What you can see on the Vigo webcam
A camera above Samil turns through about 180 degrees. On one side it follows the curve of the beach, with its promenade and pines, the houses along the shore and the hills of the Morrazo peninsula across the water. On the other it looks straight down the ría, past rocks and small boats, to the Cíes on the horizon. A 24-hour time-lapse from the same camera follows the live picture.
Vigo beach webcam: Samil and the Cíes Islands
Run by a Vigo website devoted to the ría, this live camera sits above the rocks at Samil and sweeps through about 180 degrees. Turned along the shore, it follows the long curve of Samil beach, with its promenade, a fringe of pines and the houses behind, while the hills of the Morrazo peninsula rise across the ría. Turned out to sea, it looks over rocks and small boats to the Cíes Islands on the horizon.
It is the camera to check before a day on the beach or a boat trip to the islands: you can see whether the sand is busy, whether the water is flat or ruffled and how clear the air is. Sunsets behind the Cíes make the evenings its finest hour.
Treasure in Vigo Bay
The ría has a famous British episode. On 23 October 1702, early in the War of the Spanish Succession, an Anglo-Dutch fleet under Admiral Sir George Rooke forced its way into the inner ría at Rande, where the Spanish treasure fleet from the Americas had taken shelter behind a boom with its French escort. The escort was destroyed or captured and several galleons went down. Stories of silver lying on the seabed have drawn treasure hunters ever since; Jules Verne even sent Captain Nemo to collect gold from the wrecks in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. The Rande suspension bridge now crosses the narrows where the battle was fought.
When to watch Vigo
Samil faces west, so the evening is the time to watch: the sun sets behind the Cíes, after 10pm local time in midsummer and around 6pm in December. On clear days the islands look close enough to touch; sea mist can hide them in summer. Vigo keeps mainland Spanish time, one hour ahead of the UK and Ireland.
Around Vigo
The Cíes Islands, part of the Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park since 2002, have some of Galicia's finest beaches; boats run from the city in season, and you need a free permit from the regional government before booking. In the old town, the oyster sellers of Rúa da Pedra shuck oysters to order beside the fishing quarter of O Berbés. Baiona is about 14 miles (22 km) south along the coast.
Visiting Vigo
Cruise ships berth at a terminal right in the city centre, a short walk from the old town. Vigo's airport is about 6 miles (9 km) from the centre, and Samil is a short bus or taxi ride from the port. The beach shelves gently and is usually calm, but check the flag before swimming.
