Noia

Noia (Noya in Spanish) is a 14,337 inhabitants town in the mouth of Tambre river located in the inner part of Ría de Muros e Noia, the northeastern one of the Rías Baixas, in Galicia, Spain. Noia was designed conjunto histórico (heritage listing used to protect entire villages and towns or parts of them) in 1985 and its nickname is Little Santiago de Compostela because of the number of chapels and churches, civil buildings and noble houses it has.

How do I arrive to Noia?

  Noia isn't quite well connected to other points of Galicia but it can still be reached easily from the biggest cities in A Coruña province. 

• Bus: there are buses every hour from Santiago de Compostela to Noia (aprox. 1 hour), three daily buses from A Coruña reaching Noia (aprox. 1 hour 50 minutes) and another three reaching Fisterra (aprox. 2 hours). There are also buses to Muros (aprox. 40 minutes) every hour from Santiago de Compostela, three daily from A Coruña (aprox. 2.5 hours) and five to Fisterra (aprox. 1 hour 15 minutes). 
• Car: if you rented a car, it's 35 minutes from Muros, 40 minutes journey from Santiago de Compostela, 1 hour journey from Fisterra and 1 hour 15 minutes from A Coruña.

History

According to a popular leyend in Noia the town was founded when Noah's Ark reached this part of Galicia, naming the settlement after his son Japheth's wife, Noela. The area has been inhabited since before the Roman Empere, being dominated afterwards by the Kingdom of the Suebi and attacked by Bretons. In 1168, to protect the area from the attacks, the king Ferdinand II of León founded Noia. From that moment onwards the settlement grew because of its closeness to Santiago de Compostela and was used as Santiago's port. Antón Varela (also known as Antón de Noya), one of the sailors who travelled with Ferdinand Magellan was born here. During the 16th century the city walways were demolished to increase the size of the town. Noia had 700 guerrilla to fight against the Franch occupation. Noia was also the birth place of Felipe de Castro, a Neoclassic sculptor who worked for the king Ferdinand VII of Spain. Shoes' industry got quite developed in Noia during the Industrial Revolution. The Spanish Civil War caused the emigration of many inhabitants of Noia via Muros to South America and Switzerland and the demolition of some buildings considered republicans.
 

What can I visit in Noia?

Noia has an interesting Old Town that is worth to have a look, observing its façades.

These are Noia' main attractions:

• St. Martiño Church (8:30-12 and 16:30-20:30; free): 15th century church built in Gallician Gothic style has a wonderful façade with a nice rose window and where the influence of Santiago's Pórtico da Gloria is perfectly visible. Inside there's a beautiful representation of Madonna and Child.
• St. María A Nova Church (10:30-13:30 and 16-20 Mon-Fri 10:30-13:30 Sat-Sun from Jun to Sep; 10:30-13:30 and 16-18 Mon-Fri 10:30-13:30 Sat-Sun from Oct to May; free): this 14th century Gothic church is placed in the inner part of a graveyard with some nice pieces. Nowadays it hosts the Tombstone Museum, a fascinating museum with gravestones from the 14th century, some of them with plenty of decoration, and a collection of baptismal fonts.
• Alameda Park: one of the most popular parks in the town for locals to go for a walk. It has many palm trees and some nice cafes.
• St. Francisco Church: 16th century Gothic church which is located in Alameda Park.
• There are great views of the ria going 20 km southwest till reaching Castro de Baroña, ruins of a former Celtic settlement by the sea where enjoying the sunset.

St. Martiño Church

View of Noia's Old Town

View of Muros from its port

Going 30 km west from Noia there's Muros, a 9,437 inhabitants town, located in Ría de Muros e Noia, that was designed conjunto histórico in 1970 and that has historical importance as a harbour in Galicia. The architecture in the town is a mixture of popular and stately architecture and it's worthy to have a walk to discover the town and some of its nicest squares: praza Santa Rosa, praza do Cristo and praza Pescaderia. Some of its most important religious buildings are St. Pedro Church- Colexiata de St. María do Campo (most important church of the town is this 15th century one with eclectic style due to the modifications it has suffered all over its existence); or St. Pedro Church-Old Parish Church (17th century church which substitued a 10th century one). Just 2 km north there's Pozo del Cachón Tide Mill (10-14 and 16-19 Tue-Sat; free), the largest of its kind in Spain. Not far from Muros there's the village of Carnota, whose virgin beach is the largest (7 km) in Galicia, and has one of the biggest hórreos (place designed to keep grain protected from mice) in Galicia

Where can I eat in Noia?

Noia is one of the main producers grewers of seafood in Galicia so trying it here is an excellent choice. Other typical dishes are corn empanada (this area grews also a lot of corn). In Muros there festivals related to these dishes in summer. Some recommendations to eat here are Hotel Elisardo (Rúa Coasta do Ferrador 15), Valadares (Rúa Egas Moniz 3), Ferrador (Rúa Costa do Ferrador 11) or Tasca Típica (Rúa Cantón 15).

Posted in: Europe,Galicia,Spain