Every time someone asks me my favorite city in Spain, I always give the same answer: La Coruña. I wouldn’t have given this answer before moving to Madrid. I guess I’d never really thought about it. I’ve been all around Spain, I’ve seen the northeastern coast, Cataluña and several cities in the south. Hell, I fell in love with Granada in 2016.
The thing is, there isn’t one standout thing about La Coruña, not really. It’s not a huge tourist hub and most of the Spaniards I’ve met haven’t even been. But there’s just something about it.
You might say the reason I love La Coruña is because I have family there. Sure, maybe. Maybe there is some nostalgia to it all. Then again, I have tons of family and way more memories in Miami and I don’t feel that way about Miami at all! There’s so many things about La Coruña that make me love it and that I want to share with you.
I will preface this by saying I’ve never really taken a ‘touristy’ trip to La Coruña; since I have family there, it’s more like me going and visiting and experiencing the city with them. This is obviously a huge advantage: it basically means I get a curated version of the city. They take me to their favorite restaurants, show me their favorite places and basically ensure I enjoy the actual city. I even went twice in 2018! So instead of a travel journal like my other travel blog posts, this is truly a recommendations post, because I feel confident in my abilities to recommend places. After several trips out, Coruña has a piece of my heart and I’m going to share some of her treasures with you 🙂
Things to do in Coruña:
Paseo Maritimo
In English: the maritime path. Basically the walking path that runs along the water. Because a portion of La Coruña is kind of a peninsula, this is pretty long! Plus it’s the perfect way to get a nice walk in, enjoy the breeze, beaches and different scenery. It’s easily my favorite way to see the city, so much so that I’m working on another post about it!
Torre de Hercules
Torre de Hercules is probably my favorite place in La Coruña, because it’s so picturesque. On my first solo trip, I spent hours walking around the lighthouse, soaking in the sun, having a picnic and reading. The lighthouse is cool but the view from above and the view of it from afar, with waves crashing against the shore, is basically out of a movie. Being another fave, I’m writing up a post on it for you!
Tapas
If you know anything about Spanish culture, you’ve probably heard of tapas. In the states we know of them as small plates served kind of family style. True. What is more difficult to convey is tapas culture. Going for tapas is like going for drinks but with food included, but not at lunch or dinner time. It’s a separate meal. You can treat it like pre-dinner appetizers or you can pretty much extend tapas and make it dinner! The great thing about tapas in La Coruña is that all the best tapas bars are located in the same area, so it’s easy to hop from one to the next! I recommend starting at Plaza Maria Pita and working your way west, Priorato (for porrones de vino, wine poured directly into your mouth) or at one of the pulpeira’s famous for their Galician octopus. *Note: you have to try this, it’s so good!!!* I also recommend O’Sampaio for their huevos rotos, La Bombilla for their tortilla and croquettas and Vitak for a general yummy selection.
Delicious tapas in La Coruña! 
Huevos rotos on a Galician classic, zorza. 
Traditional tapas/dinner spread: cheese, ham, garbanzo soup, bread and wine!
Relax on the beach
No matter the weather, Playa Riazor, Playa de Orzan and Playa de Matadero are always ready and welcoming. Summer brings everyone out so they may get a bit crowded, but even on a cloudy day, the beaches are calm and relaxing. I’ve been to La Coruña in every season and I’ve never seen the beaches without at least a few people! Whether it’s someone on their lunch break from work, tourists tanning or the elderly group of men who plays soccer on Sundays, Coruña’s beaches have something for everyone.
Playa Orzan looking to Playa Matadero. 
Playa Orzan looking to Playa Riazor
Culture
I didn’t even realize this until my third trip there, but La Coruña has it’s fair share of cultural attractions. The Aquarium Finisterrae is interesting and is situated on the water, allowing for seals to come in and out. Really cool, especially if you’re traveling with kids. A recent favorite of mine is Castillo de San Anton, which was a fortress protecting the bay (similar to St. Augustine!) turned into an Archaeological Museum. Not only is its history really cool, the views from above are stunning.
Seals swimming in from the ocean at Aquarium Finisterrae! 
Aquarium Finisterrae from the paseo
Domus, House of Man is actually the world’s first interactive museum dedicated to the human species. Plus, it’s stunning architecturally! There’s also la Casa de Ciencias, an interactive museum where you can watch chicks hatch live! I’ve never been while it’s happening, but it should be pretty cool to see. For fine arts fans, the Museo de Belas Artes is the obvious choice. Since it’s bound to be a rainy day at least once on your trip to La Coruña, this is a good list to have in your back pocket!
Castillo San Anton entrance. 
Keeping guard, obviously! 
The roof of the Castillo. 
See that tanker coming in?
Old World Charm & Port City Vibes
You know the charm you expect from an old Spanish city? Well La Coruña has it. From the Plaza de Maria Pita to churches and the old walled city near Castillo de San Anton, it’s old world Spain. You may even have to get on the very clean floor to snap a pic!
The town hall building at Plaza Maria Pita. 
All the port city vibes with the fog rolling in.
The cool twist? La Coruña also feels very much like a port city, with a marina full of sailboats and a wall of storefronts and apartments called Las Galerias de Cristal. When the sun shines just right, it looks like a wall of shiny crystal welcoming people in.
The marina from the other side. 
The marina with its docked sailboats and people enjoying the sun! 
The port has several different sections. 
Las Galerias at night!
Oh the things we do for the shot. 
The shot.
I’m not going to lie, there is so much I haven’t included that I may do a part two at some point…especially since I know there are many trips to come!
Pin these for later:
I’ve never been there but it looks really good!
You should definitely make it at some point!