Galicia is the community of a thousand green abandonments — a land where humidity, moss, and laurel forest vegetation devour buildings at a speed that turns every ruin into a living sculpture. The sanatorium that never operated and that the forest has been reclaiming for decades, the stone villages emptied by 20th-century American emigration, and the medieval Tower House covered in moss in the Aldán forest. Discover the 5 best abandoned places in Galicia, selected from our Urbex Spain Map — 600+ GPS locations across Spain.
Why Galicia Is an Exceptional Urbex Destination
Galicia has the highest density of abandoned villages in Spain — the massive exodus to America in the 19th and 20th centuries literally emptied hundreds of rural settlements that today live among moss and memory. Added to this are the sanatoriums left unfinished by the tuberculosis epidemic, medieval towers covered in vegetation in the Atlantic forest, and the mining industrial heritage of the interior valleys. Galician fog and the soft Atlantic light make Galician urbex the most photogenically powerful in Spain.
1. Cesuras Sanatorium – Oza-Cesuras, A Coruña — Tuberculosis Hospital Started in 1927, Never Finished, Covered in Moss and Vines in the Atlantic Forest (Known Place)
The Cesuras Sanatorium in Oza-Cesuras is the most iconic and most photographed abandonment in Galicia — a tuberculosis hospital started in 1927 that was never completed due to lack of funds and that the Atlantic forest has been reclaiming for decades with moss, vines, and the constant humidity of the Galician climate. The vegetation-covered facade, the deteriorated hallways, and the location in the forest create a unique ghostly atmosphere in Spain. Extensively documented by Abandoned Spain as a reference for Galician urbex. Note: since 2023, restoration work is underway to give it a tourist use — visit the exterior to appreciate the architecture before the rehabilitation process permanently changes its appearance.
🔗 Source: Abandoned Spain – Cesuras Sanatorium Galicia
2. Village of A Barca – Cortegada, Ourense — 12 Stone Houses Invaded by Moss, Former Crossing of the Royal Road over the Miño, Ruins Covered in Undergrowth (Known Place)
The ruins of the Village of A Barca in Cortegada, Ourense, are overwhelming — 12 houses and 15,000 square meters of ruins where moss and undergrowth have devoured almost everything that was once an important communication center of the Royal Road leading to Castilla. Boats crossed the Miño River here transporting goods and people before modern roads relegated the place to oblivion. The current appearance is striking: paths eaten by undergrowth, stone remains devoured by moss and moisture, and the silence of the Miño in the background. An abandonment of a Galician village in its most extreme version. Documented by El Español as one of the most surprising places in Galicia.
🔗 Also read: Top 5 Must-See Abandoned Places in Spain →
3. Aldán Tower House – O Morrazo, Pontevedra — Medieval Castle Covered in Moss in the Enchanted Forest of Frendoal, Battlemented Towers, Fairy Tale Atmosphere (Known Place)
The Enchanted Forest of Aldán in the Pontevedra region of O Morrazo hides the Aldán Tower House — a medieval castle partially covered in moss and undergrowth with two battlemented towers that emerges from the Atlantic forest as if taken straight from a medieval tale. One of those magical corners abundant in Galicia that turn a simple walk into an extraordinary experience. The dense Atlantic forest surrounding the tower, the vegetation climbing the stone, and the light filtered through the forest canopy create the most distinctly Galician urbex atmosphere in the entire community. Documented by El Español as the most extraordinary "enchanted forest" in Galicia.
🔗 Source: El Español – Abandoned Places in Galicia with History
4. Abandoned Tungsten Mining Village – Inland Galicia — Created in the 1950s, Closed in the 1980s, Empty Houses and Disused Mining Facilities (Exclusively on Our Map)
An old mining village created in the 1950s to house workers of a tungsten mine in inland Galicia — after the mine closed in the 1980s, the village was abandoned and today its empty houses and disused mining facilities make it a must-stop for any urban explorer. Galician tungsten was strategically crucial during World War II — both the Allies and the Axis bought Galician tungsten to manufacture hardened steel for projectiles and cutting tools. The tungsten mining villages of Galicia are the most unexpected and historically dense industrial heritage of the community. GPS coordinates available on our Urbex Spain Map.
5. Abandoned Pazo – Rías Baixas, Pontevedra — 17th-18th Century Galician Manor House, Chapel, Hórreo, Garden with Century-Old Camellias (Off the Radar — Only on Our Map)
A 17th-18th century pazo in the Rías Baixas — the Galician manor house with its side chapel, granite hórreo in the courtyard, and garden with century-old camellias completely overrun by Atlantic vegetation. The Galician pazo is the most regionally specific architectural typology of Galicia — a combination of manor residence, agricultural estate, and chapel that for centuries was the center of rural Galician social life. The abandoned pazos of the Rías Baixas are the most photogenically powerful domestic heritage of the entire community. Find it on our map — with access rating and condition report.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most famous abandoned place in Galicia?
The Cesuras Sanatorium in Oza-Cesuras — the anti-tuberculosis hospital started in 1927 that was never finished and that the Atlantic forest has been devouring for decades with moss and vines. Documented by Abandoned Spain and referenced in dozens of articles, it is the most well-known Galician urbex site outside the community. Urgent visit: it has been under restoration since 2023.
Why are there so many abandoned villages in Galicia?
The massive Galician emigration to America — mainly to Cuba, Argentina, and Venezuela — between 1850 and 1960 literally emptied hundreds of inland villages in Galicia. Unlike the rural exodus in Castile, Galician emigration was transoceanic: people didn’t move to the next village, they went to Havana or Buenos Aires. When later generations wanted to return, there was no work or infrastructure to justify coming back, and the villages were left with their stone houses and granaries waiting for someone who never returned.
What is a Galician pazo?
A pazo is a Galician manor house — an architectural type combining noble residence, agricultural estate, chapel, and auxiliary buildings in a granite stone complex characteristic of Galicia. The best-known pazos are those restored as hotels or museums; but those unused and unmaintained for decades, with uncontrolled camellias and Atlantic vegetation reclaiming the granite walls, are the most specifically Galician domestic heritage and the most photogenically extraordinary in the region.
Safety Tips
- Sanatorio de Cesuras: the interior is in ruins with risk of collapse on the upper floors — limit your visit to the exterior and the ground floor of clearly stabilized areas
- Rain and mud: Galician weather can turn any dirt track into an impassable mud pit — wear waterproof shoes with thick soles for any off-road exploration
- Never explore alone — always bring at least one other person and share your location
The urbex code: "Take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints."
🎯 Summary
Discover the abandoned places in Galicia: from the moss-covered Sanatorio de Cesuras in the Atlantic forest to the 12 houses swallowed by weeds in the Village of A Barca and the medieval Tower House in the Aldán Forest. Each of these 5 abandoned sites in Galicia captures a different layer of the community that emigrated to America, left their villages to the moss, and preserved their history in granite.
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