43.55° N · 7.09° W
How to book As Catedrais for free and what time to go according to the tide, boats on the Ribadeo estuary, Rinlo and its lobster rice, and where to sleep on the Mariña lucense.
Part of Cantabrian CoastCamino del NorteUnusual places to stay in Spain
What to do
Each plan says how long it takes, who it's for and whether you can book.
Beach · 1–2 hrs around low tide · Free · Authorisation compulsory at Easter and from 1 July to 30 September
Boat · 1 hr 15 · From €30, children €20 · 12-seat motorboat past Illa Pancha and Rinlo · Not dependent on the tide
Boat · 30 min · €7 · Eo estuary between Ribadeo, Figueras and Castropol · All ages · All year, weather permitting
Itineraries
Days and weekends already planned out, with how to get between each stop and who to book with.
Plan the trip
Each choice narrows the next: the season shapes how best to travel, and how you travel decides where you stay and where you eat.
When to go
From June to September, with long days and all the boats and routes running; in July, August and September the beach requires free authorisation and August is the busiest month. In spring and autumn you go down without a permit and with fewer people. In winter, low tide still rules and you can watch the storms from Illa Pancha.
How you travel
Choose how you're travelling and we'll tell you where to stay, how to get around, where to eat and which services you'll need. We only show the ways of travelling that make sense here.
Ribadeo is explored on foot, but As Catedrais, Rinlo and the western beaches are outside the town, and the car is the practical choice. The A-8 passes above with a direct exit to the beach, number 516, and along the N-634 it is about 10 minutes. In summer, Turismo de Ribadeo warns that parking around the beach is difficult: the Bus Praia from Ribadeo station saves you looking for a space and its ticket counts as authorisation.
Who you're with
A trip with a toddler is not the same as one with a teenager. Pick yours to see what works and what to bear in mind.
With children, Ribadeo works by the tide: As Catedrais beach at low tide is an outing in itself, and when the water rises there are short boat trips, a tourist train and a lighthouse.
Where to stay
We show you what suits the way you travel.Change how you travel
© ParadoresHotelWhy we like it: Galician manor house over the Eo estuary, two minutes from the centre, with sea-view rooms, a seafood restaurant and a pass for As Catedrais.
Why we like it: Small hotel in a restored mansion with stone and wood, on a quiet street between Ribadeo marina and the centre; breakfast included.
Why we like it: Cinema-themed hotel since 2004 in A Devesa, in the countryside between Ribadeo and As Catedrais: thirteen rooms decorated with films and a beach pass.
Why we like it: Two apartments for four in the old 1857 lighthouse on Illa Pancha, at the mouth of the Ribadeo estuary, with their own garden, a kitchen and a bar with a terrace.
Services for this trip
Areas, for any way of travelling
| Area | Who it's for | Average night |
|---|---|---|
| Ribadeo centre | Old town, marina and estuary boats | |
| Rinlo | Fishing port, rice dishes and the beaches route | |
| A Devesa | As Catedrais and countryside accommodation | |
| Foz and Barreiros | Surf and kayak school, to the west |
Where to eat
From set lunch menus to Michelin stars. We mark the price level and what to order at each place.
© A Cofradía de RinloWhat to order: the soupy seafood rice with lobster or spiny lobster, for two; if you are hungry, the seafood grill platter
What to order: the soupy rice with lobster, spiny lobster, prawns and clams; or octopus with turnip greens and a portion of razor clams
What to order: the soupy rice with lobster, the goose barnacles or a turbot; at the bar, something to nibble
Map
The places to stay and services on the map are the ones for the way you travel. Turn on the layers you want and tap a point to see its details.
Nearby
The closest places, whichever country they are in.
43.56° N · 6.15° W
By carBy plane
43.00° N · 6.42° W
By car
43.09° N · 6.26° W
By car
43.36° N · 5.85° W
Car-freeBy carBy plane
Tips
Choose the day and time by low tide, and then book.
Your accommodation gives you the pass for As Catedrais.
You go down steps; carry the baby in a sling.
Neither restaurant takes online bookings.
Ribadeo is the Galician town on the Eo estuary, on the border with Asturias, at the eastern end of the Mariña lucense. Ten minutes to the west is As Catedrais beach, or Augas Santas, with its slate arches that can only be walked at low tide. The town has a historic centre with indiano houses (built by returned emigrants), a port from which boats leave along the estuary and towards the beach, and to one side the fishing village of Rinlo. It can be seen in a day; with a night you can pick the best low tide without rushing.
At Easter and from 1 July to 30 September, yes. The authorisation is free and is issued by the Xunta at ascatedrais.xunta.gal, at most 30 days ahead, in each person's name and for a single day; one person requests it for a group of up to 25. If no places are left, there are shortcuts published by Turismo de Ribadeo: the pass given by Ribadeo accommodation, such as the Parador, the Rolle or Mi Norte; the Bus Praia ticket from the bus station, in summer; or the taxi receipt. The rest of the year you go down without a permit. The reservation affects only the sand: the paths above are always free.
At high tide, the sea covers the whole beach for hours. The Xunta recommends going down between two hours before and two hours after low tide, and Turismo de Ribadeo advises arriving an hour early and heading first to the right, because the area of the arches is the last to be uncovered and the first to be covered. On days near the full or new moon, with spring tides, the beach opens up more. The Xunta website gives you the time of low tide when you choose a date; so does the tourist office.
If low tide falls at an impossible time, the boat from Ribadeo port shows you the arches from the sea in an hour and a quarter, for €30, with no permit.
While the tide rises, the town fills half a day. The old town, a Site of Cultural Interest, has the Torre dos Moreno at the top, with its Modernista dome, and runs down Calle de San Roque between indiano houses. The boat trip on the estuary lasts half an hour, costs €7 and passes beneath the Santos bridge as far as Figueras and Castropol, already in Asturias. On foot, the Senda Azul runs from the Illa Pancha lighthouse to the As Aceas mill in 5.7 km.
To the west, Rinlo is a small port with lobster pens among the rocks and the starting point of the beaches route, 6 km along the coast to As Catedrais. To understand the rock, Turismo de Ribadeo organises free geology walks with a geologist. And if you are after waves, the Gamus Surf school gives surf lessons at Foz and Barreiros from €35.
In Rinlo you eat the soupy rice with lobster: A Cofradía has made it since 1992, at €52 for two, and Porto de Rinlo serves it in a traditional house on the square. In town, La Solana, next to the port, serves fish and seafood. For sleeping, the Parador looks over the estuary, the Rolle is a stone mansion in the centre, from €60, and Mi Norte, a film-set hotel in the countryside near the beach, from €78.
From June to September everything is running: boats, tourist train, information point on the beach and Bus Praia. August is the busiest month and has the highest prices. In May, June and October no permit is needed outside Easter and the beach is quieter. In a day you see the beach and the old town and eat in Rinlo; with a night you add the boat and the Senda Azul at sunset.
Questions
Nothing. Entry and the Xunta's guided visits are free.
At Easter and from 1 July to 30 September, at ascatedrais.xunta.gal and up to 30 days ahead.
Sleep in Ribadeo and ask for the pass from your accommodation, or go by Bus Praia or taxi.
From the paths above and from the sea, by boat. The sand is under water.
To the paths, yes, on a lead. They cannot go down to the sand at Easter or from 15 May to 15 September.
One is enough; with a night you pick the best low tide and add the boat and the Senda Azul.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/spain/galicia/ribadeo-and-as-catedrais
