Santiago has been a craft town for 900 years, supplying pilgrims with silver, jet and shells. Today its arcaded streets hold Spain's last azabache carvers, Sargadelos porcelain, indie Galician designers and a market that doubles as a delicatessen.
Eight granite pavilions from 1941 where Galician farmers sell padrón peppers, grelos, tetilla and San Simón cheeses, and percebes. Open Mon–Sat 07:00–15:00; busiest Thursday and Saturday. Vacuum-packing available for cheese.
Working azabache (jet) atelier where fossil coal from Asturias is hand-carved into figas, scallop shells and Santiago crosses set in silver. Pieces are signed and certified; small pendants start around €35, large figas exceed €200.
The Galician porcelain house founded in 1806, known for cobalt-and-white geometric patterns by Isaac Díaz Pardo. Espirais, Camino milestone figurines and coffee sets fill the shop; small mugs from €18, sculptural pieces run into the hundreds.
The colonnaded street linking Praza das Praterías to Porta Faxeira is lined with leather workshops, Galician wool and linen sellers, and small ceramic studios under 18th-century granite arches. Most shops close 14:00-16:30.
The old town's independent fashion spine: Galician labels, concept stores and vintage sit between bakeries in narrow granite lanes. Smaller shops open 10:30, shut for lunch 14:00-17:00, and stay open until 20:30.
Confectioner working since 1954, selling tarta de Santiago in sealed tins that survive luggage, plus almond biscuits, Galician liqueurs and orujo. The cross of Saint James is stencilled in icing sugar on every cake.
Santiago's main indoor mall, 15 minutes by bus 5 from the old town: Zara, Mango, Fnac, a Gadis supermarket and a cinema over two levels. Open Mon–Sat 09:00–21:00, free parking for three hours with a purchase.
The city's largest Galician-language bookshop, trading since 1974, with Camino guides, Rosalía de Castro editions, local poetry and Galician music on CD and vinyl across two floors near the university.
The square of the silversmiths still holds the trade that named it: workshops around the fountain sell hallmarked silver scallop shells, Camino pendants and filigree. Look for the 925 stamp and the maker's punch inside the clasp.
The dry-goods pavilion for things that travel: tins of mejillones and berberechos in escabeche, pimentón, dried padrón peppers, honey from the Ulla valley and vacuum-sealed lacón. Sellers wrap for hold luggage on request.
The 19th-century Ensanche district below the old town trades in Galician wine: Albariño from Rías Baixas, Godello from Valdeorras and Mencía from Ribeira Sacra, plus orujo and herbal liqueur in ceramic bottles.
The last street pilgrims walk before entering the old town, now lined with small studios: ceramicists, screen printers, bookbinders and a luthier making Galician bagpipes and zanfonas, alongside second-hand shops and cafés.