The Port of Gijón, Spain
ABOUT
Gijón is a large coastal city in northern Spain. It is known for it’s maritime heritage and the old fishermen’s quarter of Cimadevilla. Its history, and that of the Asturias region, dates back to Roman times and it is surprisingly easy to explore the centre of the city on foot. It is known for it Cider, or Sidra and you can find guided tours or explore on your own to find the cider houses and restaurants. Situated along the Bay of Biscay the whole region is famous for its sea food.
In the 20th century it developed into a small industrial area and today is one of the largest and busiest ports in Spain.
Population of Gijón is approximately 270,000
Currency is the Euro
THINGS TO DO
The entire region is steeped in history through its early days, through its fishing heritage, maritime heritate and now its modern era. There is architecture throughout the city and its surrounding areas. There are several themed museums including the Campo Valdes Roman Baths which is considered to be one of the most important Roman remains in northern Spain. You can visit an aquarium and the botanical gardens.
For more local culture, the Ecological and Crafts Market features local crafts made in traditional methods, from environmentally friendly materials. It is also a fascinating glimpse into the historic arts and crafts of the area.
On top of all that you can follow the Cider Trail – a guided tour that takes you to some of the best cider houses and restaurants in the city.
OUR FAVOURITE THINGS TO DO
This was our first visit to the region and so we took a ship tour rather than explore on our own. We are so glad we did. The first stop was at the Parque de la Providencia which afforded us wonderful views of the coastline and across to the city itself.
We were then driven a sort distance to the Universidad Laboral de Gijón. Built between 1946 and 1955 it is considered to be the most important piece of architecture built in the region during the 20th century. Originally it was built to educate orphans whose parents had died as a result of working in the mining industry. Now it is a multi-use educational facility. We saw the outside of these amazing buildings but the whole structure has an interesting history. It was well worth the visit.
The last stop on our tour was at a Cider producer, Castanon. We had particular interest in this as we live in the heart of Cider production in Somerset. However the production of this `Sidra’ was very different, as was the method of pouring and the taste (poor Dilys was most confused!). You can see more in our video.
All in all a very favourable visit to Gijón and one we would hope to do again one day. Next time we will take a little tour of the cider houses within the city!
To check out our experiences in Gijón just click the video below – and if you enjoy the content simply ‘Like’ and ‘Subscribe’ to see more (subscription is free)