Poio: Monastery, Coast and Galician Culture

Culture and History

In Poio, San Xoán de Poio Monastery was declared a historic-artistic monument in 1971. The monastery includes a 123-metre-long granary, which is one of the largest examples of its kind in Galicia. In the A Caeira Archaeological Area, eight granite rocks bear engravings from the Bronze Age; they are estimated to be around 4,000 years old.

Combarro, Tarrio and Chancelas.

The Galician fishing village of Combarro is one of the places with the best-preserved traditional architecture and was declared a historic-artistic site in 1972. Seven stone crosses, known as cruceiros, stand there; they were erected between the 18th and 20th centuries. Around 60 hórreos have been preserved in Combarro, half of them along the coast.

Museums

The Casa Museo de Colón displays a scale replica of the nautical chart drawn by Juan de La Cosa in 1500. It measures 93 × 183 centimetres. The Casa Museo de Colón also presents the various hypotheses concerning Columbus's Galician origins. The exhibition uses a specific map object and places the different origin hypotheses alongside it.

Landscape and Nature

The viewpoint on Monte Castrove is located 613 metres above sea level. From there, there are views of Pontevedra, Marín and Tambo Island. The panorama also includes the entire northern coast of the Ría de Pontevedra and Ons Island.

The Bosque de Colón comprises a plantation of 500 California coast redwoods, scientifically known as Sequoia sempervirens, established in 1992. Tambo is a suitable natural site for observing seabirds. These include cormorants, grey herons and kingfishers.

Visits and Routes

Visits to Tambo take place in limited groups with a guide. Access is only possible via the landing stage. An access permit and a ticket are required for the organised boat trip from the port of Combarro. For your own planning, you can directly allow for a timeframe of around 2.5 to 3 hours and an approximate distance of 2 kilometres when visiting Tambo. The limited group size, the guided tour and access via the landing stage form the organisational framework for visiting the island. The permit and ticket are part of the organised boat trip from Combarro. The approximate duration of 2.5 to 3 hours and the distance of around 2 kilometres make the scope of this visit concrete.

As reminders of the past, Tambo is home to the ruins of a lazaretto and the church of San Miguel with its spring.

The PO-308 coastal road begins in Ponte da Barca (Pontevedra). From there, it leads through Poio towards Sanxenxo, O Grove and A Toxa. The “Entre ríos y molinos” circular route passes nine mills; seven of them have been restored. The PO-308 therefore forms a coastal connection through Poio and onwards towards several towns, while the circular route names nine mills as specific stops. Seven of these structures have been restored.

To the main travel overview: Pontevedra.

More Destinations

More places within the same destination:

Costoia, O Morrazo, Covelo, Bamio, Goián.