Stone with the Santiago shell carved in.

guide

7 Charming Villages Along the Galician Stretch of El Camino Francés

Luis Anaya

Luis Anaya

Mar 15, 20229 min read

Discover the wonders of the 7 villages you'll go through on your way to Santiago in our exclusive Camino experience, a 156 km journey through the stunning Galician stretch of the world-famous French Way. These picturesque locations are sure to take your breath away!

Pilgrims from all over the world have embarked on el Camino de Santiago for more than 1000 years. Seven well-established main routes and several other lesser-known ones — each one with a different departure point, difficulty level, and walking length — make up a network of paths that all lead to the ancient Tomb of St. James at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.

Based on extensive research and first-hand experience, our expert travel designers decided to build a one-of-a-kind experience around the Galician stretch of the most traditional and popular Jacobean route: el Camino Francés. While the French Way's main route stretches more than 790 km and starts — as its name implies — on the French side of the Pyrenees, our Camino adventure covers the remarkable last 156 km starting at the historic settlement of O Cebreiro, the door to Galicia.

Discover the peculiarities of the towns and villages that serve as the starting lines to the 7 stages of our spectacular journey into the natural wonders and cultural traditions of Galicia.

1. O'Cebreiro

Palloza in O'Cebreiro.Palloza in O'Cebreiro.

📍 Where is it?

Lugo → 156 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

O Cebreiro is the first village of the Galician stretch of the Camino Francés and marks the start of the main route's 25th stage. Founded in the IX century — just a few years after the discovery of Saint James' tomb — this settlement's raison d'etre has always been linked to providing hospitality services to the passing pilgrims.

👀 Don't miss it!

The gems of O'Cebreiro are definitely its pallozas, a group of perfectly preserved traditional pre-Romanic houses that were still inhabited until the mid-twentieth century and now serve as an ethnographic museum that depicts the living arrangements of the locals during the medieval era.

O Cebreiro also houses the Camino's oldest functioning medieval church and one of the only pilgrim's hospitals still standing.

2. Triacastela

Camino de Santiago stone signal and the fields of Triacastela.Camino de Santiago stone signal and the fields of Triacastela.

📍 Where is it?

Lugo → 134 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

With a population of fewer than 800 people, it's not uncommon for the number of pilgrims to exceed the number of locals when the town gets overflown during the months of spring and summer.‎

👀 Don't miss it!

On the route from Triacastela to Sarria, you'll have to pick between two different variants: San Xil or Samos. While the former is considered the original path and it's preferred by most for both being 6 km shorter and boasting beautiful natural scenery, some pilgrims choose the latter as it passes by the Samos Monastery, a beautiful 6th-century Benedictine building that's a must-visit for lovers of history and architecture.

3. Sarria

A field somewhere on Camino Francés, between Sarria and Santiago de Compostela.Beautiful fields near Sarria.

📍 Where is it?

Lugo → 114 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

Many pilgrims choose Sarria as their Camino starting point as it's located just over 100 km away from Santiago, the minimum distance required to walk in order to obtain the precious Compostela certificate.

You won't only find pilgrims from the Camino Francés walking the streets of Sarria: in this town, the French Way converges with the Camino del Norte, a route that starts in the Basque Country and runs along the Cantabrian coast before turning south into the Galician inland.

👀 Don't miss it!

Sarria's old town is full of medieval houses and 18th-century palaces. It also has the largest concentration of "albergues" per square kilometer in the whole of Spain: more than 30 hostels and hotels can be found along Rúa Maior, the village's main street.

4. Portomarín

Bridge over the Minho River with the village of Portomarín in the background. Bridge over the Minho River.

📍 Where is it?

Lugo → 93 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

The Portomarín that we know today is not its original version. Although its settlement at the foot of the Minho river dates back to the Medieval era, this historical village had to be refunded in the 1960s after the area was flooded during the construction of the Belesar dam. Many of its most important monuments — including the iconic St. Nicholas Church — were relocated stone-by-stone to the new Portomarín at the top of the Monte do Cristo. To this day, when the day is clear and the reservoir's water levels are low, you can still see the remains of the old Portomarín at the bottom of the valley.

👀 Don't Miss it!

If you look carefully at the river you'll see a series of peculiar V-shaped stone structures protruding from the water's surface. These are the famous "caneiros", the main tools used for the traditional fishing of the eel, the primary ingredient of Portomarín's star dishes: local restaurants serve it in a wide variety of preparations including fried, stewed, or as the filling of the traditional empanada. To wash down the food there's nothing better than a good aguardiente, the other local culinary gem that's been made in the area with the traditional alquitar distilling stills for many centuries. This versatile digestif has a version to satisfy every taste: orujo cream and "licor café" for those who have a sweet tooth, or white orujo and "licor de hierbas" for the ones that prefer sharper and more hard-hitting alcoholic flavors.

5. Palas de Rei

Entrance of the Castle of Pambre in Palas de Rei.Entrance of the Castle of Pambre in Palas de Rei.

📍 Where is it?

Lugo → 68 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

Palais de Rei appears in the Codex Calixtinus — the original 12th-century guide of the Camino Francés — as the final obligatory resting stop before reaching the Tomb of St. James.

The Palas de Rei name — which literally translates to "royal palace" — originated from the fact that Visigoth King Witzia had his official residence at this location during the 8th century.

👀 Don't miss it!

This quiet village, located in the A Ulloa county of Lugo, is the house of the Castelo de Pambre, a perfectly conserved 14th-century military building that has been declared a monument of cultural interest and historical heritage by the Spanish authorities. The castle is a historic symbol of the ancient Galician Kingdom and was the central stage of many battles between local noble houses and social revolts like the Irmandiño Revolution.

6. Arzúa

Pilgrims walking near Ribadiso, outside Arzúa.Pilgrims arriving to Arzúa.

📍 Where is it?

A Coruña → 39 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

From this point on pilgrims from the Camino Francés and the Camino del Norte will be joined in their journey by those coming from the Primitive Way. This path starts from the Asturian city of Oviedo and is considered the original Camino route: it was first taken in the 9th century by King Alfonso II right after the discovery of St. James' tomb.

👀 Don't miss it!

Arzúa is also known as "the land of cheese" thanks to the Arzúa-Ulloa brand, a locally-produced cheese awarded with the prestigious Denominación de Origen quality seal and known in all of Galicia for its characteristic soft and creamy texture, slightly salty taste, and delicious milky aroma.

This dairy delicacy — along with the tasty local floral honey — has become a culinary staple of el Camino and a very important part of the area's economy.

7. O Pedrouzo

Church of Santa María de Castrofeito.Church of Santa María de Castrofeito.

📍 Where is it?

A Coruña → 18 km away from the Santiago Cathedral.

🤔 Did you know...

More kilometers of the French Way go through the O Pino town hall — to which O Pedrouzo belongs — than any other Galician municipality.

👀 Don't miss it!

O Pedrouzo doesn't have as many monumental buildings as previous stops, but it does boast a wide variety of high-quality bars and restaurants. We recommend you try the traditional dish "zorza gallega", a pilgrim favorite made with locally sourced pork cut into small pieces and marinated in white wine, garlic, and red paprika. Accompany it with some fries or fried eggs and you'll have the last energy push you need before embarking on the final stage of this magnificent journey!

We hope that with this guide you'll see that these little villages with big personalities are more than just a port of call in your journey towards the Holy City of Santiago. Remember: travel, like life, is about the journey, not the destination!