Experience in La Coruña, Spain, by Marián

What is it like to live in A Coruña? Would you recommend it? What is the city like?

To me it's a magnificent city, I'm completely in love living there, and it would be a 10/10 city if it wasn't for the weather that they sometimes have, but it's really not that bad. Everything else completely makes up for it.

It's a coastal city with numerous beaches actually in the city, which makes it possible to practice a variety of sports such as surfing. Sports are a huge thing here. We have the biggest maritime promenade in Europe with some incredible views of the Atlantic Ocean. It's a flat and level city, which is ideal for those people who like to travel by bike. The city is beautiful in terms of its architecture. Seriously ideal.

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What is the student lifestyle like in A Coruña?

A Coruña is a student city, although not as much as Santiago de Compostela. A Coruña has only had a university for 25 years in comparison to Santiago which paved the way for its grand history. But if there's one thing we can be certain about, it's that there is an obvious university atmosphere.

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How much does it cost to live in A Coruña?

A Coruña is cheap when comparing with many other Spanish cities and even more so if we compare it with Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Santander... it's affordable. It's one of the averagely priced Spanish cities.

What is the food like there? What are some of your favourite dishes?

Spain is envious of Galicia and its food. There's no need to resort to clichés such as "o pulpo á feira" to test it. If you are not from Spain, without question, you have to try a Spanish tortilla. Apart from its traditional food, the city has a great variety of restaurants with different food from all over the world, such as Italian, Chinese, Mexican, Indian, Greek and of course the biggest fast food companies such as McDonalds, Burger King, Dominos Pizza, KFC, etc.

What places would you recommend visiting in A Coruña?

There are soooooooo many... the whole centre of the city, the Obelisco, Calle Real, Parrote, the Riazor area, Monte de San Pedro, the monument of humanity; Hercules Tower... and in the outskirts of A Coruña there are beautiful coastal towns that also have big beaches such as Bastigueiro, Santa Cruz, Mera... and you can get to these places in less than half an hour for, at most, €2.

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Where would you recommend for a night out in A Coruña?

Without a doubt, the club of the moment is the Sala Pelícano, one of the biggest halls in Spain that brings international famous artists there as guests such as Eva Simons, Juan Magán, the teddy bear from LMFAO, Henry Mendez, NERVO... it's the best of the bunch, you have to go! The normal price to get in is €8 with a free drink. It's so, so good. It's the best place in A Coruña. The best of the pubs are concentrated in a building called "Los Cantones Village" and all of them are great. Some of the local spots are: My, Dux, Amura, Brit, Royale (on Thursdays-the student night-these tend to have free entry). This doesn't happen on Saturdays. On this day, it generally costs €6. Some other cool places are Moom57 and Playa Club. I recommend these to be the places you have your last drink at before you go home! As well as all these local spots, there are loads of places spread throughout the city, above all on Calle Juan Canalejo.

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Is there any other advice that you could give to future students who are going to A Coruña?

I am in love with my city. Everyone that comes here, then leaves with the same emotion and has an experience of what homesickness feels like, missing A Coruña. I would recommend this city to you 100%.

My university department is 10 minutes away by car from the centre but you can't walk as it's located just at the entrance to the city, a little bit isolated. There are constant city buses that take less than half an hour for the whole journey. Don't worry about the rainy days, we have nearly a dozen shopping centres and among them is the biggest one in Spain. We also have an IKEA for if you want to move permanently to the city.

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Good luck on your Erasmus adventure. I can't say anything because I'm leaving in a few months, but I'm sure it will be a blast. Enjoy every corner of the city and the very friendly people that you will get to know.

If you have any doubts, don't hesitate in asking me!

With love from a fellow Erasmus student!