--- title: "Parador de Santiago de Compostela: the Hostal dos Reis Católicos" description: "The Hostal dos Reis Católicos, a 1499 pilgrim hospital on the Obradoiro: real rates, seeing it without staying, the €16 pilgrim breakfast, the free meal." url: https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay/parador locale: en generated: 2026-10-27T06:41:16.632Z --- # Parador de Santiago de Compostela: the Hostal dos Reis Católicos Sleeping The pilgrim hospital Ferdinand and Isabella paid for in 1499 is now the five-star Parador on Praza do Obradoiro. What a night inside costs, how to see it without staying, and what is still on offer for pilgrims. **Where** Praza do Obradoiro, 1 **Category** 5-star Gran Lujo **Room with breakfast** from ≈ €174 **Pilgrim breakfast** €16 ![Fachada del Hostal dos Reis Católicos vista desde la balaustrada de la escalinata del Obradoiro, con la portada plateresca en el centro y luz de atardecer](https://santiago.es/img/reis-catolicos.jpg) [© Angel Torres · CC BY 2.0](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hostal_dos_Reis_Cat%C3%B3licos._Praza_do_obradoiro._Santiago_de_Compostela.jpg) By [Cesar Rodriguez](https://santiago.es/en/author) The **Parador de Santiago de Compostela** is the long building on the north side of Praza do Obradoiro, on your left as you face the Cathedral: the former Royal Hospital, known as the **Hostal dos Reis Católicos**and now a five-star “Gran Lujo” hotel in Spain’s state-owned Paradores chain. As of 26 October 2026, a room for two with breakfast runs **roughly €175 to €300 a night**on ordinary dates this autumn and winter, and a lot more in 2027. It’s worth it if you want one memorable night (the end of your Camino, an anniversary) and care about waking up inside the monument. It isn’t if you just want a central bed: five minutes away there are characterful hotels for half the price. And you don’t have to sleep there to get in: both restaurants are open to the public, and pilgrims get breakfast for €16. ## What the Hostal dos Reis Católicos is The Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, put up the money in **1499** for a hospital to shelter and treat pilgrims who reached Santiago sick or penniless. Building work, to designs by the royal architect **Enrique Egas**, began in 1501 and took about ten years; the Latin inscription along the Plateresque doorway dedicates it to the “sick and pilgrims”. It stayed a hospital until **1953**, reopened as a luxury hotel in **1954** and joined the Paradores network in 1986. Inside are four courtyards (two Renaissance ones, San Juan and San Marcos, and two later ones) and, according to Paradores, more than 140 paintings by the Madrid School, the largest set of them anywhere in the chain. Paradores bills it as **the oldest hotel in Spain**, and you will often read “oldest hotel in the world”. Take that with a pinch of salt: the building has housed travellers for more than five centuries, but it has been a hotel since 1954. For the square around it and the Cathedral itself, see [what to see in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/what-to-see). One practical warning: the building is **under restoration**. Turespaña, the state tourism agency in charge of the works, finished the Royal Chapel in 2023 and is working on a second phase covering the façades, the San Juan and San Marcos courtyards, drainage and lighting (El Español, 22 April 2026). Local press was still debating the metal pipes fitted to the gargoyles in October. We have not found an end date we can confirm. ## How much a night at the Parador de Santiago costs These are the rates the calendar on the official Paradores page showed on 26 October 2026: the “Best available” rate, one room for two adults, **breakfast included**. Paradores quotes them with Spanish VAT included. Treat them as a guide only: the chain moves prices daily with demand, and the same night can cost twice as much a week later. **Parador de Santiago: nightly rate in the official calendar (checked 26-10-2026)** | Month | Usual range | Watch out for | | --- | --- | --- | | November 2026 | €194–263 | €364 on 1 November | | December 2026 | €204–274 | €500 half board on the 24th; €635 on the 30th and 31st | | January–February 2027 | €174–263 | €312 on 25 January, €345 on 3 February | | March 2027 | €184–294 | €364–374 from the 25th to the 28th | | April 2027 | €364–484 | up to €584 on some days | | May 2027 | €409–696 | many days already sold out | | June 2027 | €364–687 | some days sold out | | July 2027 | €334–429 | 24 July sold out | | August 2027 | €344–394 | | The pattern is clear. This autumn and winter there are plenty of nights under €210, and **prices rise in the 2027 Holy Year**: from April to August 2027 not a single night is below €334, and the night the Holy Door opens (31 December 2026) is already at €635. If you are coming for the [Xacobeo 2027](https://santiago.es/en/xacobeo-2027), read [when Santiago fills up](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay/when-santiago-fills-up) too. Two costs the nightly rate leaves out, according to the notice on the booking page itself: - **Tourist tax**: €2.75 per person over 18 per night, for up to five nights, paid at the hotel when you check out. - **Parking**: €24 a night, subject to availability on arrival; it cannot be booked ahead. If you drive in, give your plate number at reception, because the Obradoiro is a restricted-traffic zone and an unregistered car can be fined. To see the rate for your own dates, the [Parador de Santiago page on paradores.es](https://paradores.es/en/parador-de-santiago-de-compostela) has a month-by-month calendar with every day priced; days with no figure have no rooms left. ## How to see it without staying The reliable way in is **to eat there**. The Parador has two restaurants open to non-guests, and tables can be booked on the Paradores website: - **Dos Reis**, the formal dining room under stone arches, Galician cooking built on produce: lunch 1:00–2:45 pm, dinner 7:45–10:45 pm. - **Enxebre**, the casual one, with traditional Galician sharing plates (empanada, Arzúa and Tetilla cheeses, caldo gallego, fried eggs with zorza): lunch 1:00–4:00 pm, dinner 8:00–11:00 pm. - The **café** is listed as open from 10:00 am to 1:00 am. Hours are as published on each [restaurant page](https://paradores.es/en/restaurant-enxebre-parador-de-santiago-de-compostela) on 26 October 2026. Spaniards eat late, so a 1:30 pm lunch or a 9:00 pm dinner is normal here. For the rest of the city, see [where to eat in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-eat). **We can’t confirm building tours right now.