Walking the Last 100 km of the Camino de Santiago: Earn Your Compostela

We’ll meet the guide at 10am at the bus station in Lugo, a beautiful Galician city east of Santiago de Compostela. Lugo was built by the Romans in the 3rd century and is protected by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. A wander around the narrow streets within the enclosed walls will take us right back to the middle-ages. Then, we’ll drive south for about 40 minutes to arrive in Barbadelo, a small village near Sarria, where our pilgrimage walk begins! We’ll start our walk along the beautiful green paths of the Camino and meet people from all walks of life.

Meals: Dinner
Hiking time: 5-6 hours
Hiking distance: 18 km / 11.2 miles
Accommodation: Hotel or restored farmhouse

Starting from Portomarin, we’ll climb up through woodland and then over our high point for the day, the Sierra Ligonde, on quiet country roads with views of far-reaching hills and mountainscapes in every shade of green imaginable. The villages we’ll pass through have longstanding associations with the Camino, and ancient pilgrim hospices are now just whispers of the past. A final climb brings us to the small village of Airexe where we end our day of walking. From here, a group shuttle will take us to our hotel.

Meals: Breakfast and dinner
Hiking time: 5-6 hours
Hiking distance: 17 km / 10.6 miles
Accommodation: Hotel

Today we pass through the town of Palas de Rei (Palace of the King), named after an 8th-century Visigoth king who once ruled these lands. From here, the route becomes more undulating as we meander through the village of San Xulian, a classic Camino village with its 12th-century church, and walk through forested trails over two river valleys. After a full day of walking, we’ll drive to our hotel for dinner and a good night’s rest.

Meals: Breakfast and dinner
Hiking time: 5-6 hours
Hiking distance: 16 km / 10 miles
Accommodation: Hotel

After breakfast, we begin our day by walking through the Leboreiro, a quintessential Camino village, then the medieval village of Furelos, both of which have fine medieval bridges. The next stop is the town of Melide, where we can stop in the famous Pulperia to sample Pulpo Gallego, steamed octopus prepared by the locals and enjoyed by pilgrims! After lunch, we’ll ascend and descend through small villages and woodland paths to end our walk at Castañeda, the village where the limestone carried from Triacastela was fired in the kilns before being taken to Santiago to build the cathedral. We continue along the Camino to Arzua, a town famous for its creamy cheese. Dinner tonight is on your own to explore one of the local restaurants.

Meals: Breakfast
Hiking time: 5-6 hours
Hiking distance: 17 km / 10.6 miles
Accommodation: Hotel or restored farmhouse

Today’s walk will be dotted with small hamlets hidden in tall eucalyptus forests and behind moss-covered stone walls. The names of the villages we’ll pass—Rua, Calzada, and Calle—all refer to the word ‘road’, recognizing that this trail has been leading pilgrims to Santiago de Compostela for centuries. Our day ends at the village of Alto de Santa Irene, from where we will travel to our hotel.

Meals: Breakfast and dinner
Hiking time: 5-6 hours
Hiking distance: 19 km / 11.8 miles
Accommodation: Hotel or restored farmhouse

We continue westwards on the Camino, descending from Alto de Santa Irene through serene stands of eucalyptus trees and the small villages of Rua and Amenal before embarking on one of our final climbs of the route. At the top, we walk around the airport to arrive in Lavacolla, a place where pilgrims used to wash themselves in the shallow stream before entering Santiago. Here, we shuttle to our hotel, a family run Pazo (palace), for our penultimate evening together.

Meals: Breakfast and dinner
Hiking time: 5-6 hours
Hiking distance: 17 km / 10.6 miles
Accommodation: Family-run Pazo near Lavacolla

Today, we’ll take to the trail one last time. We’ll climb from Lavacolla to the famed Monte del Gozo (Mount Joy) where, if we are lucky, we’ll catch our first glimpse of the towers of the cathedral of Santiago. Tradition claims that if you were the first one in your group to sight the church towers, you could officially change your name to King (Rey, Leroy, Le Roi). Our Camino walking journey ends at the steps of the cathedral, but we’ll gather for a celebratory dinner!

Meals: Breakfast and dinner
Hiking time: 2-3 hours
Hiking distance: 11 km / 6.8 miles
Accommodation: Hotel or restored farmhouse

After a leisurely breakfast and before saying our goodbyes, a local tour guide and historian will show us the main sights on a two-hour guided walking tour of the city and the cathedral. Buen Camino!

Meals: Breakfast