Hidden Santiago Tour (small group)

This tour of Santiago for small groups will allow you to discover, together with your group, the beauty of the old town surrounding the Cathedral. Beyond the most famous places and corners, we will share legends, anecdotes and curiosities about other places that are not so famous but just as interesting.

We find ourselves at the Fuente de los Caballos, the first point of interest on our tour. This baroque fountain, dating from the 19th century, is one of the most iconic spots in the Plaza de las Platerías. We will tell you some curiosities about this fountain.

We meet at the Fuente de los Caballos, from where we will go to see the huge scallop shell that ‘holds up the cathedral’. We bet you’ve never seen it before! It is undoubtedly the largest scallop shell in Santiago. This unique architectural element was sculpted to support the union of two parts of the cathedral. It represents the emblem of the pilgrim, which is related to the road and faith.

Then we will go to the Tree of Sciences, a small sculpture representing a tree with the names of the different careers. Here, students who did not know which career to choose would close their eyes, turn around and randomly point to one of the options. I’m sure you’ll want to try it too!

We will stop to admire the impressive Plaza del Obradoiro. Wherever you look, you will find an emblematic monument or building. We will observe the most striking details of the cathedral’s façade, its towers and also the building that houses the Hostal de los Reyes Católicos, full of history. And what is that thing we see carved in stone and repeated all over the old town? What does it mean? We will reveal it here!

To leave the Plaza del Obradoiro, we will go through the Arco de Xelmírez, also called Arco de la Música, because there is always a bagpiper playing the bagpipes during the visit. The powerful and melodic sound of the bagpipes adds to the attraction of the experience. We cross the Plaza de la Azabachería, full of craft shops where this material is carved. In this square is one of the oldest churches in Santiago, the 9th century Church of Corticela. We will visit it to comment on the thousand interesting details that it houses.

Our tour continues through the old Jewish quarter, and takes us to the Plaza de Cervantes. We have some stories to tell related to both scenarios. And they are almost certainly stories that no one in your group has heard before…

Do you know which is the oldest pub in Santiago? You’ll find out on this tour, it’s the next stop. As a curiosity: it used to be the house of a very famous doctor, who was the one who introduced X-ray technology in Galicia. An interesting story. Almost as interesting as the church where Rosalía de Castro’s mother died praying. Yes, yes, we will tell you about that too.

Finally, we will pass through the Alameda, a magnificent urban park, the most outstanding in the city. There we will see the statue of Las dos Marías and also the Tree of Lovers. We don’t want to give away any of the stories of these points of interest, but we will give you a little spoiler: you will enjoy the best view of the historic area of Santiago. Your photos will be the best!

What did you think of this tour of Santiago, and were you surprised?

If you have liked it, try booking another tour with us!