---
title: "Betanzos → Hospital de Bruma"
description: "Third Camino Inglés stage: 24 km over the route's biggest cumulative climb, with almost 11 km without a single bar at the start."
url: https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/english-way/betanzos-hospital-de-bruma
locale: en
---

# Betanzos → Hospital de Bruma

Stage 3 of 5

24 kilometres, the route's biggest cumulative climb, and the loneliest day of the five: almost 11 km without a single bar the moment you leave Betanzos.

[By Cesar Rodriguez · local guide](https://santiago.es/en/author)

**Betanzos–Hospital de Bruma stage card**

| Distance | Approx. time | Elevation | Difficulty |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 24.0 km | ~6 h | +630 m / −273 m | 3 of 5 |

Gronze, the reference guide for this route, describes it as the theoretically hardest and loneliest stage of the whole Camino Inglés, and officially scores it 3 out of 5. The number does not tell the whole story: it is the one with the most climbing of the five days, and that physical demand combines with real isolation — almost 11 km without a single bar right after you set out — that makes it feel harder than the figure suggests.

## The route, village by village

You leave Betanzos and reach Cos (7.5 km), with its church but no bar open; then comes a narrow road with no verge as far as Presedo, so walk with an eye on the traffic. Presedo (11.4 km) is the day's first real resupply: it has a municipal hostel 200 metres off the route, with about 14 beds, and an inn some 500 metres away that closes on Mondays.

Then Leiro (13.5 km), the last service before another long stretch of nothing, on to Beche (16.6 km), with a picnic area with tables and toilets worth stopping at. Near the end, at As Travesas (21.4 km), there is a bar-tobacconist, Casa Avelina, and it is also where the branch coming from A Coruña joins — a shorter start which, walked on its own, falls below the [100 km the Compostela requires](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/compostela-certificate). From there it is a little over 2.5 km to Hospital de Bruma (24 km), with its chapel of San Lourenzo and the Casa Graña bar barely 60 metres from the hostel.

No bars for hours: carry supplies

This stage has two long stretches with no services at all: about 11 km between Betanzos and Presedo, and another 8 km between Leiro and Beche. Leave Betanzos with water and some food on you, because you will find nowhere to restock until well into the day. Watch the AC-542 crossing at As Travesas too, with fast traffic, and use the few stops to check your feet: long stretches like these are where [blisters usually turn up](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/blisters).

## Where to sleep

In Hospital de Bruma there is only one option on the route: the Xunta hostel, at the standard **10 €/night**, about 20 beds and no bookings possible. If it fills there is no plan B in the village itself — you would be looking for a guesthouse about 2 km away or a taxi to Ordes — so it is worth leaving Betanzos early to arrive with margin; the guide on [what to do if the hostel is full](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/beds)covers exactly this kind of squeeze. The pilgrims' hospital that gives the place its name is documented from the 12th century: for centuries it was the only shelter on the inland part of this route, in a wooded, thinly populated area. Nothing remains of the original building; the current hostel occupies the same site, beside the chapel.

Sigue leyendo

**[All the Ferrol–Santiago stages](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/english-way)** — Back to the hub — The full summary of the five days, with the logistics of reaching Ferrol included. — Leer la guía

**[Hospital de Bruma → Sigüeiro](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/english-way/hospital-de-bruma-sigueiro)** — Stage 4 — 24.4 km short on services and with no public hostel at the end: you have to plan where to sleep. — Leer la guía

**[Where pilgrims end up without a bed](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/beds)** — If it fills up — Our own table of villages, routes and months where people were actually turned away. — Leer la guía