Parador de Pontevedra

Parador de Pontevedra occupies a sixteenth-century pazo — the Galician term for an aristocratic manor house — on the Calle Barón at the heart of Pontevedra's remarkably well-preserved medieval old town. The building, known as the Pazo de Maceda, is one of the most complete examples of Galician Renaissance architecture still in active use: its dressed-stone facade, arcaded interior courtyard, and carved heraldic shields have remained largely intact since the sixteenth century, and the building is classified as a National Monument.

The old town of Pontevedra is consistently cited as one of the most liveable historic centres in Spain: almost entirely pedestrianised, threaded with granite-paved squares and lanes, and home to a dense network of tapas bars, Galician wine bars, restaurants, and Romanesque and Baroque churches. The Parador sits within a few minutes' walk of the city's main churches (Santa María la Mayor, San Francisco, the Basílica de la Peregrina), the excellent Pontevedra Provincial Museum, and the central market.

Rooms are distributed across the historic building's upper floors and a sympathetic modern wing added without disrupting the original architecture. Classic and Superior rooms are fitted with period furnishings and exposed stone detailing; Junior Suites offer more floor area, some with views over the inner arcaded courtyard. The restaurant serves Pontevedra's regional Galician cuisine — pimientos de Padrón, empanada gallega, fresh fish and shellfish from the Rías, and Albariño wines from nearby O Salnés — in the manor's principal dining room. The interior garden courtyard serves drinks in summer. The hotel is an excellent base for travellers who want character-rich accommodation with immediate access to one of Galicia's finest, and least-overrun, historic towns.