Oia to Santiago, Camino Zen (Self-Guided)

Relax on your first night in this beautiful coastal village, which is also home to the Royal Monastery of Santa Maria de Oia and typical Galician restaurants and cafes.

From Oia, you will walk along a coastal footpath away from the main road. After 10km, you will continue along gorgeous coastline on boardwalk with stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean and the Cies Islands.

The way out of the stunning town of Baiona will have you alongside a sandy beach for most of the day. You will have regular opportunities to stop in cafes along the beach. You will then enter the very active city of Vigo, which will reach after a 3km walk through the harbour.

On this trip, we will transfer you from Vigo to the start of your walk today in Redondela (10km from Vigo). Once dropped in Redondela, you will join the traditional Portuguese Way. You will start seeing more pilgrims along the Camino. You will pass through typical Galician landscape with rural areas and lush green Eucaliptus forests. Before the halfway mark, you will cross Ponte Sanpaio where Napoleon troupes were defeated.

The arrival into Pontevedra offer a slightly shorter but along the road option or a slightly longer shaded option. Your final stop of the day has a lovely center with pedestrian streets and lovely cider bar/restaurant behind the church.

Passing chestnut groves, the Camino leaves Pontevedra and runs parallel to the railway for a while. After passing through the hamlet of Ponte Cabras, we encounter the rectory of Santa Maria de Alba, tucked away among pine and eucalyptus trees. Emerging from the dense woods of Lombo da Maceira, you’ll see a statue of St James, his staff pointing the way to proceed. Passing the lovely village of Tibo, with its fountain, public washing place and stone cross, brings us to Caldas de Reis.

Exiting the town, we take a bridge over the River Umia that leads us to a fountain of hot spring water that has lent the town its name since Roman times. Entering the woods once more, the Camino makes its way gently uphill to the hamlet of Santa Marina. Going downhill, we cross the river Fontenlo. Finally, we catch up again with the river as we arrive in Padron. Padron is famous for being the first land sighted by the ship bearing the body of St James.

The Camino passes through many small hamlets before arriving at the Baroque sanctuary of A Esclavitude. On a hilltop to the left stands the mysterious ruins of the hillfort Castro Lupario. A few kilometres later, we come to the oldest wayside crossing in Galicia. As we near Agro dos Monteiros, it’s now possible to see the spires of the cathedral in Santiago. Finally, the Camino passes by the ruins of a castle known as A Rocha Vella, before entering the city of the Apostle.

After breakfast, we bid you farewell.
If you wish to stay in the area, we recommend that you:
– Take your time and visit the magnificent historic centre of Santiago.
– Continue with us along the wild Camino Fisterra (Finisterre Way), and stay overnight at the hotel in the lighthouse!
– Or take a bus to Fisterra to visit the unspoilt sandy coves and beaches of the west coast. With very few tourists, you are guaranteed a very special experience. Buses depart from Santiago Bus Station at 9am and 10am. Buses return to Santiago at 4:45pm and 7pm. The journey takes 3 hours.