Panxón and its beaches

Panxón (officially called San Xoán de Panxón, Sp: Panjón) is a parish in the municipality of Nigrán, in the province of Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain.

The city is a popular part of the Rías Baixas costa of the Atlantic resorts of Spain. Borders with Baiona resort.

Main attractions

The Votive Temple of the Sea (Templo Votivo del Mar) is a Catholic temple consecrated to the Virgen del Carmen (Virgin of the Sea) and also houses the figure of San Juan Bautista from the old church located where the Visigothic Arch is, also known as the parish church of San Juan de Panxón. Located in the parish of the same name belonging to the municipality of Nigrán.

This building was designed by the Porriñés architect Antonio Palacios Ramilo, author of works such as the Palacio de Comunicaciones or the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid. Its construction took place between 1932 and 1937.

The granite building was inspired by the 7th century Visigothic arch near the temple, one of the few examples of Germanic architecture in Galicia. Despite its origin, the church has Gothic nods, Muslim influence and modernist trends, but always trying to follow the Galician art.

The Visigothic Arch of Panxón is a pre-Romanesque horseshoe arch, which was part of an old temple built between the 6th and 7th centuries. Later, on the same site, another temple was built, the old Parish Church of San Juan de Panxón. The arch of the original temple was used as an entrance to the presbytery of the new church. For decades this arch went unnoticed, until it was discovered in 1926.

The Monument to the Universal Navy or Monument to the martyrs of the sea is a monument built in 1924, on top of Monteferro. The monument was designed by the Vigo architect Manuel Gómez Román.

It is a great granite monolith 25 meters high with four bronze crowns and a sculpture of the Virgen del Carmen, patron saint of sailors, with a baby Jesus in her arms. The sculpture is the work of the sculptor from Malaga Enrique Marín Higuero.

Beaches

It is a vast sandy area which is divided into 2 beaches that are joined – Panxón and Playa América. Panxón reaches up to where the promenade ends, the rest of the sandy area is Playa América. The beach has a shell shape and its promenade is lined with several restaurants and shops. It is well-prepared for receiving tourists, and has a Red Cross service.

How to get to?

The nearest airport is Vigo (VGO) Airport which is 20 km away. Other nearby airports include Santiago de Compostela (SCQ) (90 km), Porto (OPO) (100 km) and A Coruña (LCG) (130 km).

From Pontevedra 42 min (52.9 km) via AP-9 and AG-57

From Santiago de Compostela 1 hr 13 min (111 km) via AP-9

From Madrid 5 hr 38 min (605 km) via A-6 and A-52

Main information

Area: 4 sq. km

GPS coordinates: 42°08′21″N 8°49′06″W

Language: Spanish, Galician

Population: 3 804

Currency: Euro

Visa: Schengen

Time: Central European UTC +1, in summer +2

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