much are the Alameda, the Park of Bonaval or the Park of Belvís.
Museums
There are also many museums or galleries to visit in
Santiago: Museo do Pobo Galego (of the Galician People) or the CGAC
(Galician Center of Contemporary Art) located next to the
aforementioned Bonaval Park; Museum of Pilgrimages (Pilgrimages),
the Museum of the Cathedral, and many others.
Other points
Finally, other interesting points are, for example, the
buildings that currently belong to the Univerisdad de Santiago: like
the building of the Xeral Library (Pazo de Fonseca), the Faculty of
Medicine, or the Faculty of Geography and History.
By Camino de Santiago
The traditional way of getting to
Santiago de Compostela is by walking about 780 km from St. Jean
Pied-de-Port in France, on the Way of St. James. It is just as
traditional to arrive on horseback, though considerably more
difficult in terms of facilities. You may be able to stable your
horse with a local farmer, but virtually no hostels provide this
service. Cycling is also popular.
By bus
Another way of
getting to Santiago is by bus. The bus station is in the outskirts
of the city, but there you can get a public bus or a taxi to get to
the city centre. You can get to Santiago by bus from several places:
From cities and towns of Galicia, try Arriva or Monbus or
Empresa Freire.
From other parts of Spain, try Alsa, one of the
most important bus companies of Spain.
By train
If you want to
arrive to Santiago by train, you should visit the RENFE webpage. The
train station is relatively close to the city centre.
By
plane
Santiago de Compostela Airport (Lavacolla SCQ IATA) (about
20 minutes by bus from the city centre). It is the 2nd busiest
airport in northern Spain after Bilbao Airport. edit
Buses from
the airport run every 30 minutes between 07:00 and 00:30 and are
operated by Empresa Freire (€3.00 one-way, €5.10 return).
Luggage lockers are available in the airport's parking garage (-4
level), €5.07 per day.
The following airlines operate here:
Adria Airways: Ljubljana
Aer Lingus: Dublin
Air Europa:
Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, Tenerife and Caracas
EasyJet: Geneve and Basel
Iberia: Madrid and Bilbao
Ryanair:
Frankfurt Hahn (about 2 hours away from Frankfurt), Milan, London,
Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Alicante, Malaga, Palma de Mallorca,
Lanzarote, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Tenerife
Volotea:
Venice, Ibiza and Menorca
Vueling: Barcelona, Málaga, Paris and
Zurich
Get around
Santiago is a relatively small city (about
95,000 inhabitants) and you can get anywhere by walking.
Even
so, there are several bus lines that connect every part of the city.
These services are offered by the company Tralusa. The ticket costs
€1.00 for adults (for people under 18 it costs €0.55). If you are
going to take several bus trips, you may buy a bono (Bus Pass) of
10, 20, or 30 tickets with a price of €0.55 for each one. You can
buy these bonos from the bus drivers and you must pay a deposit of
€3 that will be paid back to you if you return the card in good
condition. The most interesting line for visitors is the number 5,
that stops at the bus station and goes to the city center.
Taxis are not very expensive and the taxi drivers are usually kind
and willing to help tourists.
Taxi from to and from the
airport are available at a fixed rate of €19
Nest Style Santiago (Hotels Santiago de Compostela Spain), Rúa
Doutor Teixeiro, 15 15701 Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña, Spain, ☎
+34 981 563 444, fax :+34 981 589 653, email:
booking@neststylesantiago.com. 🕓 Open 24 hours. Hotel Nest Style
Santiago in the center. Very economical with all services.
Hostal La Salle, After Santa Clara, s / n
Santiago de Compostela,
A Coruña 15704, Our centrally located establishment is located in
the Monumental Zone of Santiago de Compostela, 10 minutes from the
Cathedral, in the heart of the historic center of the Galician
city.Its excellent location, near the Santo Domingo Park Bonaval,
allows you to enjoy a quiet stroll or a relaxed reading, also making
it possible to visit the nearby Galician Contemporary Art Center
(CGAC) and the Museo do Pobo Galego., ☎ +34981585667, email:
info@hostallasalle.com .
70 cheap accommodations, for less
than 50 €
The hotel Hesperia gelmirez is very well located, five
minutes from the cathedral and with a very good price.
http://www.hesperia.es/hoteles/Hesperia-Gelmirez/ Very good to
sleep between 35-45 euros per room, near the cathedral in the
sunflower pension. Breakfast is also good, with great toast. I think
that during the winter it still has better prices.
Hotel los
Abetos 4 * | San Lázaro - 15820 Hotel in Santiago de Compostela (A
Coruña) - Spain | Tel 98 155 70 26
Hotel Meliá Araguaney is
located in the center of the commercial area of Santiago, 5
minutes walk from the monumental area and the Cathedral. The Hotel
has an exquisite gastronomy in its Caney restaurant that is also a
reference in the "tapas" of Santiago de Compostela. It also has
throughout the year its well-known gastronomic weeks of rice, Arab
and mushrooms, as well as different events on the most important
dates of the national and international calendar.
Barbantes
Libredón PR ** Unbeatable location in the historic center of the
city: in the Plaza de Fonseca, 100 meters from the main door of the
Cathedral. Tel. +34 981 57 65 20. E-mail:
info@libredonbarbantes.com
Close to the cathedral it is recommended to go to eat the Black
Cat. It eats scandal and cheap. In La Bodeguilla de San Roque you
also eat great, but sometimes you have to have patience, since they
do not reserve a table and there are always people. If we are not in
a hurry, the wait is worth it. Within the Auditorium of Galicia
(North Campus) there is a restaurant where you can eat (menu or a la
carte) always with fresh products at a good price. Quiet place with
views of the lake. On request, large meals are held (capacity: more
than 300 people)
Drink
Santiago is a university city, and
therefore, a lot of youthful atmosphere especially during the
academic year. There are places both in the old area and the
widening. In the old area there are streets full of small bars of
very different environments. For all ages and tastes, every day of
the week (especially Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday). They
are of obligatory visit, for example: Modus Vivendi, Babel, Seventh
Heaven, Lost Paradise, Albaroque, Meia or the Avante. In the new
area there are other bars with more modern decoration and cheaper
prices such as A Cova da Vella, Central Perk, Volga ... To enjoy a
relaxed atmosphere with live music, it is essential to visit the
veteran jazz club Dado Dada. For those who want to continue the
party, in the widening are the fashionable clubs of the city such
as: Liberty, Blaster, or Shangoo. At the closing of the nightclubs
you can have breakfast in several places of the city as in Galicia,
where they serve pizzas, chocolates or tripe ...
There is a
place near the church of San Martín Pinario, called Recantos, which
has a very nice decoration, with a very cool interior terrace. It is
fine to have a drink at any time of the day. Many breakfasts, very
varied and well priced. Free WIFI. Very calm
Santiago de Compostela offers many places to buy. The most remarkable are the center, in the area around the Red Square and near the Plaza de Galicia. After the old zone offers a great offer of stores of gifts and memories of the trip, as well as stores specialized in very interesting articles. Santiago has 3 commercial areas, which are an English Court in Pontepedriña, the Central Area Shopping Center in Fontiñas and the newly opened As Cancelas Shopping Center, in As Cancelas, near the Central Area. In the polygon of Costa Vella there are large commercial areas specialized in clothing, technology or DIY