Vía de la Plata
8.5 km, 103 m up and 169 m down, through 7 places, 3 of which have somewhere to sleep. Where you stop is up to you.
Every place on the path in order, with the distance from Ligonde. 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.
Ligonde has a small albergue and may have a bar operating. A medieval cemetery next to the church is a reminder of the village's historical connection to the pilgrim route.
A small hamlet with a bar and an albergue. The Iglesia de Santiago has a simple Romanesque form.
A hamlet with a bar between Eirexe and the detour to Vilar de Donas.
You will pass through Os Valos and Mamurria, no services.
A hamlet on the approach to Palas de Rei. No services.
A hamlet near Palas de Rei. No services.
From here the camino passes through more forests and nears the road at Rosario.
Along the descent from here you will pass Os Chacotes, a recreational area with a log-cabin style hotel and sports facilities. At the entrance to Palas de Rei is the Iglesia de San Tirso, where a stamp is available. From there it is down a set of stairs into town.
You have now entered eucalyptus territory, and although there are patches of old oak forests to be found this non-indigenous species has taken over the landscape and has become a symbol of Galicia.
Distance, climb and descent are measured along the GPS track for this camino — 138 recorded points across this span, the same track the app carries. The town-to-town figures in my data put it at 8.5 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.