La Coruna (Spain Galicia)

La Coruna (aka Corunna) is an Atlantic port city in Galicia (northwestern Spain), with population around 250,000 (metro 420,000), ranking it Galicia's second-largest and Spain's 17th-largest. A cruise port, La Coruna serves Santiago de Compostela (Galicia's capital) located approx 56 km (35 mi) to the south.

Port La Coruna (locode ESLCG) is located at the entrance of a large gulf and as a major cargo port serves the distribution of agricultural goods from Galicia. The seaport is the main engine for Galicia's economy and the province's richest region.

The city is famous for its lighthouse (Roman Tower of Hercules, UNESCO site) which is in continuous operation since 2nd century AD. The lighthouse is surrounded by an enormous public park with a golf course. The city is also famous for its glazed window balconies (galerías), Old Town (Ciudad Vieja), Calle Orzan district (where are most clubs and bars), Los Jardines (park located close to Rua Real and Los Cantones shopping mall).

As cruise port, La Coruna was inaugurated in 2009. In 2017, the Port recorded a total of 121 ship calls and 184,069 passengers (45% increase over 2016). The year also had 22x two-ship days. The busiest months (high season) are May and September.

During the COVID crisis (2021's last months) the cruise port handled 31 ship calls and 30,000+ passengers.

2022 became the cruise port's record year, with 136 cruise calls (out of 140 booked ship berthings) and a total of 222,723 tourists. The schedule included 20x two-ship days and 3x three-ship days. 2022's bussiests months were October (24 ship calls), September (21), April (19) and May (18). Maiden visits were made by the ships Disney Magic (DCL), Valiant Lady (Virgin Voyages), Carnival Celebration (CCL), Iona (P&O UK). The economic impact on the city was ~EUR 20 million.

For 2023, the Port had booked 140+ ship berthings, including 24x multiple-ship days (5x 3-ship) and maiden visits by P&O Arvia, Viking Saturn, Oceania Vista.

Santiago de Compostela

Santiago de Compostela[a] is the capital city of Galicia (autonomous province in Spain) with population around 100,000. The town was first mentioned in the 9th century and in 1985, the Old Town (featuring numerous historic buildings and narrow streets) was designated a UNESCO site.

The city's economy is based mainly on public administration (here is headquartered Galicia's government), tourism and higher education (USC university). Other large employers are FINSA (machined solid timber), UROVESA (heavy vehicle manufacturer), Blusens (electronics manufacturer), Televés (telecommunications equipment), Banco Gallego (Novacaixagalicia-owned Spanish bank).

Among tourists, the city is mainly popular for its nightlife, architecture and the cult of St James. The Way of St James (particularly in Holy Years - when July 25th falls on Sunday) attarcts between 200-300,000 pilgrims each year.

Besides Port La Coruna, Santiago de Compostela is served by a railway (high-speed trains) and an international airport (linking to the Canary Islands, Barcelona, Malaga, Bilbao, Alicante, Madrid, Palma de Mallorca, Milan, Geneva, Frankfurt, Munich, Amsterdam, Paris, Rome, London).

La Coruna cruise terminal