14 GREAT THINGS TO DO IN VIGO, GALICIA: A SHORT GUIDE.
Vigo may not be the most well known city, but it is the largest city in Galicia and deserves a lot more attention than it might get. For me, it’s the perfect size of a city to explore for a day or so – with enough to hold your attention, without feeling overwhelm.
Whether you’re visiting Vigo as you walk the Camino de Santiago, a stop off from a cruise, or just exploring this lovely city – here are my top 13 things to do in the city.
1/ Visit the Cathedral
The Basílica de Santa María de Vigo is found in the heart of the old town. A neoclassical church built in the 1800s. The church is free to all to enter and is a lot more impressive from the inside than outside.
For anyone walking the Camino de Santiago, it’s a delightful place to pause on your journey.
2/ Antique shopping
Rúa do Príncipe is the main artery of the city, filled with all the modern shops you’d expect to find. But, venture off a little and you’ll find some more interesting stores.
Almoneda Vigo is probably the most eclectic one we stumbled into – it has an absolute mass of second hand goods, you could get lost in here for hours. Jacobo Ansin Vintage, Compraventa Coleccionistas (rare books) and Antiquitatum Taberna are also worth a browse.
3/ See the fortress
If you only make the effort to climb one hill in Vigo (which is nearly impossible), make it this one.
Castelo do Castro sits at the top of Monte do Castro, right in the middle of the city. The fortress dates back to the 17th century, and these days its walls and gardens provide one of the best viewpoints over Vigo and the Ría de Vigo.
There’s also an archaeological site on the lower slopes, where you can see reconstructed houses from the ancient settlement that once stood here. And best of all? It’s completely free.
4/ Take a tapas crawl
An evening spent roaming from bar to bar, sampling tapas with a local wine or beer, is an evening well spent.
Many Spanish cities have one or two dedicated “tapas streets”, in Vigo, things are little more dispersed, but you can seek out some fantastic tapas places in the Old Town.
Taberna A Mina is a personal favourite – I love the atmosphere in here in the evening. It’s absolutely buzzing. We were lucky to get a table and didn’t want to let it go, so just kept the dishes flowing.
Elaine restaurante de tapas is close by and has a sprawling terrace. And Tapería Paparota has some more quirky dishes that we hadn’t tried before.
In truth, it’s best just to wander until you find a place you love – as we did.
5/ The Museum of Contemporary Art
The Museo de Arte Contemporánea (or MARCO) is a fantastic way to spend an hour or more in Vigo. Housed in a fantastic building near to the city centre (found here), this museum is completely free to enter – making it even more enticing.
It focuses on modern art, with exhibiting artists changing regularly. When we visited, we were really intrigued by an artist who had dedicated most of their exhibit to Galicia – it was really an eye opening look into a local perspective.
As with any modern art museum, there were pieces that we couldn’t quite connect with. But that’s the beauty isn’t it?
Tip: MARCO also has a lovely café, well worth a stop.
6/ Visit Vigo’s pretty parks
Vigo has a couple of really lovely green spaces. Our favourite is Alameda da Praza de Compostela (found here) – a small park with seating and a pretty fountain in the centre.
Around the park are a number of cafes and restaurants, ideal for a refreshment stop and some people watching.
7/ Embrace coffee culture
Sitting in a quiet spot in Vigo, I loved just idly watching as a lady fed a croissant to her dog, as workers, tourists and retired folk came and went. One thing I love about Spain, is that you can go for coffee at any time of the day and it’s almost guaranteed that there will be a good buzz around you.
There are popular coffee spots like Hiday Coffee and The Hippie Baker, but in all honesty, it’s best just to follow your nose and find a sunny spot on a terrace that draws you in. I’m not sure it’s possible to have bad coffee in Galicia.
Tip: if you’ve got more of a sweet tooth – enjoy some churros in Vigo instead of coffee. Vigo Churros is a popular modern spot, whilst El Escorial Cafe has a more traditional feel.
8/ Relax at the beach
We walked into Vigo along the coast, as we were walking the Camino de Santiago Portuguese Way and had a first hand look at some of the spectacular beaches close to the city. And believe me – if you’ve never set eyes on a white sanded Galician beach – these will blow your mind.
Praia do Tombo do Gato is a small, pretty bay situated around 5km south of the city. You can take a taxi, or a regular bus service (which takes 30 minutes or so.) A little further south is Praia de Samil – a long and sweeping beach with a buzzy promenade.
9/ Journey to the Cies Islands
I include this, because it would be remiss not to. But we are yet to make this journey – one day!
The Cies Islands are part of the Maritime-Terrestrial Natural Park of the Atlantic Islands of Galicia. There are three islands in total and two are connected by a beach.
