2025 Vilagarcia de Arousa Travel Guide: Must-see attractions, popular food, hotels, transportation routes (updated in May)

VILAGARCÍA DE AROUSA The largest coastal city at the mouth of the Arusa River. Vilagarcía de Arousa is a beautiful city located in the O Salnés region of the province of Pontevedra, facing Rianxo across the coast from the Ría de Arousa. The Arusa River runs through it and forms part of its identity and history. The town is also home to an important maritime, commercial and sporting port, active since the mid-19th century. Today, Vilagarcía de Arousa has become an important tourist center in Galicia, thanks to its strategic location, which is well connected to any point in the Rías Baixas , with extensive Blue Flag beaches, natural beauty and parks, as well as hiking routes such as Sarmiento or Cortegada, and mansions full of history to visit. Like many other places in Galicia, signs of human settlements dating back to the second millennium BC have been found in Villa Galicia. Always in prehistoric times, but closer to our time, the remains of the Celts appeared, who lived in different "fortresses" and whose remains can still be visited around today. Castro was later colonized by the Romans, whose "Per Loca Marítima" road passed through this territory. In 1458, Archbishop García-Caamaño founded the fishing village of Villa de García; over the years Villa de García became a very prosperous commercial center, always competing with the neighboring Villa de Carril, whose harbor was considered the Galli One of the best ports in West Asia. However, since 1744, the free markets organized by Villa García attracted more and more people from different locations at the mouth of the Arusa River. A decisive boost came in 1860 with the completion of a railway line connecting Santiago de Compostela to the mouth of the Arosa River, giving Villagarcía a significant advantage over Carril. The current Villagarcía de Arousa was born on March 1, 1913, when the town councils of Carril, Vilaxoán and Vilagarcía merged. Today, Villagarcia has an intensive economic activity based on maritime trade, expositions and conference activities, as it is the headquarters of FEXDEGA, one of the largest exhibition centers in Galicia. It is also an important tourist center, offering visitors a wide range of leisure and activities. Its A Concha and Compostela beaches are safe, comfortable, wide, clean and marked by the blue flag of the European Community. The urban area, located between the communes of Carril and Vilaxoán, has numerous parks and gardens where you can relax; for its part, the promenade is ideal for walking or cycling , or enjoy the action at the port from one of the many bars and restaurants there. What to eat in Villa García de Arusa? Of course it’s fish and seafood! The villa's privileged location in Rías Baixas guarantees a daily supply of high-quality and very fresh seafood products to the local gastronomic establishment, prepared by the chefs in the traditional Galician way. The star of the menu? The Carril clam is particularly recognized for its size and quality. There are also fish, octopus, squid, crabs and crabs from the estuary; there is also excellent meat available thanks to the excellent pastures in the area. All these culinary excellences in Villa García are even more remarkable when paired with a glass of fresh Albariño wine from the Salnes region, D.O. Rias Baixas. Depending on the month you choose to visit Villa García de Arusa, you can enjoy one of the many local festivals, such as the Water Festival celebrated every year on August 16th, the Feast of San Roque; the "Maios" festival celebrated on the morning of May 1st (works of art made from flowers, grasses, ferns, fruits, and eggs); Carnival: a music festival or festival of numerous religions and patron saints. Villagarcia de Alausa O Salnes

Arosavillagarcia Vistalegre Manor and Monastery Pazo de Vistalegre, Villagarcia de Arosa y Convento de Vista Alegre Rúa Vista Alegre, 1, 36600 Vilagarcía de Arousa, Pontevedra The Vistalegre Manor and Monastery (Pazo-Convento de Vista Alegre) has become a must-visit for any tourist passing through the fishing village of Salnes. The entrance to this space forms a real movie scene, with a bridge spanning the Con River leading to the famous Vistalegre Arch, which marks the entrance to the architectural complex. At the same time, on the outer wall, you can still see the big badges and archbishop signs of the time, including the badge of the Marquis of Villagarcia. Pazo de Vista Alegre is located in the center of Vilagarcía de Arousa, a town named after the red bishop of Compostela García de Caamaño Mendoza de Soutomaior, who granted the 'Puebla Charter' in 1461 to establish a town near the Vistalegre or Saint Christopher Fortress with the idea of promoting its development in the minds of the sailors. Don García established his fiefdom and residence there, leading to the construction of the 16th century Vistalegre Manor (Pazo de Vistalegre), where his son established a manor under the grant of Carlos I, unifying the assets of Vistalegre, Barrantes and Rubiáns, and through subsequent purchases of the rights to the Vistalegre Fortress and Villagarcia Manor, it has always belonged to this lineage, until Francisco Lavilla Mayor obtained the rights to the town and ended the old fiefdom. Vistalegre Manor Therefore, Álvaro de Mendoza y Soutomaior built the first palace, which was expanded in 1566 by his brother Rodrigo. As early as the 17th century, Fernando de Andrade Soutomaior y Caamaño became the founder of the Augustinian Recollect Nuns' Church and Monastery. With the large arch of the Vistalegre Palace. The architecture of the manor is of the Renaissance period, made of high-quality granite ashlar, characterized by simple decoration, based on medals, shields and other simple patterns with a bust in the middle. It can be said that originally it had two serrated towers on both sides of its central body. One of them was later (seventeen) moved to the new monastery building. This monastery church, known as San Cristobal, can be attributed to the classical style of the first half of the 17th century by Bartolomé Fernández Lechuga, who may have designed this work, including a rectangular plan with a nave, three-part side chapels, a rectangular main church between the sacristy and the sacristy. The architectural complex was declared a historical-artistic monument, located on land bounded by the old medieval fortress, with part of the city wall next to the Con River preserved. Inside, 17th-century Flemish and Italian tapestries and paintings are preserved. Villagarcia de Arosa O Salnes

