Daily Itinerary for the 11 September 2022


Day 1, Sunday – Depart USA
Check in for your overnight transatlantic flight to Dublin.

Day 2, Monday – Depart Dublin
Check-in at Dublin airport for your direct Aer Lingus flight to Santiago de Compostela. On arrival, you will be met by your guide and transferred to your hotel in the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Lugo where you will stay in the 4 star Grand Hotel Lugo for 4 nights with breakfast and dinner.

Day 2, Tuesday - Sarria to Portomarin
Walk 14.2mi approx. 6hrs

After breakfast depart your hotel with your walk guide for a transfer to Sarria to begin your walk which will pass the monastery of La Magdalenain on the edge of the old town of Sarria. Here the group will have the option to celebrate Mass before continuing on the final 100km of the Camino. On passing the cemetery you cross the “Ponte Aspera” bridge towards a pleasant and peaceful walk through many picturesque villages along quiet country roads shaded by vast oak trees. On the latter stage of the route you can see the ruins of the old monastery of Santa María de Loyo, the original building of the Order of St James. Enter Portomarín over the river Miño via the modern bridge where you might get a glimpse of the old site of the village. On crossing you can ascend the Escalinata de Nuestra Señora de las Nieves, the little chapel at the top of the stairs before taking some time to relax and refresh in the town square before being picked up by your coach and retuning to the hotel for dinner.
Selection of shorter walks - Sarria to Peruscallo 5mi | Mercadoiro to Portomarin 3mi

Day 3, Wednesday – Portomarin to Palas de Rei
Walk 15mi approx. 6hrs 30mins

Enjoy your breakfast at the hotel and take the coach back to Portomarin. Leave Portomarin across the Belesar and around Monte San Antonio towards Ventas de Naron passing through the villages of Gonzar and Castromaior where a small Romanesque Church dedicated to the Virgin is located. On crossing the sierra de Ligonde on the Dorsal Galega (the Galicain Ridge) you enter the farming region of Ulloa where you begin to descend through oak trees and meadows. On your decent the first eucalyptus trees come into view and after Brea you ascend the Alto do Rosario, a traditional point for Pilgrims to stop for prayer, where you can see Monte Pico Sacro the mountain that overlooks Santiago de Compostela on a clear day. Continue into Palas de Rei your finishing point and take time to relax and explore before being collected by your coach and returned to the hotel for dinner.
Selection of shorter walks - Portomarin to Gonzar 4.7mi | Gonzar to Hospital de la Cruz 1.2mi | A Brea to Palas de Rei 3mi

Day 4, Thursday – Palas de Rei to Arzua
Walk 18mi approx. 7hrs 30mins

After breakfast you leave your hotel for Palas de Rei via coach. Leaving Palas de Rei you descend towards San Xulián crossing over the river Ruxian. Continuing onward through the village of Casanova and many Galician hamlets. Before crossing the Río Seco over the Magdalena bridge to Disecabo and the mediaeval Puente Velha which spans the Río Furelos you will reach the main town of Melide. Continue the day through forest tracks, meadows and cornfields till you reach the villages of Boente and Rivadiso before continuing to Arzua. Here you will meet your coach and return to your hotel.

Selection of shorter walks - Palas de Rei to O Cota 4.3mi | Melide to Boente 3mi or/and Boente to Ribadiso da Boente 5mi

Day 5, Friday – Arzua to O Pedrouzo
Walk 13.6mi approx. 5hrs 30mins

We pack up our bags and leave Lugo and take the coach Ribadiso da Baixo. Leave the coach and your bags to begin your days walk of this shaded section of the Camino through more villages and hamlets such as Cortobe, Ferreiros and Santa Irene. You make your way across numerous streams, through woods and along quiet country roads before reaching O Prdrouzo. Here you will be met by your coach and transferred to the centrally located Hotel Gelmirez Santiago in Santiago de Compostela where you will be reunited with your bags and checked in for 3 nights.

Selection of shorter walks - Ribadiso da Baixo to Salceda 6.8mi | Santa Irene to O Pedrouzo 2.4mi

Day 6, Saturday – O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela
Walk 12.4mi approx. 5hrs

After breakfast you take the coach back to O Pedrouzo and walk via Amenal and Santiago airport to Lavacolla. Here you can follow tradition, by washing in the river to prepare ourselves for our arrival to the Holy City. Continue to Monte do Gozo, the mount of joy, here we will get our first glimpse of the Cathedral like so many pilgrims before. Here we take time to enjoy lunch before continuing to our goal, Santiago de Compostela. Complete your walk at The Obradoiro Square, here you can enjoy your achievement and witness the newly restored Cathedral. We can begin Earning the Jubilee by visiting the Tomb of the Apostle. After you can collect your certificates with your official Camino Passport or Credencial del Peregrino from your guide.

Selection of shorter walks - O Pedrouzo to Lavacolla 6.2mi | San Marcos to the Cathedral in Santiago 3.7mi

Day 7, Sunday – Santiago de Compostela
After breakfast we can leave for the Pilgrims Mass at noon in the Cathedral. Enjoy the festivities of the Holy Year in and around the Obradoiro Square, pass through the Holy Door on your steps to receiving the Penal Indulgances, visit the tomb of St. James again, absorb the wonderful architecture of the Cathedral, explore the many narrow cobbled streets and enjoy the Galician cuisine. Return the short distance to the hotel for dinner.

Day 9, Monday – Day of Departure
After breakfast in the hotel we take the day for some free time around the city. Where you can take the time for one last venture into the Cathedral’s Square to complete Earning the Jubilee if not done so already gain Plenary indulgence once again by saying the Our Father and Creed in the Cathedral. Spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the many restaurants shops and cafes before our evening transfer to the airport for our flight to Dublin. Upon arrival in Dublin take the hotel transfer to the Clayton hotel and check in for 1 night

Day 10, Tuesday – Depart Dublin
Check in at Dublin airport for return flight back to USA.