The visit is one for nature lovers – you can find hikes, gorgeous beaches and just a world without lots of buildings. You get there by boat, and you need pre-authorization for the journey during Holy Week and peak summer season.
Tip: if you can’t make the trip, but are intrigued by the islands, you can visit the Centro de Visitantes do Parque Nacional Illas Atlánticas de Galicia (a visitor centre), where you can learn all about the islands through interesting exhibits. It’s free to enter.
Whenever we visit a Spanish city, we love finding restaurants that serve a tasting menu, or even just a slightly elevated menu del dia.
I hesitate to say that they are inexpensive, because I realise that from a local perspective, they probably are not. But for someone coming from London, the US, or another expensive city in Europe, we do tend to find that Spanish tasting menus are just that little bit less spendy.
In Vigo, there are countless Michelin Star and Michelin Guide restaurants – always a good place to start when looking for a tasting treat. We opted to dine at Silabario, which has a mid week menu for €41 (more elaborate menus are also available.) The restaurant is close to MARCO and has incredible views across the city.
11/ Wander the Casco Viejo
Vigo’s Casco Vello, or Old Town, is where I’d recommend simply getting lost for an hour or two.
It’s not enormous, so you don’t really need a plan. Wander through the narrow streets, admire the old stone buildings, pause in Praza da Constitución and gradually make your way downhill towards the harbour.
Look out for O Berbés, the old fishermen’s quarter, and Rúa da Pescadería – better known as Oyster Street.
If you’d rather have someone else do the navigating, a walking tour is another good option. But personally, I think Vigo’s Old Town is best enjoyed at a leisurely pace, with plenty of stops for food and drink along the way.
12/ Seek out a view of Vigo
One wonderful thing about Vigo being a city of hills and elevators, is that you can seek out a viewpoint of the city.
The easiest viewpoint to reach is probably the Mirador del Olivo, on Paseo de Alfonso XII. It has a wonderful view over the rooftops and across the estuary.
A slightly more leftfield option, is Ascensor Halo. This is an elevator just near to the Urzaiz train station. The elevator itself is a bit of a tourist attraction, due to the unique architecture. But you can also get an excellent view from here – look out for it if you come into the city this way.
And, of course, the views from Castelo do Castro are hard to beat.
13/ Follow in the footsteps of Jules Verne
This is one of those wonderfully random things I love discovering when travelling.
Jules Verne visited Vigo and was fascinated by the Battle of Rande, which took place in the waters of the Vigo estuary in 1702. The battle and its supposed sunken treasure even made an appearance in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, when Captain Nemo’s Nautilus visits the bay.
You can find the Monument to Jules Verne, found along the waterfront at Avenidas. The bronze sculpture shows the writer sitting on the tentacles of a giant squid, and it’s a particularly fun little photo opportunity.
14/ Explore elsewhere in Galicia
Vigo is well placed if you want to visit further afield in Galicia. There are big city names like Santiago de Compostela, or smaller foodie centric cities like Pontevedra. As well as charming fishing villages like Combarro. There’s so much out there to explore.
You can find our guide to where to visit in Galicia here.
Where to stay in Vigo
Vigo is a fairly compact city for visitors, so I’d recommend staying somewhere central rather than worrying too much about being right beside a particular attraction.
BUDGET: Hotel Pantón
MID-RANGE: Hotel Arias or B&B HOTEL Vigo
How to get to Vigo
Vigo is surprisingly easy to reach, particularly if you’re travelling around Galicia.
BY PLANE: Vigo has its own airport, Vigo-Peinador (VGO), around 10km from the city centre. There are domestic connections to several major Spanish cities, although depending on where you’re travelling from, Santiago de Compostela or Porto can sometimes offer more flight options.
BY TRAIN: Vigo is well connected by rail, with services linking it to cities including Santiago de Compostela, A Coruña, Ourense and Madrid. There are two main railway stations in the city, although Vigo-Guixar is particularly useful for long-distance and regional services.
BY CRUISE SHIP: If you’re visiting Vigo as part of a cruise, you’re in luck – the cruise terminal is right in the city centre. You can walk straight off the ship and into the Old Town, meaning you can see quite a lot of Vigo without needing to arrange transport.
Written by Emma
Wine Lover. Yogi. Hiker. Writer.
British travel writer and long-distance hiker, native to Kent. Emma has walked the Camino de Santiago more than ten times, completed trails across Europe from the Corfu Trail to the Fisherman’s Trail, and covered thousands of kilometres on foot. She always writes from first-hand experience. Her goal? Inspire just one person to go on their first long-distance hike.
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