Portuguese Way from Porto

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Portuguese Way from Porto

238 km from Porto in about 12 days. The Camino that works best for a group with mixed levels.

On foot · Stage by stage · 238 km · 12 stages · 2 min read

What the Portuguese Camino is like

From Porto the central route enters the Minho through Barcelos and Ponte de Lima, with gentle days between hamlets and vineyards. The only serious climb is the Labruja ridge between Ponte de Lima and Rubiães. At Tui you cross the Minho into Galicia.

It is the easiest Camino for a group with mixed fitness: stages of around 20 km, soft terrain and villages every few kilometres to wait for whoever is behind.

Key facts

TypeOn foot
Distance238 km
Start and finishPorto → Santiago de Compostela
On foot12 days, 20 km a day on average
By bike5 days, 48 km a day on average
When to goMarch to October. The coastal variant wins in summer thanks to the sea breeze.
Pick your stages

From where to where?

The whole route is 12 stages. Pick where you start and finish: always in a stage town.

Usual: 12 days.

KEAGO MAP
ⓘ© MapTiler · © OpenStreetMap contributors
Route profile238 km · 12 stages
0 m150 m300 m123456789101112

Altitude of each stage town; each stage's climbing is in its details.

12 days and 237.7 km: about 19.8 km a day and 11 nights on the way.

  1. Porto → Vilarinho26.5 kmEat: Vila do Conde
  2. Vilarinho → Barcelos27.3 km · 658 m D+
  3. Barcelos → Balugães15.7 kmEat: Vitorino dos Piães
  4. Balugães → Ponte de Lima18.8 km
  5. Ponte de Lima → Rubiães17.4 km · 666 m D+Eat: Alto da Portela Grande
  6. Rubiães → Tui19.1 km · 402 m D+
  7. Tui → O Porriño13 kmEat: Mos
  8. O Porriño → Redondela16 km
  9. Redondela → Pontevedra19.8 km · 401 m D+
  10. Pontevedra → Caldas de Reis21.1 km · 218 m D+Eat: Briallos
  11. Caldas de Reis → Padrón18.6 km · 187 m D+
  12. Padrón → Santiago de Compostela24.4 km · 405 m D+Eat: A Escravitude

Create your account and build Porto to Santiago de Compostela in 12 days.

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How to plan it

It is 12 stages and 238 km. With a week, most people start in Tui: just over a hundred kilometres to Santiago, enough for the Compostela. By bike it takes about five days; mind the Portuguese cobbles on narrow tyres.

In summer Ponte de Lima and Caldas de Reis fill up, so book them. Bag transfers run along almost the whole route, and if someone struggles, the train between Valença and Redondela lets them skip a stage without breaking the trip.

Stages

  1. Porto → Vilarinho26.5 kmEat: Vila do Conde, Rates
  2. Vilarinho → Barcelos27.3 km · +658 mThe rooster, the bridge and its pottery
  3. Barcelos → Balugães15.7 kmEat: Vitorino dos Piães
  4. Balugães → Ponte de Lima18.8 kmRoman bridge and riverside avenues
  5. Ponte de Lima → Rubiães17.4 km · +666 mEat: Alto da Portela Grande
  6. Rubiães → Tui19.1 km · +402 mFortress cathedral above the Miño
  7. Tui → O Porriño13 kmEat: Mos, Arcade (oysters)
  8. O Porriño → Redondela16 km
  9. Redondela → Pontevedra19.8 km · +401 mCar-free old town and A Peregrina
  10. Pontevedra → Caldas de Reis21.1 km · +218 mEat: Briallos, Pontecesures
  11. Caldas de Reis → Padrón18.6 km · +187 mIts peppers and Santiago church
  12. Padrón → Santiago de Compostela24.4 km · +405 mEat: A Escravitude, Milladoiro · Obradoiro, cathedral and food market

One stage a day, town to town. Approximate distance and climbing: every GPX varies a little.

Frequently asked questions

How long is Portuguese Way from Porto?238 km in total.
How many days does it take?12 days on foot (20 km average per stage); 5 days by bike (48 km average per stage).
Where do people usually sleep?The usual overnight points are Vilarinho, Barcelos, Balugães, Ponte de Lima, Rubiães, Tui, O Porriño, Redondela, Pontevedra. The stage table lists them section by section.
Where does Portuguese Way from Porto start and end?It starts in Porto and ends in Santiago de Compostela. You can start or finish at any stage end.
When is the best time to go?March to October. The coastal variant wins in summer thanks to the sea breeze.

In Keago this route becomes a plan: one card per stage with time and duration, the daily track, each night's accommodation with link and location, the meals, and both travel tickets where the whole group can see them. Everyone confirms and you know who is missing.

Create your account and keep building your Portuguese Way from Porto plan.

It is free and takes a minute.

  • Save the plan and pick up where you left off
  • Carry it on your phone, map and times included
  • Send it to your group with one link
  • Download the itinerary and the calendar
Create my accountI already have an account