Camino Francés: Sarria to Santiago · Stage 1
Sarria to Portomarín: 22 km, 4 h 35, medium to high difficulty, the Xunta says. Out of Sarria past Santa Mariña, the Salvador and the convent of A Madalena, then a steep descent to the Ponte Áspera, about 1 km beside the railway and the hardest climb of the stage, up to Barbadelo and its Romanesque church. Oak woods and meadows by Ferreiros to the descent to the Miño, and over the bridge into Portomarín, rebuilt above the Belesar reservoir in the 1960s. The line ends at the bridge; the village, its public albergue and most beds are a few hundred metres up the hill.
Best season: All year; rain much of the year in Galicia. The Xunta says Galicia is humid, with rain much of the year; the hottest days, in July and August, reach 25 to 30 °C, and inland minimums can fall to 0 to 5 °C. It advises never walking at night, before dawn or after sunset: the Way is marked for walking in daylight. Before you go
Facts read from the guide's sources and OpenStreetMap on 1 October 2026. A page can change after we read it, so confirm with your accommodation before you rely on a date or a bed.
Stage start
Town
The town where most pilgrims start the last 100 km, with the Xunta’s public albergue on Rúa Maior (33 places) and about fifty more albergues, guest houses and hotels. The way out passes the Madalena convent.
OpenStreetMap lists at least 50 places to stay within about 900 m (read 1 October 2026). TrailSplits has not checked which are open.
Stage end · overnight
Town
The village rebuilt above the Belesar reservoir in the 1960s, its church of San Nicolao moved stone by stone. The Xunta’s public albergue (88 places) is on Rúa Condes de Fenosa, with many private albergues.
OpenStreetMap lists at least 29 places to stay within about 900 m (read 1 October 2026). TrailSplits has not checked which are open.
Make it your trip
By the rules in the Xunta's albergue leaflet (Albergues/Hostels), its public albergues take no bookings, except for pilgrims with a disability. Beds go in this order: pilgrims with a disability, on foot, on horseback, by bicycle, with a support vehicle, and last those who start the Way at that albergue, so on a first night in Sarria you come last at its public albergue. You stay one night at most, for €10 in 2026; they open 13:00 to 22:00, you leave before 08:00, and you show your credential to get in. Private albergues, guest houses and hotels are booked directly.
The Xunta's six stages, a night in each stage town: the last 100 km for the Compostela.
Loading the forecast for low point (320 m) and high point (667 m)…
Typical weather on this stage: at the lowest point (320 m) and the highest point (667 m). Select a month to see why it is rated as it is.
| Month | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weather | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Mixed | Mixed | Good | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed |
| High point, day / night | 10°/3° | 12°/2° | 14°/4° | 16°/5° | 19°/8° | 23°/11° | 25°/12° | 27°/13° | 24°/11° | 19°/8° | 13°/5° | 11°/3° |
| Low point, day / night | 12°/4° | 13°/4° | 16°/6° | 17°/7° | 21°/9° | 24°/12° | 26°/14° | 27°/14° | 25°/12° | 20°/10° | 15°/7° | 13°/5° |
| Rain, mm | 194 | 141 | 151 | 128 | 99 | 60 | 30 | 46 | 87 | 210 | 223 | 219 |
| Snow at high point | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Daylight | 9 h 21 | 10 h 31 | 11 h 51 | 13 h 20 | 14 h 36 | 15 h 19 | 15 h 03 | 13 h 59 | 12 h 34 | 11 h 08 | 9 h 47 | 9 h 04 |
Source: TerraClimate 1991–2020 monthly averages. Averages for the area at each point’s elevation (4 km grid, corrected for height). Not a forecast or a report of current trail conditions. Snow at the high point is estimated with a simple snowpack model from these temperatures and precipitation, not observed; steep islands and high summits can hold more snow than it shows. Daylight is for the 15th of each month. Hut, transport and park seasons are separate: check them for your dates.
Before you go
Arrange your stays, food and travel first, then check conditions again near departure.
The Pilgrim's Office in Santiago gives the Compostela to those who walk at least the last 100 km on one recognised route, ending at the cathedral, made in a Christian spirit, even if only as a search, its pages say; on the Camino Francés it counts from Sarria or Barbadelo. Others can ask for its certificate of distance. The Xunta asks for two stamps a day in the credential over that stretch. Credentials come from the Pilgrim's Office or from bodies the Cathedral authorises, such as parishes, albergues and pilgrims' associations; bring one with you, as the public albergues ask for it.
Pilgrim's Office: the CompostelaRúa Carretas 33, closed on 25 December and 1 January; you take a QR ticket to queue. Its FAQ gives 08:00 to 20:00 from Easter Monday to 31 October and 10:00 to 19:00 in winter, its reception page 9:00 to 19:00, and it may close up to an hour early when busy: check before you arrive.
Pilgrim's Office: receptionBetween Arzúa and O Pedrouzo the Way runs on the N-547 in places and crosses it several times: watch the traffic. Do not walk at night or before dawn, carry a small first-aid kit and no more than 10 kg, the Xunta advises. The public albergues must be left by 08:00, and from October the sun rises later than that: wait for the light, and wear something bright or reflective on the roads. In an emergency call 112.
Xunta: advice for pilgrimsGetting there
Travel around Sarria to Portomarín.
Google Maps journey searches, not confirmed services. A mountain endpoint may need a booked transfer or an additional walk.
Sarria has a station on the long-distance line from Madrid by Ourense to Lugo and A Coruña or Ferrol, the Xunta says; check Renfe for the current trains.
Xunta: connections to the starting pointsThe Xunta lists Monbus from Lugo bus station to Sarria bus station: 13 buses on weekdays and 7 on Saturdays and Sundays, about 30 minutes, €3.70 (read 1 October 2026).
Xunta: connections to the starting pointsThe Way passes Santiago airport at A Lavacolla on the last day; from the city, bus 6A runs to the airport.
Aena: Santiago airport by busTake your trip with you
Prepare each stage while you have a connection, and test it offline before you set out.
Keep your route and maps on your phone for places without a signal. For multi-day trips, prepare them in the installed TrailSplits app.
Saving a bookmark is not a map download. Storage can be cleared by your device; keep a backup map for remote trips.
Route & sources
The Xunta gives 114.8 km in six stages from Sarria to Santiago. For the Compostela, the Pilgrim's Office counts the Camino Francés on foot from Sarria or Barbadelo. The line here is the route on OpenStreetMap (relations 2163565 and 2163559 of the Camiño Francés, planet of 28 September 2026), 114.3 km from the Xunta's albergue on Rúa Maior in Sarria to the cathedral, cut at the stage ends; it runs within about 170 m of the Xunta's own route file throughout. Leaving Sarria the Xunta also marks a way straight to Ferreiros that skips Barbadelo; the line takes the way by Barbadelo.
Official guidance and mapped-source comparison checked 1 October 2026. Map data is a route reference, not confirmation of today's path, weather or accommodation availability.
Xunta de Galicia: the Camino FrancésMap data © OpenStreetMap contributors · Source relation