Pontedeume → Betanzos

It is the shortest stage of the route's first half, but not the gentlest: it piles up more climbing per kilometre than the Ferrol day itself, with a hill out of town that tests your legs the moment you start. After that it calms down, and the final stretch into Betanzos makes up for it with one of the prettiest historic towns on the Camino Inglés.

The route, village by village

Leaving Pontedeume is the hardest part of the day: a hill with ramps of over 20% best taken calmly, with no hurry to set a pace and, if you can, with as light a pack as possible. After that opening effort you reach Viadeiro (6.3 km, with a café) and soon A Ponte Baxoi (7.5 km), where there is a medieval bridge and the only café between Pontedeume and Miño — it opens at 8:00, so it is no use for a very early breakfast.

Miño (9.6 km) has every service and a beach that invites a stop if the weather plays along, though it pays to stay alert: just after crossing the footbridge over the railway you have to turn 180 degrees, a reversal easily missed if your mind is elsewhere. The path carries on to A Ponte do Porco (11.3 km), with another N-651 crossing, and the medieval Lambre bridge (13.1-13.9 km, with a bar), before reaching San Martiño de Tiobre (17.7 km), with its 12th-century Romanesque church, already at the gates of Betanzos.

Where to sleep

The Xunta hostel, known as Casa da Pescadería, is right in the old town and charges the standard 10 €/night; depending on the source it has between 35 and 49 beds. Among the private ones: the Convento de las Agustinas Recoletas (about 15 €), Albergue Río Mandeo (about 18 €, open March to October) and Santa María del Azogue (about 20 €). Guide prices for 2026.