Camino Stage 5 - O Cebreiro to Santiago
- Hike the final 150km (93 miles) of the Camino Frances ending in Santiago de Compostela
- Pass through charming rural villages, farmlands, and leafy woodlands
- Enjoy a pilgrim’s mass at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela
- Receive your ‘Compostela’ certificate on arrival in Santiago
- Discover churches and historic landmarks on this UNSECO heritage route
Gallery
Itinerary
Day 1 Arrive in O Cebreiro and overnightEnjoy a night in the picturesque village of O'Cebreiro before settling in to get ready for the start of your walk tomorrow.
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The hotel is located in a building that was renovated in 2002. It has 5 rooms with en suite bathrooms. The accommodation also has a café and restaurant services as well as a craft and souvenir shop.
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This rural stone house is located next to the Camino. It offers 10 comfortable rooms and there is a restaurant with panoramic views and a menu with all traditional Galician ingredients.
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This traditional stone house property offers simple yet comfortable rooms. The accommodation faces the 9th century church of Santa Maria la Real.
This stage starts in the mystical village of O Cebreiro, known for its traditional buildings. Leaving O Cebreiro, the road ascends gently offering panoramic views of the mountain. You will descend along paths surrounded by vegetation. The route continues through mountainous landscapes to Alto do Poio, offering a mix of physical challenges and natural beauty. Finally, you will descend to Triacastela, a resting place nestled in the heart of the Camino. Take extra care to protect your knees whilst walking down. There several villages along the path where you can take a break and enjoy spectacular views.
Ascent: 269m (883ft) / Descent: 899m (2,949ft)
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Located in the small town of Triacastela, Pension Complexo Xacobeo with comfortable rooms and its own restaurant. Surrounded by a beautiful landscape between the mountains, this accommodation offers a good rest.
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Triacastela is a town of three castles, none of which remain. It is an attractive stop and the guest house offers comfortable rooms.
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The hotel resembles a 20th-century building that has been renovated respecting the original materials. Located in the main square next to the Romanesque church of Triacastela, the accommodation offers rest and relaxation through its comfort.
Make a decision today if you would like to walk the southern detour route via Samos or the northern direct route via San Xil, both options are detailed in the travel documents.
The shorter northern route offers a beautiful route through the Galician countryside, passing through villages such as San Xil and Montán. The route is dotted with oak and chestnut forests, providing a peaceful and refreshing atmosphere. It has new woodland paths which have increased the natural paths by 60% and it takes you up a steep climb to alto do Riocabo, which has beautiful views.
The southern route takes you takes you along the busy LU-633 and lead you along the impressive Samos Monastery, one of the oldest in Spain. The route is a blend of history and natural beauty, culminating in the lively town of Sarria.
Northern Route via San Xil: Ascent: 300m (984ft) / Descent: 515m (1,693ft)
Southern Route via Samos: Ascent: 248m (814ft) / Descent: 463m (1,522ft)
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NH Alfonso IX Hotel is located in the heart of Camino de Santiago within the urban part of the town, in incomparable natural beauty, surrounded by gardens and bordering the river, it is very close to the monumental zone and the Roman route. You can also enjoy the famous street of the Anticuarios, (Antique dealers).
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Hotel Roma is located in a peaceful location, just next to the railway station and close to the Camino Frances. The accommodation has 18 rooms, all of them with telephone, heating, private bathroom and TV. Furthermore, the hotel has a guests´ living room, parking area, terrace, bar and a restaurant which offers best of Galician gastronomy.
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Located in Sarria, the Hotel Mar de Plata is much more than just a place to rest; it is the living testimony of a family history that has been cultivating Galician tradition since the 1970s.
