Places to visit during your Erasmus year in Galicia: Vila Nova de Cerveira

In this new series of entries titled "Places to visit during your Erasmus in Galicia" I will keep recommending places that I visited and are in the region of Galicia, or near to one of the university cities. In these entries I will describe and comment on the most stunning and important places to visit. Aside from that, I will give you some local advice about where to eat or activities you can take part in.

In this entry I'm going to talk about the city of Vila Nova de Cerveira. This is a locality situated in the north of Portugal and which borders Spain.

How to get there...

Vila Nova de Cerveira can be found one hour from Vigo, and the fastest option to be able to get there from the city is over the Valença-Tui International Bridge which unites the Galician government buildings with those of Valença do Minho, which you can find 15 minutes by car from Vila Nova de Cerveira. Another option is over the Amistad bridge which joins the Galician government of Tomiño with the Portuguese government. Both bridges cross the Miño River, the natural border which separates both countries.

The best option is to go by car as it will be easier to move yourselves around the area and go to the places which are further away. It's also possible to arrive by bus from Vigo with the company Autna (€10 there and back).

What to visit...

Old Town

The Old Town is an ideal spot to start our trip. Besides the Praça da Liberdade, where you find the majority of bars and terraces that fill up with tourists over the summer, it's also interesting to visit the central church and the Cerveira Castle.

Parks

The park of Lazer do Castelinho is found next to the river, and it's a huge green space with a mountain covered with trees and several buildings. It's a perfect park to walk through, and you can do loads of different activities there.

Viewpoints

The Do Cervo Viewpoint is one of the most important places to go. To get to this viewpoint, I would advise going by car as it's 10 minutes by car from the centre. You can access it by road, and there's a car park next to it. In the Alto do Casto, where the viewpoint is situated, there's an iron sculpture in the shape of a deer. It was made by José Rodrigues to pay homage to the symbol of the town.

On the other hand, at the Porta do Ceo Viewpoint or the Espiritu Santo Viewpoint we will be able to find the incomplete ruins of a chapel.

From both viewpoints there are some stunning views of the mouth of the Miño River and the localities that are found next to it. It's a magical place that you can't miss on your visit.

To eat...

My recommendation is a small local place called Sandes & Baguetes, which you can find in the Bairro da Calcada. I've been to this local with my family all my life and we always go back there. Even though it's somewhere good for a drink in the afternoon, you can even have a snack (as it's partly a bakery as well, so you can buy bread or even pastries, such as the famous Pasteis de Belem), it's also a good place to eat in as well. They have a menu with a huge variety of burgers, pizzas or delicious sandwiches, among other things.

Another restaurants that we tried was the Pizzaria Vila D'Artes. This place is situated in the Praça da Liberdade and it offers a similar selection to the other restaurant. But, we only went there to eat pizza. Of course there are far more options than just pizza in this restaurant. And it's a good place to try the famous "franceshinha" (a hot Portuguese sandwich covered in melted cheese) as well.

And finally, I recommend that you visit a local place found in the same plaza, which is the Ice Cream Parlour Entre Sabores. This local specialises in crepes and waffles as well as ice creams (obviously). This is why it's a good option to come here and have a dessert or snack, especially on a summer's afternoon.

Things to do...

The market of Vila Nova de Cerveira which is done every Saturday, attracts many people (just like in Spain) as it's pretty big and sells a variety of things.

Also, in the park I previously mentioned, there's a skating rink, a bike trail (and right there you can rent bikes and carts, among other things), a small climbing wall, a museum and even a small "water park" which runs during the summer.

But the most enjoyable activity that I can recommend to you is the minigolf park where you can spend an hour playing on different courses with varying levels of difficulty for just €1!

Advice

• Portugal is an hour behind Spain (which is exactly the same as the UK). But, this means that if you're travelling from Spain, remember that if you go by bus, you have to be alert when it comes to the timetables. Also, you have to bear the shops opening hours in mind too.
• It's recommendable to visit the villa on a sunny day as there isn't much to offer when it comes to outdoor visits further away, you'll have a better view from the viewpoints.
• Despite that this place is in a different country which has a different language, the people who work there are accustomed to receiving foreign tourists, especially Spaniards. So, the majority of people don't have any problems with understanding what you say when you speak Spanish. Although it's always good to make an effort and try to speak to local language.
• I must repeat that it's very advisable to go by car, whether it's rented or a friend takes you. This is because despite Vila Nova de Cerveira isn't very big, I don't know if it would be a good idea to walk to the viewpoints as they are quite far from the centre.

I hope that you visit this place during your Erasmus year, as it will give you some great memories of the magnificent views you'll see.

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