Santiago on a Sunday

Sunday in Santiago runs to a different rhythm from the rest of the week, and not only because the market shuts. It is the day the city keeps for the people who live in it: fewer tour groups, more midday vermouth, more walking in the Alameda without checking the time. If you arrive on a Sunday there is no shortage of things to see, but it is worth knowing in advance which doors you will find closed.

What closes

The Mercado de Abastosis closed on Sundays — it opens Monday to Saturday, 8:00 to 14:00 — so if your plan involved buying fresh shellfish or eating in the gastronave, it will have to wait for another day. The traditional shops of the old town tend to close too, although Galicia’s trading-hours rules allow a handful of Sunday openings a year that vary with the calendar, and the souvenir shops and bakeries in the centre usually stay open whatever happens.

Put another way: if the market and the shops are shut and you have already walked the old town, Sunday is a good day not to be in the city. Padrón is 15 minutes away by train, A Coruña 30 to 40, and Finisterre about two hours by bus, and all three work as a return trip in a day: the day trips from Santiago have the times and prices. Do check the timetables on monbus.es or renfe.com before setting off, though, because the Sunday service is not the Tuesday one.

What stays open

The Cathedral opens every day from 7:00 to 21:00, Sunday included, with its four masses at the usual times — 7:30, 9:30, 12:00 and 19:30 — but since 16 October 2026, because of the 2026 restoration work in the main chapel, three of them — 9:30, 12:00 and 19:30 — are held in the church of San Agustín and only the 7:30 stays in the Cathedral, in the Chapel of the Communion. The Cathedral Museum opens 10:00 to 20:00 like any other day. The CGAC, the contemporary art centre, is free and opens 11:00 to 20:00. The Museo das Peregrinacións keeps shorter Sunday hours, 10:15 to 14:45. And the Cidade da Cultura, up on Monte Gaiás, keeps its free exhibitions open. Which ones exactly are on this week, with the room and the closing date, is in the exhibitions open right now, which updates itself.

How a Sunday is spent in Santiago

The classic plan is a simple one: mass or a walk in the morning, a midday vermouth on a terrace in the centre, a long lunch with family or friends, and an afternoon in the Alameda if the weather allows. Nothing about that needs booking; it is enough to walk through the old town and let the mood carry you, which on Sundays is quieter and more local than midweek.