Sunday, December 07, 2008
A quick mention about Pontevedra
Back to Galicia for this post and a quick mention for Pontevedra.
Although a city, Pontevedra is probably more like a large town, at least if you value it on population and area.
The old town is one of the best in Galicia and the city is full of atmosphere, day or night. It is also good value when compared with Santiago de Compostela or la Coruna – at least when it come to buying a coffee or a drink.
Close to Pontevedra is Sanxeno, an upmarket holiday resort, but one that has little appeal to me. It is not intrinsically Galician and reeks of being man made – which it is! It will make a good substitute for the kinds of beach that you will see in southern Spain, but then again, if that is what you are looking for you may be better advised to go there instead.
There are however some excellent “nearby” towns that are worth a look and these include the very attractive Cambados. The province as a whole also makes some good wine and the scenery and countryside in the area are worth venturing into.
South of Pontevedra city is Vigo. Vigo does not always get a great write up, but is has a small but nice old district and some good beaches.
As you move towards and then beyond Vigo, the influences of Portugal become stronger. One negative aspect of this is the increased commerciality of building projects and beach side developments. The weather is better, but the package style holiday makers are also starting to visit this part of Pontevedra province.
Although a city, Pontevedra is probably more like a large town, at least if you value it on population and area.
The old town is one of the best in Galicia and the city is full of atmosphere, day or night. It is also good value when compared with Santiago de Compostela or la Coruna – at least when it come to buying a coffee or a drink.
Close to Pontevedra is Sanxeno, an upmarket holiday resort, but one that has little appeal to me. It is not intrinsically Galician and reeks of being man made – which it is! It will make a good substitute for the kinds of beach that you will see in southern Spain, but then again, if that is what you are looking for you may be better advised to go there instead.
There are however some excellent “nearby” towns that are worth a look and these include the very attractive Cambados. The province as a whole also makes some good wine and the scenery and countryside in the area are worth venturing into.
South of Pontevedra city is Vigo. Vigo does not always get a great write up, but is has a small but nice old district and some good beaches.
As you move towards and then beyond Vigo, the influences of Portugal become stronger. One negative aspect of this is the increased commerciality of building projects and beach side developments. The weather is better, but the package style holiday makers are also starting to visit this part of Pontevedra province.
