Praza da Ferrería has the best selection of cafes in town and is overlooked by the Igrexa de San Francisco, said to have been founded in the 13th century by St Francis of Assisi. Just off the plaza, you can't miss the curved facade of the Santuario da Virxe Peregrina, an 18th-century Portuguese-flavoured caprice with a ground plan in the shape of a scallop shell, symbol of the Camino de Santiago (whose Camino Portugués route passes through Pontevedra).
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
16.78 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…
26.84 MILES
Galicia's most spectacularly sited prehistoric settlement is poised majestically on a wind-blasted headland overlooking the Atlantic waves, 4km southwest…
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11.08 MILES
This 18th-century country mansion, 13km northeast of Cambados, is surrounded by wonderful gardens containing 800 flower species, a large albariño vineyard…
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0.16 MILES
The Edificio Sarmiento, pride of the Museo de Pontevedra, occupies a renovated 18th-century college. Its absorbing collection ranges over Galician…
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26.6 MILES
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…
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8.04 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…
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10.54 MILES
The handsome 17th-century Pazo de Fefiñáns steals the show on visits to the small, family-run winery that's housed in it. The basic one-hour tour (€7)…
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12.12 MILES
Dune-backed Praia A Lanzada sweeps a spectacular 2.3km along the isthmus leading to O Grove. It's Galicia's most splendid stretch of sand, and enticingly…
Nearby Pontevedra attractions
1. Santuario da Virxe Peregrina
0.05 MILES
Just off Praza da Ferrería, you can't miss the distinctive curved facade of the Santuario da Virxe Peregrina, an 18th-century caprice with a distinctly…
0.06 MILES
Set back above the broad Praza da Ferrería, the Igrexa de San Francisco was, according to local lore, founded in the 13th century by St Francis of Assisi…
0.1 MILES
Praza da Leña is one of the quaintest of the dozen or so plazas dotted around the mainly pedestrianised old quarter. It's partly colonnaded and with a…
0.14 MILES
Part of the Museo de Pontevedra, the Ruínas de San Domingos consist of the five-apse east end of the 14th-century church of a Dominican convent, housing…
0.16 MILES
The Edificio Sarmiento, pride of the Museo de Pontevedra, occupies a renovated 18th-century college. Its absorbing collection ranges over Galician…
0.19 MILES
The Sexto Edificio, the newest section of the Museo de Pontevedra, has three floors of Galician and Spanish art from the 14th to 20th centuries. It's…
7. Basílica de Santa María a Maior
0.24 MILES
Pontevedra's most impressive church is a beautiful, mainly late-Gothic affair, built by Pontevedra’s sailors’ guild in the 16th century. Busts of Columbus…
7.29 MILES
A young, innovative winery, with eye-catching deep-blue bottles, Mar de Frades offers one-hour tours of its vineyard and modern installations 9km east of…