The section from Sarria to Portomarín on the Way of St. James is characterised by its natural beauty and historical richness. Starting in Sarria, the route ascends passing significant monuments such as the hermitage of San Salvador and the monastery of La Magdalena, crossing the river Pequeno over the medieval bridge Ponte Aspera. The route continues through landscapes dominated by oak trees until it reaches Barbadelo, where the church of Santiago stands out. Moving towards Ferreiros, the route passes through several villages and rural areas, marking the 100th kilometre milestone at Morgade. Finally, the descent towards Portomarín offers views of the Belesar reservoir, culminating with the entrance to the historic town over the old medieval bridge. This segment of the Camino fuses nature, history and spirituality, preparing pilgrims for the final stages to Santiago.
Enjoy the Galician ambience as you stroll up the cobbled main street and end your day by relaxing in one of the cafés surrounding the square.
Ascent: 397m (1,302ft) / Descent: 462m (1,516ft)
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Opened in 2018, this accommodation with Spa is situated before reaching the portical buildings and 2-minute walk to the church and next to the communal gardens. Every room is equipped with air-conditioning, Wifi, TV and private bathroom with shower and free toiletries. It also has a cafeteria where the breakfast buffet is served. There are also outdoors common areas.
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Located right on the Camino de Santiago, the property is on the outskirts of Portomarin with impressive views of the hotel's natural surroundings. The Miño River is just a few meters from the hotel.
From Portomarín to Palas de Rei, this segment of the Camino de Santiago combines ascents and descents through Galician landscapes and rural villages. The route begins with a descent from the church of San Nicolás in Portomarín, crossing the reservoir and ascending winding paths to Gonzar and Castromaior, places full of history. The second part takes pilgrims through quieter and flatter areas, passing historic monuments such as the cruceiro de Lameiros, before reaching Palas de Rei, a key point towards Santiago.
Ascent: 498m (1,634ft) / Descent: 321m (1,053ft)
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Located at the foot of the Camino de Santiago, the Hotel Mica offers its guests a comfortable and pleasant stay. The family-run accommodation ensures that you can enjoy your free time, just a step away from the city's best gastronomy, leisure and culture.
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Casa Benilde is a local and welcoming hotel in Palas de Rei. Often spoken of as the friendliest accommodation on the route, you will be sure of a delightful stay here.
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Pension As Hortas is located in the heart of Palas de Rei, only a stone's throw away from a variety of cafes, restaurants and shops, as well as some useful amenities you may need on your trip. It is also located nearby the San Tirso church, which is worth visiting while staying here.
The stage from Palas de Rei to Arzúa is challenging with constant ups and downs, particularly after Melide. It is recommended to refuel in Melide by tasting the traditional Galician octopus a la gallega "pulpo" before continuing. From Melide, the route plunges into forests and crosses the historic Church of Santa María. It advances through Boente and Ribadiso, offering descents and rural areas until it reaches Arzúa, uniting nature and heritage in a memorable stretch towards Santiago.
Ascent: 521m (1,710ft) / Descent: 680m (2,231ft)
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All rooms are decorated differently to offer customers the greatest sense of comfort. All rooms are equipped with plasma TV, heating, wooden floors, toiletries, towels, hairdryer and WIFI.
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This accommodation is located in the heart of Arzúa, with 29 bedrooms. They all have TV, heating, private bathroom but not air conditioning. There is an elevator, a guests´ lounge and a small cafeteria. On the ground floor you´ll find the restaurant which serves traditional Galician cuisine.
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Its privileged location on the Camino de Santiago and in the heart of the city of Arzúa allows guests to reach the main services and attractions of the city and its surroundings in a very short time.
Leave the old quarter of Arzúa as the Camino leads past oak tree forests, that give way to lush meadows. Visit the medieval shrine at Santa Irene, dedicated to a martyr saint from Portugal, and the Baroque fountain of healing waters.
Throughout the day you’ll be passing different villages: Brea, Calzada, Rua and A Calle; the meaning of which is synonymous with ‘Camino’.
