Camino Portugués
28.4 km, 541 m up and 536 m down, through 15 places, 9 of which have somewhere to sleep. Where you stop is up to you.
Every place on the path in order, with the distance from Ponte de Lima. Most are too small to sleep in — a fountain, a chapel, a bar that may or may not be open — but they are what the day is actually made of.
Cross the bridge, passing the museum of toys and the albergue and turn right on the first street. The camino joins a small country lane, passes under the highway, and into Arcozelo.
Ponte de Lima has played host to a very large festival known as ‘As Feiras Novas’ every second weekend in September since 1826. It is a massive party, and if you have not made a reservation long in advance, you may find yourself without a home for the night.
The camino makes a series of well-signed turns before arriving at the Ponte do Geira. Cross and keep to your left. You will pass under the highway once, over the river on a new bridge, and then back under the highway twice, all before arriving in Arco.
A bridge crossing. The camino continues uphill, passing under the highway multiple times, and over the river on a new bridge before reaching Arco-Revolta.
The camino parallels the road (minor) for a short stretch here, and only turns left when it gets to the colorful Capilla de Codeçal. Immediately opposite the Capilla is a handy and friendly bar. It is a steady uphill climb from here, past Labruja (2.3km) and Bandeira (600m more) and to the Alto da Portela.
A hamlet on the climb from Arco to the alto. No services. Keep climbing.
A hamlet 600 m beyond Labruja. No services. The alto is close.
The alto is at 400m elevation, a healthy climb from Ponte de Lima (5m).It is steadily downhill from here along parts of the old Roman road. You will pass through the small town of Agualonga (no services) shortly before São Roque.
A small village on the descent from the Alto da Portelo. No services. The old Roman road surface survives in sections here.
The camino leaves the road for the forest and passes the Romanesque church of Rubiães and the albergue.
From the municipal albergue, descend to the road and follow it downhill and on the left-hand side. You will pass Ninho – The Pilgrim Nest and then dogleg left.Another Roman bridge is not far ahead. Beyond the bridge the camino returns to the road and crossed directly over it, keeping the bar on your right. It will rejoin and depart the road twice more before arriving in Pecene.
A Roman bridge — or rather, a 13th-century bridge on Roman foundations. The reconstruction is solid but the original may have been more elegant. The camino crosses and returns to the road, crossing it twice more before r…
Straight through town, passing between the Capela and the Casa de Capela.
The arrows in town are not the best. To get through head to the church and turn left after passing it... after taking a rest in the bosky park in front. The camino keeps to the forest trails through Gontumil to Fontoura.
A hamlet in the forest between Sao Bento and Fontoura. No services.
The camino rejoins a paved road before Fontoura, and then a larger one as it passes through town. On the far end of town, it turns off this road to the left and towards Paços.
A hamlet between Fontoura and Valenca. No services.
A bridge crossing on the approach to Tuido. No services.
Distance, climb and descent are measured along the GPS track for this camino — 234 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 28.2 km.
Esta entidad ha sido beneficiaria de una ayuda del Programa de incentivos a la movilidad eficiente y sostenible (MOVES III), gestionado por la Xunta de Galicia a través del Instituto Enerxético de Galicia (INEGA) en el marco del Real Decreto 266/2021, y cofinanciada por la Unión Europea — NextGenerationEU, dentro del Plan de Recuperación, Transformación y Resiliencia.