Stage 33 / 33 · Camino Francés · Galicia
O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela
The stage from O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela is 20.2 km, about 5 h 30 min on foot, with 330 m of total ascent and 330 m of descent.
| Distance | 20.2 km |
|---|---|
| Estimated time | 5 h 30 min |
| Elevation gain / loss | +330 m / −330 m |
| Difficulty | Moderate |
| Highest point | 391 m |
| Lowest point | 251 m |
| Villages with services | 5: O Pedrouzo, Amenal, Lavacolla, Monte do Gozo, Santiago de Compostela |
| Longest stretch without services | 6.3 km |
| Updated |
All stages · Camino Francés · O Pedrouzo: what to see and where to stay
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Today on the Camino
Finding where you are…
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To Santiago de Compostela—
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Where to stay in Santiago de Compostela
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Pilgrim hostels in Santiago de Compostela(3)
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Elevation profile
300 m400 m500 m ▲ 391 m O PedrouzoSantiago de Compostela
Official route and distance by the Xunta de Galicia; elevations from a digital terrain model.
Map
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What you will see on the way
Amenal, Lavacolla airport (where medieval pilgrims washed before entering) and Monte do Gozo, from which the cathedral towers first appear. You enter via San Lázaro, the Porta do Camiño and the Rúa das Casas Reais to the Praza do Obradoiro. Hug the Apostle, see the botafumeiro (if it swings) and collect your Compostela at the Pilgrim’s Office. It is 20.2 km with 330 m of climbing, skirting the airport runway, and a high point of 391 m before Monte do Gozo; from there almost 5 km of city remain.
History of Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela, capital of Galicia, is the goal of the Camino de Santiago, and its cathedral holds the tomb attributed to the apostle St James the Great, found, according to tradition, in the early 9th century. Its old town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985, and the Camino since 1993.
A tomb found in a forest, a cathedral that survived Almanzor and a square where every Camino ends.
What not to miss in Santiago de Compostela
- Cathedral and Pórtico da Gloria
- Praza do Obradoiro: Baroque façade where all routes arrive
- Hostal dos Reis Católicos: former royal pilgrim hospital
Origins and the Camino
Tradition says Bishop Teodomiro of Iria recognised the Apostle’s tomb in the Libredón forest after the hermit Paio alerted him, and King Alfonso II ordered the first church.
In 997 Almanzor sacked the city, but the tomb survived. The Romanesque cathedral was begun in 1075; Master Mateo dated the Pórtico da Gloria 1188, and the Obradoiro façade was carved between 1738 and 1747.
Anecdotes, curiosities and legends
Legend tells that the disciples Athanasius and Theodore brought the Apostle’s body in a stone boat. Queen Lupa sent them to the Pico Sacro, home of a dragon, and gave them wild oxen that, once tamed, pulled the cart to Compostela.
Tradition holds that Almanzor carried the cathedral bells to Córdoba on the backs of Christian captives, and that in 1236 Ferdinand III ordered them returned.
Pilgrim tip
2027 is a Compostela Holy Year because 25 July falls on a Sunday, and only in Holy Years is the Holy Door on Praza da Quintana opened.
Legends & tradition
Kneeling on Monte do Gozo
In 1105 Archbishop Diego Gelmírez had a chapel built on this hill, where pilgrims knelt to give thanks. From here many who had come on horseback walked the rest of the way, some of them barefoot.
Source: es.wikipedia.org
The Saint of the Head-Bumps
Inside the cathedral, facing the altar with its back to the square, kneels a small stone figure that tradition takes for the sculptor’s self-portrait. Pilgrims and students used to tap their heads against it, croques, hoping some of his genius would rub off.
Source: es.wikipedia.org
Villages along the way
| Village | km | Altitude | Services |
|---|---|---|---|
| O Pedrouzo · Places to stay | 0 | 280 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
| Amenal | 3.6 | 270 m | Bar |
| Lavacolla | 9.9 | 300 m | BarWater fountain |
| Monte do Gozo | 15.1 | 370 m | BarATMWater fountain |
| Santiago de Compostela · Places to stay | 20.2 | 260 m | BarShopPharmacyATMDoctorWater fountain |
© OpenStreetMap
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