Ascent: 281m (922ft) / Descent: 391m (1,283ft)
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The rural and rustic hotel provides 15 comfortable, well-tended and handsome decorated rooms each with its own indoor furnishing and special ambience. The Hotel offers its pilgrims a pleasant nights stay before the final section of their walk to Santiago de Compostela.
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This property offers comfortable cottages with 3 double bedrooms and 1 single, all with private bathroom and TV, living room with gallery. There are also 3 tourist apartments for 2-4 persons, each consisting of 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen, living room with fireplace and terrace. Dining is available. It has swimming pool and garden to relax into the summer.
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Located only 10 minutes away from the historic city of Santiago de Compostela, Pension Residencial Platas is a comfortable spot on your journey on the Camino de Santiago. Pension Platas is next door to two cafes, and Pub Che Copas nearby offers an opportunity for drinking and dancing.
Today you can look forward to a fabulous day walking to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. The Camino leads first to San Paio and Lavacolla, where it was traditional for pilgrims to wash in the river before reaching Santiago.
Tall eucalyptus trees sway in the wind as you make your way to the ‘Mount of Joy’ of Monte del Gozo (368 m), from where the towers of Santiago Cathedral come into view. This final stretch is a mixture of anticipation and reflection, culminating in the thrilling arrival at the Plaza del Obradoiro, where the majestic cathedral welcomes pilgrims at the end of their spiritual and physical journey.
Ascent: 347m (1,138ft) / Descent: 361m (1,184ft)
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The Lux Santiago Hotel is located in the centre of the Galician capital. It has an exceptional location that allows you to explore the city in depth. The hotel is just 800 metres from the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
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In the heart of Santiago de Compostela, this hotel combines modernity with tradition, offering a cozy and comfortable stay. located next to La Alameda Gardens, hotel rooms are equipped with every comfort, the hotel also offers a 24-hour coffee shop.
After breakfast, your walking holiday will come to an end. See the Travel Info section for some useful details for your onward travel.
This trip has a carbon score of 10kg per person per night, meaning it’s one of our best trips! For comparison, a carbon count of 10kg is equivalent to 18 lattes. Here at Macs, we pride ourselves on being a responsible travel company and continue to adopt, develop and innovate ways to positively impact the environment. Find out more information about how we've carbon counted our trips.
Other Information
Is it for me?This itinerary covers 7 days of hiking around 13 miles per day. The terrain is reasonably even to allow for longer distances. Join the trail in O’Cebreiro, and end in Santiago de Compostela where you will be qualified to collect your ‘Compostela’ certificate. The Camino brings together people from all over the world who participate for a variety of reasons. Expect to celebrate this huge accomplishment with fellow pilgrims upon completion of this itinerary!
Pilgrimages | For those looking to follow a path of self-discovery. Our Pilgrimage and Camino routes take you on a journey through diverse landscapes and local flavours, while meeting like-minded adventurers along the way.
Inn to Inn Walking | Walk from place-to-place changing accommodations each night. Generally staying in B&Bs, inns, and guesthouses.
Solo Travellers, Families with Teens
The minimum age for this tour is: 12 Years
This itinerary is graded moderate and includes 7 days of walking 18-28 km per day. You can expect to walk between 5-8 hours per day. On the Camino, you will follow a mixture of dirt tracks, minor roads, and established footpaths.
Although the route mostly leads along wide, relatively easy-to-walk paths, the unpaved sections and the daily distances of between 9 and 30 kilometres require a good basic level of fitness and a certain amount of hiking experience. The first section from St Jean-Pied-de-Port with steep ascents and descents in the Pyrenees is the most difficult. The entire 40-day Way of St James naturally requires a great deal of stamina. But the longer you are on the road, the fitter you will become. Pamplona, Logroño, Burgos and León are fascinating cities that you must visit and the smaller towns are also very charming and often offer wonderful regional delicacies.
