Camino de Santiago

From Bilbao and La Rioja to Santiago along the French Camino

Day 01.- Bilbao
Arrival at Bilbao airport and transfer to the hotel including a panoramic view from the Archanda Park that has a great view of the entire city. The tour ends at the hotel.

Then there will be the opportunity to visit the amazing Guggenheim Museum.

Day 02.- Bilbao – S. Sebastian
We drive to the most beautiful city on the north coast of San Sebastián, which is an hour's drive from Bilbao. We start from Monte Igueldo, from where we have a beautiful view of the entire city and the beautiful La Concha beach. Then we go down and see the City Hall and the City Theater, where an international film festival is held every year. After a short walk, there will be time for lunch before heading back to Bilbao and having time to explore the city on our own.
Day 03.- Bilbao – Haro – S. Domingo Calzada – Burgos
After breakfast, we drive to La Rioja, the most popular wine district in Spain, where we visit a historic winery with a complete tour and a small tasting. Then we go to Santo Domingo de la Calzada, one of the cities on the road with an interesting history. This city was the object of a "miracle" in the Middle Ages, where there was a rooster that before an execution showed that the person to be executed was innocent. For this reason, since then they have kept a set of griffins in a cage inside the cathedral.

Time to have lunch in one of the many good restaurants with pilgrim menus. In the afternoon we go to the Yuso Monastery in San Millán de la Cogolla, where the oldest writings in the Spanish language are found. s

Day 04.- Burgos - Leon
In the morning we visit the beautiful Gothic Cathedral which contains the tomb of Spain's medieval hero, "El Cid Campeador". Time for lunch in one of the cozy restaurants in the old town

In the afternoon we continue our trip to León, a city with a lot of history and a beautiful cathedral that you can visit on your own. You can not leave behind a walk through the "wet" part of the city, named after the many cozy bars in the area, where you can have some delicious tapas

At night you can enjoy a cup of coffee in the most beautiful Parador in Spain, located on the outskirts of the old town

Day 5. Leon - Astorga - Ponferrada
We leave León and head to Astorga, where we see an ancient military fortress that the Romans used to control the northern part of Spain. In the heart of the city there are still remains of the old city wall.

We visit the old cathedral and go to see the magnificent Episcopal Palace, built by the Catalan architect Antonio Gaudí, who built the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. He built the episcopal palace for his good friend, the then bishop of Astorga. Then our bus takes us along the pilgrims' path and leaves us at the "Cruz de Hierro", one of the most emblematic points of the entire route at 1,485 m altitude, those who want to have the opportunity to travel a small section of the Camino , that is, 2.2 km to Manjarín, in one of the most beautiful sections of the route. We continue by bus along a beautiful mountain road to the medieval town of Molina Seca, where there will be time for lunch.

In the afternoon we continue to Camponaraya, where we visit the cooperative that produces “El Bierzo” wines of excellent quality, and also taste some local wines before continuing to Ponferrada, where we pass by the Knights Templar castle before arriving at the hotel.

Day 6. Ponferrada - Cebreiro - Samos - Sarria - Portomarin - Santiago
After breakfast we drive through the tunnel that takes us to Galicia. We stop at O Cebreiro, which rests at an altitude of 1,300 meters, and look at the medieval church that has cared for pilgrims for the last 1,000 years. It is a good place to have a coffee with a brandy that is produced in Galicia called “Orujo”. From the hill we go down to the valley on a road that follows the Camino de Santiago and visit the Benedictine monastery of Samos, which contains many historical facts that we can learn from. We will continue to Sarria where you can have lunch in one of the many pilgrim restaurants

In the afternoon we headed along the Camino to Portomarín, a town that was moved to the heights because it used to be in a valley that was often flooded. It will be our last stop before reaching Santiago de Compostela, the goal of pilgrims for the last 1000 years. Pilgrims of all nationalities flock here. Many have walked approx. 800 km from the French border, while others have traveled the last 100 km from Sarria. However, everyone is entitled to a pilgrim certificate and everyone meets at the pilgrim fair which takes place every day at 12:00, and everyone is greeted in various languages. We are also welcome even though we have driven the whole trip and stayed in lovely hotels

Day 7.- Santiago
In the morning we will visit the cathedral and attend the Pilgrim's Mass at 12:00 noon. The rest of the day is free to explore the old town and experience the life of the people in a city declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO

Portuguese Camino: from Porto to O Poriño (8 days)

Day 01.- Porto
Arrival with transfer and panoramic tour of the city of Porto.
Day 02.- Porto
Free day in the city with the possibility of a full day cruise on the Douro River with lunch.
Day 03.- Portocapela De Araujo - Sao Pedro De Rates 37km
Visit of a Port Wine House and transfer by bus to Capela de Arzaujo (9.6 km). Here we start a walk to Maia (2 km), Vilar do Pinheiro (5.5 km), Mosteiro (1 km), Vilar (1.1 km), Giao (2.7 km) and Vilarinho (3.2 km). ) in total 15.7 km. We continue by bus to São Pedro de Rates (11.8km). Dinner and accommodation.
Day 04.- Sao Pedro De Rates - Pedra Furada - Barcelos 15.5km.
We walked to Pedra Furada (6km), Pereira (3.4km) and finally 6.1km to Barcelos. Dinner and accommodation
Day 05.- Barcelos - Ponte Da Lima 33 km
There are two possibilities: we can walk 9 hours or we can take the bus to Vitorino dos Piaes (21 km) and walk from there to Ponte da Lima, 12 km. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 06.- Ponte Da Lima - Rubiaes. 16.2 kilometers
Walking through Rubiaes: Arcozuelo (3.1 km), Arco (4.6 km), Alto da Portela (5.4 km, Sao Roque (5.8 km) and finally 1.3 km to Rubiaes. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 7.- Rubiaes - Valenca Do Miño - Tuy. 19.5 kilometers
This time we pass through San Bento Sanctuary (4.3 km), Fontoura (3.3 km) and Valenda do Miño (6.6 km). We then took the bus over the Miño river 3.2 km to Tuy, on the Spanish side of the border. Dinner and accommodation.
Day 8.- Tuy - Porriño
After breakfast we start our 100 km walk on the Spanish part of the Camino de Jacobeo,
Team A (those who want to walk 100 km and obtain a diploma) start the pilgrimage route, and we meet again at night at our hotel in O Poriño (15.9 km).

Photos taken by our pilgrims