What to Do in Santiago When It Rains: Arcades, Food Market and Museums

Published on 5 April 2026 by Susana

Santiago averages 140 rainy days a year. Nearly four months. And it's not an anomaly: it's just what this city is, as inseparable from the granite as the Portico of Glory itself.

Think of London and you'll picture a gentleman in a bowler hat with a rolled-up umbrella. Well, Santiago is much the same, only the bowler hats are pilgrim shells and the umbrella is a system of covered arcades built over centuries. This isn't a city that fights the rain. It embraces it.

From October 2025 to March 2026, a few days before writing this — not that I've counted, but you could probably count the days we've seen the sun on one hand — it hasn't stopped raining. That fine, constant drizzle that hardly seems to wet anything, which we call orballeira or orballo in Galician. It's nothing dramatic. It's just there, present, like background noise to this city.

But there's no need to panic. Santiago is built for rain. Its centuries-old arcades, its museums, its shopping centres with cinemas and its food market with on-site cooking counters make a grey day, paradoxically, one of the best opportunities to discover the city at a relaxed pace.

For a Galician, living under rain is just normal. You'll see plenty of people who don't even bother opening an umbrella. If a downpour catches them mid-stride, they just keep going, unfazed, as if nothing's happening. I've met several Spaniards from the south who moved here and always say they love Galicia and its people, but they just can't get used to the rainy days. And within a few years, or even months, they're back in their homeland, where sunny days are the norm.

If you're not from the north and you happen to visit Santiago on one of those grey days, this guide is for you. So you can see that rain isn't a problem, just a logistical detail. In fact, a rainy afternoon fits perfectly as an attraction in itself, something almost desirable for understanding the architecture of this city, its centuries-old arcades and even the character of its people.

I've ordered these by my personal preferences, as if I were visiting an unfamiliar city myself and wanted to make the most of a bad-weather day. Santiago has its quirks, but it works. Putting myself in the shoes of a pilgrim or a tourist, these would be my preferences in order.

🏛️ Arcades: The Anti-Rain Architecture of the Old Town

Here's something most tourists have no idea about: Santiago has a system of arcades — covered walkways — designed over the centuries so you never need an umbrella in the old town. It's not a coincidence. It's Atlantic survival architecture.

🚶 Rúa do Vilar and Rúa Nova: The Queens of the Arcades

These two parallel streets in the old town have the highest concentration of arcades anywhere in Compostela. You can practically walk them end to end without getting a single drop on you.

Beneath these arcades you'll find bookshops where you can sit and read while watching the rain fall, plenty of cafés, souvenir shops, Galician craft shops and tapas bars you can step straight into without ever needing to open your umbrella.

🍷 Rúa do Franco: Tapas Under Cover

Santiago's quintessential tapas street also has partial arcades that let you go from bar to bar with protection. It's not as continuous as Rúa do Vilar, but its occasional arches are enough to duck in and out of the tapas bars with barely any exposure to the rain.

Rúa do Franco is the epicentre of Santiago's tapas scene: octopus á feira, Padrón peppers, tortilla, empanada, Ribeiro wines and Albariño. All of it while the rain falls outside and you're inside, with a small draft beer in your hand and freshly made tapas in front of you.

My tip: From Praza do Obradoiro → Rúa do Franco (partially arcaded) → connects to Rúa do Vilar (almost entirely covered by arcades) → Rúa Nova (parallel, also arcaded). You can do this whole route without opening an umbrella. And if it's pouring, you simply duck into any of the dozens of bars and cafés along these streets.

🦐 Abastos Market: Food Market with On-Site Cooking

Santiago's Abastos Market is a gem under a roof — literally. Built in stone in 1941, it's fully covered and becomes one of the best plans for a rainy day, especially if you enjoy Galician food.

Inside you'll find on-site cooking counters where you can buy fresh produce — goose barnacles, razor clams, scallops, octopus — at the market stalls and have them cooked for you on the spot for a small supplement. Pair it with an Albariño and you've got a food experience no restaurant can replicate.

Opening hours: Monday to Saturday, 8:00-14:30 (some afternoons vary). Entry: free.

🎨 Museums: Culture Under Cover

If there's one thing Santiago does well, it's museums. The city has nine museum spaces, and several of them with free entry. A rainy day is the perfect excuse to visit them, though honestly I'd recommend you don't go just because of the rain. It's worth going in calmly to understand why this city is the way it is: the granite, the pilgrimages, Galician art, the history surrounding every corner. Having that full cultural introspection is, in my view, almost an obligatory visit.

On our blog we have a complete guide to the most iconic museums of Santiago where I go through opening hours, prices and tips. That guide wasn't written specifically for rainy days, but it fits perfectly here because, let's be honest, it's the ideal plan when the sky turns grey. If you enjoy culture or simply want to see something different from the Cathedral on a given day, have a look at that article.

In quick summary, the ones most worth your time are:

• Museo das Peregrinacións — Interactive and the only museum in Spain dedicated to the Camino. Even if you don't go in, at least pass by the window: you can see the Cathedral from inside the museum.
• CGAC — Centro Galego de Arte Contemporánea. Designed by Álvaro Siza, top-level temporary exhibitions, and windows from which you can watch the rain falling over the stone garden.
• Museo do Pobo Galego — 13th-century convent with a triple spiral staircase that's a work of art in itself.
• Cathedral Museum — Portico of Glory, cloister, excavations. The entry also includes San Martiño Pinario.

My tip: Museo das Peregrinacións → walk under the arcades of Rúa do Vilar → CGAC → and if it's Sunday, Museo do Pobo Galego. A full morning without stepping in a single raindrop and a solid dose of culture.