Our Camino Tours include small rural hotels and hostels close to the route of the Camino. You will always have a private room and en-suite (attached) bathroom. When staying in Leon, Pamplona, Sarria and Santiago, you will stay in 3* hotels, the other nights will be in a mixture of rural hotels and hostels.
Single Rooms
Single rooms are available, although a supplement is payable. The price for a single room is available on the included tab of this tour and in the booking engine.
Meals
A light continental breakfast is included each morning, which can sometimes just be coffee, bread and orange juice. Lunch and dinner are not included so you are free to choose from the available options. Every place you stop will have evening meals available, you can get a pilgrims menu for about 10 Euros which includes 3 courses, wine and water!
Extra Nights
We can add extra nights if you wish, allowing you to have rest days in between the longer hiking days.
The Camino is very easy to follow. The route is marked with yellow painted arrows and a yellow shell on a blue background. The detailed travel pack we supply includes a detailed information pack for planning and preparing for your Camino, detailed instructions of how to find your overnight accommodation and everything you need for your Camino.
In addition to the printed route notes, you will receive in your travel pack, you will also have access to our Macs Adventure App, allowing you to follow the route on richly detailed mapping on your smartphone.
Recommended Reading
Although not essential, if you would like more information on the route please see our recommendation below:
- A Guidebook to the Camino de Santiago by John Brierly
- Accommodation in small rural hotels and hostels, twin/double rooms with en-suite W/C
- Daily Breakfast
- Baggage Transfers
- Any transfer(s) listed in the standard itinerary (if applicable)
- Pilgrim Passport and shell
- Access to maps, GPX tracks and daily route information with the Macs Adventure smartphone navigation app
- All your trip documents provided digitally through your online Macs “My Account”
- 24/7 Emergency support
- Return travel to France/Spain.
- Lunches, snacks or drinks.
- Travel Insurance.
- Personal Equipment.
- Taxi transfers or public transport should you need to skip a stage.
- Additional nights’ accommodation
You can start your Camino anytime between March and Mid November.
The best time to walk the Camino depends on your personal preference!
Spring (April to June) is a fantastic choice. Expect pleasant temperatures, blooming landscapes, and fewer crowds than summer. Be prepared for the potential of spring showers.
Summer (July and August) brings sweltering heat to much of Spain, but the northern regions remain refreshingly mild thanks to their coastal climates. If you're a social butterfly, this is your season! The trails are buzzing with fellow pilgrims, creating an unbeatable atmosphere for meeting people, local festivals, and sharing stories.
Autumn (September to early November) is another excellent time to go. You'll enjoy milder temperatures, stunning autumn colors, and quieter trails as the summer crowds dwindle. But, much like spring, there's still a chance of rain—because nature loves keeping us on our toes!
The best place to fly in and out from would be Santiago de Compostela. From Santiago you can either take a private transfer with Macs Adventure to O'Cebriero, or you can take a bus with ALSA to Piedrafita do Cebriero which takes around 2 and a half hours. From there you would take a short taxi journey up the hill to O'Cebriero.
Alternatively we can arrange private transfers to take you straight from Santiago Airport to O Cebreiro for a hassle-free start to your trip!
You can fly directly from Santiago back to the UK with Ryanair who fly direct to Stansted and Easyjet who fly direct to Gatwick. Another good point to connect through to travel internationally is Paris. You can fly from Santiago to Paris with Vueling or from Madrid with Ryanair.
We can arrange private transfers to take you from your hotel directly to Santiago Airport.
At Macs Adventure, we work in partnership with many luggage transfer providers who set a limit on how many bags/suitcases they will transfer per person, and also the weight of the bag/suitcase. Your booking includes transfer of 1 bag per person. It is very important that you read the luggage information specific to your tour before departure. If you do not adhere to these limits, there is a great possibility that you will be charged locally both for extra bags or if they are too heavy. This limitation can be a challenge, especially as airlines generally have limits that are higher. However, our luggage providers have reasons for these limits (usually due to the Health and Safety of their employees), which we must respect.
