---
title: "Portomarín → Palas de Rei"
description: "Second Sarria–Santiago stage: 24.8 km to Palas de Rei, with the Alto de Ligonde — the highest point of the whole stretch — and the detour to Vilar de Donas."
url: https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/stages-sarria-santiago/portomarin-palas-de-rei
locale: en
---

# Portomarín → Palas de Rei

Stage 2 of 5

24.8 kilometres with the hardest climb of the whole stretch: the Alto de Ligonde, the highest point between Sarria and Santiago.

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

![Fachada nocturna iluminada de la iglesia fortaleza de San Nicolás de Portomarín, con su rosetón románico, junto al Camino Francés](https://santiago.es/img/portomarin-2.jpg)

[© Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 4.0](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iglesia_de_San_Nicol%C3%A1s,_Puertomar%C3%ADn,_Camino_de_Santiago,_Lugo,_Espa%C3%B1a,_2015-09-19,_DD_15-17_HDR.jpg)

**Portomarín–Palas de Rei stage card**

| Distance | Approx. time | Elevation | Difficulty |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 24.8 km | 5h45-6h30 | +519 m / −353 m | 2 of 5 |

From Portomarín's 330 metres you climb steadily — nothing impossible, but no let-up either — to around 725 metres in the Ligonde and Airexe area: the **Alto de Ligonde**, the highest point on the whole route between Sarria and Santiago. This is where it shows who trained before setting out. Past that top, the second half of the stage goes back to the gentle rolling typical of rural Galicia.

## The route, village by village

You leave Portomarín crossing the Miño bridge again and pass Toxibó (3.7 km) before reaching Gonzar (7.7 km), with a bar and a Xunta hostel. Then Castromaior (9.3 km, Albergue Ortiz, 12 €) and Hospital da Cruz (10.8 km, with a public hostel and the Hostal El Labrador). In Ventas de Narón (12.7 km) there are three hostels, several bars and a fountain: it is the usual mid-morning stop.

The climb is felt above all between Ventas de Narón and Ligonde (17.6 km, with the Albergue La Fuente del Peregrino), and Airexe (18.8 km, which also has a Xunta hostel).

Optional detour: Vilar de Donas

From Ligonde or Portos a detour of 1.5 to 2.5 km (one way) leads to **Vilar de Donas**, a 12th-century Romanesque church — San Salvador — that was the historic pantheon of the Knights of the Order of Santiago in Galicia. Worth it if you are not in a hurry: it is one of the least photographed corners of the Camino Francés.

## Where to sleep in Palas de Rei

The Xunta's public hostel, **Os Chacotes**, sits a kilometre short of the centre. It costs **10 € per person per night**, the rate the Xunta itself publishes for its whole network; guides still quoting 8 € predate the last rise. The town also has more than eight private hostels, with dorms between 10 and 20 €. Guide prices for 2026.

Stamp in Portomarín on the way out and again halfway, in Ventas de Narón or Ligonde: that covers the minimum of two daily stamps the [Compostela](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/compostela-certificate) asks for. If you are travelling in high season, leave Portomarín before 7:30-8:00 so you do not end up [without a place in the public hostels](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/beds), which take no bookings.

Sigue leyendo

**[Sarria → Portomarín](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/stages-sarria-santiago/sarria-portomarin)** — Stage 1 — The first day, with the 100 km marker on it. — Leer la guía

**[Palas de Rei → Arzúa](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/stages-sarria-santiago/palas-de-rei-arzua)** — Stage 3 — 28.5 km, the longest day of the stretch. It goes through Melide. — Leer la guía

**[Where to stay in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay)** — After the Camino — From the 1499 Parador to the 10 € hostels, with real areas and prices. — Leer la guía