** For years you could pay a €3 entry to see the courtyards and chapel, but the official [Santiago tourist board page](https://www.santiagoturismo.com/monumentos/hostal-dos-reis-catolicos) says, as of 26 October 2026, that visits are **cancelled because of the restoration**, with no return date. Before planning around it, ask at reception or email santiago@parador.es. ## For pilgrims: the €16 breakfast and the free meal for the first ten If you have just walked in and are wondering whether you can treat yourself, there are two separate things here. The first is official and current: the [Paradores special pilgrims’ rate](https://paradores.es/en/special-camino-de-santiago-pilgrims-rate), valid until 29 December 2026, gives you in Santiago: - **Buffet breakfast for €16** if you are not staying at the Parador. - **15% off the Enxebre menu** (not at Dos Reis), drinks excluded, whether you are staying or not. - **15% off the Parador rate** for room and breakfast, for stays of up to three consecutive nights. In all three cases you show your stamped, dated credencial or your Compostela; how to get it is in [our Compostela guide](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/compostela-certificate). The second is the tradition: **a free meal for the first ten pilgrims of the day**. The Enxebre page on paradores.es still says today that the Parador “maintains the custom of offering a free meal to the first 10 pilgrims” who come through its doors with their Compostela. What we could not confirm for 2026 is how it works on the day. According to El Correo Gallego (April 2024) and the Fundación Jacobea (December 2023), you pick up a voucher at the Pilgrim’s Office when you collect your Compostela, and the meal is a set menu from Enxebre at 1:00 or 1:30 pm (the two sources disagree). Some English-language sources mention breakfast, lunch and dinner; Paradores itself only mentions one meal. If you want to try, ask at the Pilgrim’s Office as soon as you arrive: there are only ten a day. The rest of your first hours in the city are covered in [arriving in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/arriving). ## How to book, and which discounts exist Booking direct on paradores.es usually gives you the most options, because the chain’s own discounts only apply there. The ones it publishes today that work in Santiago: - **Amigos de Paradores**, the loyalty scheme: free to join, 5% off the Parador rate when you book on the website or app, and a free buffet breakfast for two on your first booking as a member (with the promo code, within six months of signing up). - **Non-refundable rate**: 15% off the Parador rate if you book at least seven days ahead, with no cancellation. - **Pilgrims’ rate**: the 15% above, with a credencial or Compostela. They cannot be combined. The Paradores offers page lists no youth or over-55 rate today; if you see one advertised elsewhere, check it on the official site before counting on it. [AlternativeParador de Santiago - Hostal Reis Católicos on Booking.comHandy for comparing the price of your dates with paradores.es and for reading guest reviews in English. Paradores' own discounts don't apply here.See it on Booking.com](https://www.booking.com/hotel/es/hostal-reis-catolicos.en-gb.html) ## If the Parador doesn’t fit If the price or your dates don’t work, there are hotels with character a few minutes from the Obradoiro: convents, manor houses and old-town homes turned into hotels, with guide prices, in [boutique and heritage hotels in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay/boutique-hotels). To choose an area and budget from scratch, from pilgrim hostel to four-star, start with [where to stay in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay). Guide prices Every price on this page was read on the official Paradores website on 26 October 2026 and changes daily. The pilgrims’ rate and its €16 breakfast run until 29 December 2026: after that, check whether Paradores renews it. ## Frequently asked questions **Can you go inside the Parador de Santiago without staying there?** Yes, to eat: its two restaurants, Dos Reis and Enxebre, are open to the public and tables can be booked on paradores.es. Tours of the courtyards and chapel, however, are listed as cancelled for restoration work on the Santiago tourist board page as of 26 October 2026, with no return date. **How much does a night at the Parador de Santiago de Compostela cost?** In the official calendar on 26 October 2026, a room for two with breakfast ran from about €174 to just over €260 on ordinary dates between November 2026 and March 2027. From April to August 2027 no night is below €334, and some are above €680. The tourist tax and parking are extra. **Do the first ten pilgrims still get a free meal?** Paradores says on its website, as of 26 October 2026, that it keeps the custom of a free meal for the first ten pilgrims who show their Compostela. We could not confirm how it works in 2026: according to sources from 2023 and 2024, the voucher is handed out at the Pilgrim's Office. **Can a pilgrim have breakfast at the Parador without staying?** Yes: with your credencial or Compostela, the buffet breakfast costs €16 for pilgrims who are not staying, under the Paradores pilgrims' rate, valid until 29 December 2026. ## Keep reading **[Boutique & heritage hotels](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay/boutique-hotels)** — Sleeping beautifully — Convents, manor houses and old-town homes turned into hotels, with guide prices. — Read the guide **[Where to stay in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/where-to-stay)** — The full guide — Areas, real prices and what to expect from each part of the city. — Read the guide **[Arriving in Santiago](https://santiago.es/en/camino-de-santiago/arriving)** — For pilgrims — The Compostela, the pilgrims' Mass and what to do in your first hours. — Read the guide