Baggage transfers are included (max 20kg / 44lbs per person). Your main bag will be transferred each day between your overnight accommodation so that you only need to hike with a day backpack.
Extra Nights
There is so much to do and discover on the Way of St. James that many of our customers plan extra nights, either as rest days or to get to know the region even better.
Online Documents
At Macs Adventure we care about the environment! We’re taking action to minimize the impact we have by converting the majority of our tour documentation for online delivery.
On this tour, all your detailed tour information will be digitally delivered. You will have access to this documentation via “My Account” on our website.
Pilgrim Passport
Your Pilgrim Passport (Credencial del Peregrino) and scallop shell will be waiting at your first accommodation. The Passport isn’t just practical—it’s a beautiful record of your Camino journey, officially issued by the Church of St. James. Along the route, you'll collect stamps (sellos) from albergues, churches, cafes, and more. Each stamp is a colorful reminder of your journey. To earn your Compostela Certificate in Santiago, you must walk at least the final 100 km, with your stamps serving as proof of this accomplishment.
Local taxes
Local taxes may apply in some places. Where ever possible, we will pay there taxes in advance for you. It is not always possible to pay the taxes in advance and you will have to pay it directly at your accomodation.
Extra charge
On some days there may be some extra charges on the tour price due to public holiday.
The distances and ascent/descents are approximations of the recommended routes.
Your information pack has a detailed equipment list which includes standard walking gear such as good walking boots or shoes, lightweight clothes, waterproofs and a day pack.
We suggest you book as far in advance as possible as the Camino is extremely popular. Numbers can rise by up to 100,000 people. We will always try and accommodate late booking requests.
The average daily distance of our Camino tours are between 12-17 miles / 20-28 kilometres per day, and you can expect to hike for between five and eight hours each day. You should do as much hiking as possible prior to your trip as this will simply add to your enjoyment.
Yes, some people prefer to hike carrying their own bags as a true pilgrim would have. Please select the option for removing baggage transfers if you wish to do this.
Although you can walk the Camino at any time of year we would recommend April/May/June and September/October when the weather is at its best for walking. July and August can be very hot and are busy.
Public transport and taxis are available if you are need of support contact us and we will be more that happy to help.
Yes, many of our guests travel solo. Although the nature of the Camino means that they soon join up with other pilgrims. There is a single room supplement payable for solo hikers.
No we do not offer group trips. Self-guided travel with Macs Adventure is for independent, active people who don’t want to be part of the crowd or restricted by set dates and schedules.
You can start on any day of your choosing, subject to availability.
Yes. Our tours are designed from years of experience and knowledge and are usually the right balance for hikiers. However we can add additional nights at many points of the Camino if you so wish. Please speak to our team for recommendations of extra nights!
A mixture of farm/dirt tracks, minor roads and footpaths. The route is well marked and easy to follow.
Unfortunately we are unable to change your accommodation bookings and itinerary once you start hiking as alternative accommodation is generally not available at such short notice.
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Camino Final Stage - Sarria to Santiago - 8 Days
Hike the final 100km (62 miles) of the Camino Frances from Sarria to Santiago de Compostela.Highlights- Hike the final 100 km of the Camino de Santiago
- Collect your ‘Compostela’ from the Pilgrims Office
- Overnight in Melide - break up the long hiking day
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Camino Stage 4 & 5: Leon to Santiago
Hike the final 2 stages of the Camino Frances, starting in historic León and finishing in Santiago.Highlights- Start in León with its magnificent cathedral
- The highest point of the Camino - Cruz de Ferro
- Collect your Compostela from the Pilgrim Office
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Best of the Camino
Hike the highlights of the Camino Frances in two weeks, traveling from the Pyrenees to Santiago.Highlights- Hike over the France/Spain border in the Pyrenees
- See the historic cities - Logroño, Pamplona & León
- Collect your ‘Compostela’ certificate in Santiago