VILAGARCÍA DE AROUSA The largest coastal city at the mouth of the Arusa River. Vilagarcía de Arousa is a beautiful city located in the O Salnés region of the province of Pontevedra, facing Rianxo across the coast from the Ría de Arousa. The Arusa River runs through it and forms part of its identity and history. The town is also home to an important maritime, commercial and sporting port, active since the mid-19th century. Today, Vilagarcía de Arousa has become an important tourist center in Galicia, thanks to its strategic location, which is well connected to any point in the Rías Baixas , with extensive Blue Flag beaches, natural beauty and parks, as well as hiking routes such as Sarmiento or Cortegada, and mansions full of history to visit. Like many other places in Galicia, signs of human settlements dating back to the second millennium BC have been found in Villa Galicia. Always in prehistoric times, but closer to our time, the remains of the Celts appeared, who lived in different "fortresses" and whose remains can still be visited around today. Castro was later colonized by the Romans, whose "Per Loca Marítima" road passed through this territory. In 1458, Archbishop García-Caamaño founded the fishing village of Villa de García; over the years Villa de García became a very prosperous commercial center, always competing with the neighboring Villa de Carril, whose harbor was considered the Galli One of the best ports in West Asia. However, since 1744, the free markets organized by Villa García attracted more and more people from different locations at the mouth of the Arusa River. A decisive boost came in 1860 with the completion of a railway line connecting Santiago de Compostela to the mouth of the Arosa River, giving Villagarcía a significant advantage over Carril. The current Villagarcía de Arousa was born on March 1, 1913, when the town councils of Carril, Vilaxoán and Vilagarcía merged. Today, Villagarcia has an intensive economic activity based on maritime trade, expositions and conference activities, as it is the headquarters of FEXDEGA, one of the largest exhibition centers in Galicia. It is also an important tourist center, offering visitors a wide range of leisure and activities. Its A Concha and Compostela beaches are safe, comfortable, wide, clean and marked by the blue flag of the European Community. The urban area, located between the communes of Carril and Vilaxoán, has numerous parks and gardens where you can relax; for its part, the promenade is ideal for walking or cycling , or enjoy the action at the port from one of the many bars and restaurants there. What to eat in Villa García de Arusa? Of course it’s fish and seafood! The villa's privileged location in Rías Baixas guarantees a daily supply of high-quality and very fresh seafood products to the local gastronomic establishment, prepared by the chefs in the traditional Galician way. The star of the menu? The Carril clam is particularly recognized for its size and quality. There are also fish, octopus, squid, crabs and crabs from the estuary; there is also excellent meat available thanks to the excellent pastures in the area. All these culinary excellences in Villa García are even more remarkable when paired with a glass of fresh Albariño wine from the Salnes region, D.O. Rias Baixas. Depending on the month you choose to visit Villa García de Arusa, you can enjoy one of the many local festivals, such as the Water Festival celebrated every year on August 16th, the Feast of San Roque; the "Maios" festival celebrated on the morning of May 1st (works of art made from flowers, grasses, ferns, fruits, and eggs); Carnival: a music festival or festival of numerous religions and patron saints. Villagarcia de Alausa O Salnes

ALMEJA DE CARRIL, one of the most beautiful seafood in Galicia Rúa Aduana, 36613 Carril, Pontevedra Carril clams are clams produced using traditional aquaculture methods in Santiago de Carril (a parish in the municipality of Villagarcía de Arosa Pontevedra). The environment consisting of the mouth of the Ural River, the sandy land of Cortegarda Island and the town of Carril provides unparalleled conditions for clam production. The apex where the river flows into the estuary, due to the topography and the exchange between the river and seawater, creates an ecosystem in which plankton and nutrients that serve as food for the clams proliferate. The coincidence of all factors produces a unique clam. Clams from the sandy area of ​​Compostela Beach up to Villagarcía de Arosa have better flavor, meat yield and nutritional properties than similar products from the surrounding areas (and one of the best seafood in the world). The Hekou Clams and Clams Breeding Park covers an area of ​​nearly 1 million square meters. The inhabitants of Karil know the virtues of its sandy beaches and have been collecting and fattening molluscs by hand since the 14th century. Producers in the past were not limited to collecting molluscs from their natural environment, they also obtained larval specimens and then fattened them in the park. Parker's work continues to this day. Like their medieval ancestors, the Carril Parks collected adult clams with picks on foot or in small boats. Among the changes that have occurred in recent years, the abandonment of mussels stands out: farmers have found it convenient to dedicate their farms to the fattening of oysters or clams and leave the mussels in rafts for exploitation. Workers in the industry face two threats: poaching and low-quality clams sold in vacuum packages. The risk of these inferior or illegally sourced products flooding the market constitutes a scam for buyers and puts the survival of the 1,283 plots of land awarded to 656 Carril producers at risk due to falling prices. To put an end to these illegal practices, consumers must purchase karil clams from trusted fishmongers, where they can clearly verify their origin. O Grove Seafood Restaurant offers product traceability from sea to kitchen, so you can enjoy the world's best clams in complete safety. Villagarcia de Alausa O Salnes