Green Spain

Green Spain (Spanish: España Verde) is a region in northern Spain. Forget the Spanish stereotypes of bullfighting, flamenco dancers, and sunwashed beaches — with its ancient Celtic heritage, bagpipe players, and often rainy weather, Green Spain is more akin to Scotland than the rest of the country. Favourable climate helps keeping emerald hillsides always lush, and you'll have little reason to wonder why this part of the country is depicted with the name of a colour.

Regions

Asturias It is called "little Switzerland" because of the greenness of its meadows and the height of its peaks.

Cantabria Mountains, valleys and coast combine to offer a multitude of green tourist routes, adventure tourism and wonderful beaches.

Galicia This coastal region is well known for its mild climate and a strong relationship to the sea.

The northern half of the 1 Basque Country is also a part of Green Spain.

Cities

• 1 A Coruña — one of Galicia's most populated and oldest cities, with the world's oldest functioning Roman lighthouse, the Tower of Hercules
• 2 Gijon — the largest city of Asturias has beaches and a railway museum
• 3 Lugo — a UNESCO World Heritage Site enclosed by a remarkably intact 2-km Roman wall
• 4 Muros — a nice old centre, a bustling port and fresh seafood near the Monte e Lagoa de Louro nature reserve.
• 5 Oviedo — the capital of Asturias has a fine old town and cathedral
• 6 Ribadavia — a quaint old town with a dilapidated castle and a beautiful old centre and a 1000-year-old Jewish quarter
• 7 Santander — a seaside resort, university town, and main infrastructure hub and capital of the region
• 8 Santiago de Compostela — a magificent historic city, UNESCO World Heritage site, and the culmination of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage
• 9 Vigo — Galicia's most populated city. It is modern and industrial, whose history is shown in Roman ruins and Romanesque churches

Other destinations

Picos de Europa []. On the border of Asturias and Cantabria. Popular hiking area and area of wildlife.

Understand

It is called "green" because its wet and temperate oceanic climate helps lush pastures and forests thrive, providing a landscape similar to that of Ireland, Great Britain, and the west coast of France.

The average precipitation is about 1,200 mm, higher than in most areas in inland central Europe, and wetter than almost anywhere in Spain, a country generally considered dry. Asturias has an average summer temperature of 20-22 °C, being one of the mildest climates in Europe.

Get in

By plane

This area has almost no international flights, except for a few weekly by low-cost airlines. The vast majority of flights landing at these airports are domestic.

The largest airport is that of Santiago de Compostela, which hosts international flights from the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands. There are also airports in Aviles, A Coruña, and Vigo. There are almost no international flights to these airports. Of all the airports, the most convenient access is via Madrid airport, with each airport in the area operating between 3 and 5 daily flights from Madrid, with a flight duration of 75 minutes on average.

In addition, the region can be reached via the airports of Porto in Portugal (for the western parts), or Bilbao in the Basque Country (for the eastern parts), which are within a reasonable driving distance and have extensive international flight traffic.

By train

The area is served by high-speed trains from Madrid's Chamartin station, taking about 4 hours.

Go next

• South to Portugal
• Southeast to Castile and Leon
• East to the Basque Country