Green Spain

Green Spain (Spanish: España Verde) is the region in northern Spain bordering the Atlantic and Bay of Biscay. It's cool, wet, green and culturally distinct from the rest of Spain. It's well-developed for tourism and has major attractions yet few foreign visitors discover it.

The Basque Country further east has similar terrain and climate, but it's culturally different and not described here.

• Santiago de Compostela is a magnificent historic city, UNESCO World Heritage site, and the culmination of El Camino pilgrimage routes.
• Vigo is an industrial fishing port, with an unspoilt Old Town perched above it.
• Ourense similarly has an old quarter amidst modern industry, and geothermal hot springs.
• A Coruña is one of Spain's oldest cities, and the Roman lighthouse still functions.
• Lugo within its Roman walls is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Gijón has beaches and a railway museum.
• Oviedo has a fine old town and cathedral.
• Santander is a bustling modern city, home of Bank of Santander, and has a long beach.

A series of parks and nature reserves line the mountains, for hiking and wildlife. The highest terrain is Picos de Europa in the south of Asturias.

The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain.

- pronunciation lesson in My Fair Lady, Lerner & Loewe 1956

- An utter fib, and inversion of reality as complete as Eliza Dolittle's transformation from a Cockney who'd say "The royine in Spoyine . . . " Mountains line the north coast of Spain, trapping the clouds and rain blowing in off the Atlantic. This means a cool lush climate with forests, hill pastures and dairy farming. Any rain that gets across the mountains falls into the catchment of the River Ebro and is carried off east towards Tarragona. Further south is the arid dusty central plateau, a more typically Spanish vista of sun-soaked fields, whitewashed villages and windmills that Don Quixote mistook for giants.

The mountains also created a cultural isolation from the rest of the Iberian peninsula, so much so that two western regions - Lisbon and Porto - became the separate nation of Portugal, and Galicia in the northwest corner speaks a language derived from Portuguese not Spanish. The Romans and Moors only ever had loose control, and Covadonga in Asturias is celebrated as the battle where the rollback of the Moors began. So those civilisations left fewer remains, leaving others more visible, such as the Visigoth churches of Asturias, over 1000 years old. And the caves of Cantabria have artwork from before the Ice Ages, depicting lions and giraffes.

The region industrialised from the 18th century, especially towards the east which had iron and coal deposits for steel-making. That collapsed in the late 20th century but the fishing fleets, canneries and dairy industry are still in business. Tourism was slow to develop and is mostly domestic, though the Camino pilgrimage routes converging on Santiago draw an international crowd. All parts of Green Spain are well-developed for visitors, who'll discover delightful aspects of Spain that they never suspected.

Airports in Galicia are Santiago de Compostela (SCQ ^IATA), A Coruña (LCG ^IATA) and Vigo (VGO ^IATA). Asturias airport (OVD ^IATA) is near Avilés west of Oviedo, and Santander (SDR ^IATA) serves Cantabria. They all have flights daily from Madrid and Barcelona: for Galicia the distance makes it worth flying internally, for Asturias and Cantabria it might be equally convenient to disembark in Madrid and continue overland.

Santiago has the best selection of international flights, because of the pilgrim traffic, while the others have a few seasonal budget flights from abroad.

You might also consider Porto further southwest or Bilbao further east as part of a motoring tour.

High-speed RENFE trains fan out from Madrid Chamartin, taking about 3 hours to Santiago, 4 hours to Oviedo and Gijón, and 5 hours to Santander.

From Madrid take A-6 (toll) north to Valladolid, where highways divide for Santander, Oviedo and Santiago.

A-8 is the motorway along the coast.

Alsa is the principal bus line. Buses start from Madrid Estación Sur and less frequently from Madrid Airport Terminal 4. They take 5 hr 30 min to Santander, 6 hours to Oviedo and 9 hours to Santiago.

Buses and commuter trains connect the towns, but some sights are at a distance from a public transport route. The gradients are challenging for cyclists, a car gets you out of the rain.

• Cathedrals and churches: many fine examples, Santiago is the standout. Many Baroque, Gothic and Romanesque churches everywhere, but Asturias uniquely has Visigoth churches over 1000 years old.
• End of the world: that's the literal meaning of Fisterra on the northwest tip of Spain.
• Hórreos are the signature feature of the countryside of Galicia: they're grain stores on stone stilts to keep out rats.
• Industrial heritage reflects the 18th to 20th century coal and iron-mining era. It's most evident in Asturias, where you can tour down the mine shafts. Those industries collapsed and left shabby brownfield sites: Centro Niemeyer in Avilés is a good example of remediation.
• Stone Age people did not leave megaliths in this region, but their artwork has survived by being sealed away in caves. The earliest is the work of Cro-Magnons from 33,000 years ago, depicting lions and giraffes before the coming of the Ice Age.

• Beaches are exposed to the Atlantic, with water distinctly cooler than the Med. So many places are good for wind-surfing and similar, while you need to pick a sheltered spot for kiddy-bathing.
• El Camino is the collective name for the pilgrimage trails converging on Santiago. The principal route is from St Jean Pied-de-Port in the French Basque country, 780 km, but any journey on foot of 100+ km gets you accredited as a pilgrim.
• Football: there are pro soccer teams in Vigo, Santiago, A Coruña, Ferrol, Oviedo, Gijón and Santander.
• Fiestas are traditional church festivals, with a swaying Madonna paraded through the village, but some have morphed into modern rock festivals.

It's hearty trad fare, lots of meat and fish though vegan and GF diets are nowadays well-catered for.

Tap water is clean and safe to drink. It's from upland sources so it's not desalinated or heavily chlorinated.

Several wine-growing areas have geographically-protected status, especially in Galicia.

Cider is the main drink, and a sidereria is a restaurant specialising in food and cider pairings.

There are budget hostels all along the Camino pilgrimage trails.

Comfy business-style hotels in all the larger towns.

Safeguard valuables, beware traffic and steer clear of low-life, same as anywhere else.

• East is the Basque Country, with similar terrain and industrial heritage, but culturally distinct.
• South is Castile and León, with a series of walled cities and great cathedrals.
• Southwest lies Northern Portugal and the Douro valley, where unmissable centres include Porto and Bragança.