🛍️ Shopping Centres: Modern Refuges with Cinemas and Leisure

Santiago has three large shopping centres that are the perfect refuge for heavy rain afternoons. And they're not just shops: they have cinemas, restaurants and everything you need to spend a full day indoors.

🎬 As Cancelas: Modern Shopping Centre for the Whole Family

As Cancelas is the most complete shopping centre in Santiago for a rainy day. Located on Avenida do Camiño Francés, it has a Cinesa multiplex cinema with 8 screens, one of them with iSense and Dolby Atmos technology. And we're not talking about just watching a film on a bigger screen — it's a full sensory experience. You feel like you're inside the film. The perfect plan: shopping, cinema and a snack, all under the same roof.

Among the shops you'll find Carrefour (hypermarket), Primark (a massive store that's one of the centre's main draws in its own right), and a good handful of casual everyday clothing brands like Mango, Bershka, Pull&Bear and JD Sports. Over 80 shops in total.

For eating you've got 100 Montaditos, Burger King, Brasa y Leña and several cafés. And if you're travelling with kids, there's a play area, children's library, nursing room and baby changing facilities. Parking is free.

Official website of As Cancelas →

👗 El Corte Inglés / Centro Comercial Compostela: Premium Fashion and Club del Gourmet

The El Corte Inglés Shopping Centre in Santiago (also called Centro Comercial Compostela) is in the Ensanche area, on calle Restollal. It combines a department store with Hipercor supermarket and a dining area.

Here you'll find premium fashion brands — the full collections of the main Spanish labels — a very complete bookshop and stationery shop on the ground floor, and the Club del Gourmet, a space where you can taste top-quality Galician wines paired with supreme local produce. It also has Ámbito Cultural, a space with literary events, art exhibitions and free cultural activities.

If you're driving, parking is free. They also have a workshop and car wash service: you go into the shop, buy what you need, leave your keys and while you wander around the shopping centre they'll get your car looking like new or install whatever you've bought. Handy for a rainy day.

Official website of Centro Comercial Compostela →

🏘️ Área Central: Huge Shopping Centre with Local Neighbourhood Atmosphere

Área Central, in the Fontiñas neighbourhood, was the first shopping centre in Santiago (opened in 1993). It has a more local and down-to-earth character than As Cancelas. Its 30,500 m² include a 658-metre commercial street under a glass roof, around 160 shops, 658 homes, 50 offices and a 10,000 m² open central square.

It's a centre where you can wander for hours with a family-friendly, neighbourhood feel. Among the shops there's an Alcampo and several exclusive outlets: Bimba y Lola Outlet, Silbon Outlet, Scalpers Outlet, Krack Outlet. For eating: La Cuca Brunch, El Faro Café, Gasthof, La Central Heladera, Herrmá Confitería and several more cafés.

The underground car park is spacious and reasonably priced, but here's the trick: if you make a purchase in the shopping centre, parking is free. If you'd rather park without paying, there are plenty of free spaces outside and in the surrounding streets. Since it's a residential area, parking is usually easy to find on Sundays or outside office hours.

Official website of Área Central →

🧒 Travelling with Kids: Where to Burn Their Energy Indoors

If you're travelling with children and it's raining — which is statistically likely — the whole tapas-and-museums afternoon gets complicated. Kids want to move, they want fun, they want to run around and socialise with other kids their age. Santiago has options so they don't go stir crazy inside a restaurant.

🏎️ Diviertt Park: Indoor Leisure Park for the Whole Family

Diviertt Park is a 1,000 m² indoor leisure park on Calle Républica Checa nº 13, in the Polígono Costa Vella. It has electric karts, drift circuits, Tibetan bridges, nets, ropes and an 8-metre zip line. All indoors.

Official website of Diviertt Park →

The circuits range from age 2 (electric cars with parental remote control) up to 99 (Kart XL). Prices are around €5-10 per circuit, lasting about 10 minutes each. The multi-adventure area has no time limit.

Opening hours: Tuesday to Thursday 16:00-21:00, Friday 16:00-22:00, weekends 10:00-14:00 and 16:00-22:00. Closed Mondays. There's a café for parents.

🎮 Other Options for Kids

Área Central also has a similar play centre but quite a bit smaller. That said, between the size of the shopping centre and the fact you can always take the kids to the park right there, it's one of my favourite areas to go with children. You've also got Cinesa As Cancelas (children's film sessions) and the As Cancelas play area (free play zone inside the shopping centre).

☔ Practical Tips for Rainy Days

These are the tips I can give as a resident and citizen of Santiago on rainy days:

• Lightweight waterproof jacket (better than an umbrella). The rain pattern here is a fine, constant drizzle with occasional downpours. A good quality one with a hood is enough.
• Shoes with non-slip soles: Wet granite in Santiago is a skating rink. It's not that we don't want to wear heels (especially if you're petite like me), but it's more a matter of survival 😉
• Don't despair if a downpour catches you out: If it suddenly starts pouring — which is common — it'll stop again in a few minutes, just as quickly as it started. Pop into a café, order something and wait a bit.
• Understand that a rainy day in Santiago is part of the whole experience: If you visit this city and it doesn't rain, it's like something's missing from the full experience. So don't see it as a nuisance, see it as a chance to feel and live like a local ☔
• And if the downpour catches you near Quiroga Palacios, come and see us. Kick back and enjoy a good coffee while we watch the water run down the street together. The place is open, the coffee machine is on and there's always a free spot at the counter to take shelter.

— Susana, Hamburguesería Señarís

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