The Roman city and province of Lugo

The city of Lugo is the capital of a long province with both coastal and inland towns that serves up some of Galicia's best scenery. The city, or at least the old town of Lugo, is totally surrounded by a massive Roman wall and there is also a cathedral.

General information about Lugo

The province as a whole has approaching half a million inhabitants and, in addition to its capital, has several other sizable towns including Sarria and Ribadeo. Lugo itself came to prominance with the construction of its Roman wall almost 1700 years ago and was an important outpost in what we now know as northern Spain. The wall, which was originally started in 265 A.D., is the city's biggest tourist draw and has world heritage status. Although less popular than Santiago de Compostela, Lugo is gaining an increasing number of overseas holiday visitors who choose to spend a day exploring the city.

Things to see and visit in Lugo

Tip 1. Top of the list is Lugo's famous Roman wall, the iconic symbol of the city. The wall is over 2 km in length and 12 metres high and wide at its broadest point. It has numerous turrets and gates and there are plenty of access stairs allowing you to encirle the city from on high. Dissapointingly, there is little on-site information about the structure and its history.

Tip 2. The cathedral in Lugo, whilst on a much smaller scale to that of the one in Santiago, is a beautiful building outside and within. It is positioned right next to the city wall and has a stunning main altar. The courtyard behind this cathedral leads to the main parts of the old town.

Tip 3. Unlike many of Galicia's other larger cities, Lugo has less in the way of large structures but far more lanes and streets, many lined with the typical Galician terraced buildings made of granite. A general walk around the older parts of the city is a good way to see the best of what Lugo has to offer.

Tip 4. Leaving the capital and venturing a short distance from the town takes you to some very famous ruins of an old Celtic village called the Castro de Viladonga. These ruins pre-date history and are one of the best examples of a recently discovered line of Galicia's heritage that goes back thousands of years.

Travelling to Lugo

You reach Lugo from Santiago de Compostela in about one and a half hours by car on a route that is largely dual carriageway.

Aside from the capital itself, Lugo province has some great scenery with mountains, valleys, rivers and no shortage of smaller towns to call in at.

Although receiving only minimal promotion as a tourist destination, Lugo is well worth seeing and makes a quiet alternative to la Coruna, Santiago and even Pontevedra.