Spain is a big place and it’s northwest is very different from the warmer and more well-trodden south and east. In the northwest, you trade in your flamenco guitar and sunblock for Galician bagpipes and an umbrella.

A good place to start is Santiago de Compostela. Inland and watered by Spring rain showers that swept in periodically from the north Atlantic, it is a major Catholic pilgrimage site, which many people still hike to across Spain and Portugal, over trails developed since the 900s AD.

The remains of St. James (one of the apostles) were claimed to have been carried by sea from Palestine and interred in Santiago. The site became a religious center from the early 800s AD, and the cathedrals and monasteries that were built dominate the old town.

You can get to Santiago readily enough overland via Madrid, Bilbao or Lisbon, or fly direct – I went via Dublin, and had to show the valleys and lakes of Ireland on approach there:

Approaches to Dublin

Santiago has very grand aspects as a result of Spanish imperial urban planning, but it’s medieval past as a major religious center and it’s hilly geography break up these more recent developments to give it a unique and human-sized feel. The main square covers off the imperial side of things, and is the culmination point of the pilgrimage at Santiago’s impressive cathedral.

Originally consecrated in 1275 over a 9th-century chapel, the current cathedral has a lot of 18th-century baroque interior, which was also the last major remodel of the frontage, which was getting a facelift at the time of visit.

If you are after another religious site, the now uninhabited Monastery of San Martiño Pinario is worth seeing for its massive and ornate baroque altars.

There is nothing finer after having walked across the top of Spain (or even if you’ve just flown in) than to go for tapas and wine at the many bars along Rua do Franco and Rua de Raiina.

You can judge quality by crowd size, and I found the packed out Tapas Petiscos do Cardeal, the Gato Negro and the Central worked well, although it seems hard to go very wrong.

Santiago is a large enough town for general wandering around once you have ticked off the main (clerical) attractions, and is a good base to explore the surrounding region. I’d rate it on the high end as a food & drink destination. Northern Spain has a good microbrew industry and I’d really recommend the Cervexaría Áncora, O Bandullo do Lambón and the Cervexería Xuntanza. A car is probably best if you want to explore the rugged coast, although you can easily daytrip to A Coruna or Vigo by rail or bus.

Logistics. I stayed at the Moure Hotel, which was an excellent small hotel with a great breakfast, on the north side of the old town. The bus (Praza de Camilo Díaz Baliño) and rail station (Avenida de Lugo 2) are each about 10-15 minutes south and northeast respectively from the town center. If you arrive from the airport, the airport bus leaves every 30 minutes and calls at both bus and rail if you need to connect.