"Gijón (Xixon), Asturias" a Gijón Travel Page by TinyTuck

Gijón is with its 250,000 inhabitants the biggest city of the state of Asturias in the North of Spain. (Oviedo, the capital, is a bit smaller.)
Gijón is located at the Atlantic coast and is framed by green mountains. It has got a long beach called Playa de San Lorenzo (with all those big appartment blocks behind it it´s erything but idylle, but hey... it´s a beach!), and a nice and lively beach promenade with cliffs and some interesting sculptures. Moreover, there´s an important industrial port with another smaller beach called Playa de Poniente. You can swim from about May till September, depending on your sensitiveness to cold water, and do all kinds of water sports.
Gijón has got a great bar scene and crazy nightlife which is concentrated around Plaza Mayor and in the beach area, especially in summer time.
The older part of town, Cimadevilla, is located on a spit of land between beach and port (as on the picture). It´s pretty small, and there´s not too much to see since big parts of the city were destroyed in the civil war. At it´s northern tip there´s a park-like area up on a little hill called Cerro Santa Catalina, from where you have a great view over Gijón.
It´s an industrial city, so don´t expect too much beauty.
However, you´ll like it here!

Don´t forget to try the Sidra, which has got a big traditon in Asturias, is only offered in so-called "Sidrerías" and has got to be served in a very unique way...