Variante Espiritual

At a Glance

• Start / Finish: Pontevedra → Padrón (Galicia) — Branch off from the Camino Portugués Central, rejoin the same route
• Length: 79.9 km — including the boat leg; only about 49 of those are walked. The direct Central section Pontevedra–Padrón that it replaces measures 40.4 km — so on foot it's barely 10 km more
• Ascent/Descent: ↗ 1,365 m / ↘ 1,379 m — and since elevation doesn’t increase over water, these figures are spread out entirely over the approximately 49 kilometers of the run: about 28 meters of elevation gain per kilometer, with most of it on the climb from Combarro to the Armenteira Monastery
• Duration: 4 days (3 land stages + 1 boat stage)
• Boat stage: Vilanova de Arousa → Pontecesures, the only regular ferry crossing in the entire Camino de Santiago network — €32 one-way, tide-dependent departure between 8 and 9 a.m., from November through March for groups only (as of August 2026)
• Marking: Yellow arrows and shell-shaped markers, maintained by the municipality—reliable on the rural sections (signage updates in 2021 and 2024); the alternative walking route along the water is sparsely marked
• Access route: the Camino Portugués Central—the turnoff is about two kilometers past Pontevedra; if you're coming from the Portuguese Coastal Way, you'll find yourself there as well
• Connection: Back on the Camino Portugués Central in Padrón — about 24 to 25 km to Santiago
• Status: Created by hiking enthusiasts and local communities in 2011/2012; recognition as a separate Way of St. James was requested but not granted—the Pilgrim Office does not recognize this variant as a separate route, and the kilometers traveled by boat do not count toward the Compostela; the Galician Federation of Pilgrimage Associations (FEGAC), however, lists it in its route directory (as of August 2026)
• Character: A monastery, a mill gorge, wine country, and mussel rafts—three very different days plus a boat ride on the Traslatio line; four hostels at €10 each, but only one of them at the end of the first leg, and that one has 16 beds

Overview

Between Pontevedra and Padrón The Camino Portugués follows a straight route through Caldas de Reis. The Variante Espiritual takes a detour to the west—and turns that detour into three of the most unusual days of the entire route: at the monastery Poio on to the sixty hórreos of Combarro, which stand on granite bases overlooking the Ría, then seven kilometers up Monte Castrove to the Cistercian monastery A Armenteira, on the second day through the Mühlenschlucht gorge of the Ruta da Pedra e da Auga down into the Albariño region of Val do Salnés — and on the third day, you'll board the Vilanova de Arousa into a boat. 79.9 kilometers The total distance is measured, but you’ll walk only about 49 of those yourself: The rest is the only regular boat leg in the entire Camino de Santiago network, out into the Ría de Arousa, passing between the mussel rafts and up the Río Ulla, past seventeen stone cruceiros in the water, until the Roman bridge at Pontecesures blocks the path of every ship.

The reason for the arch lies in the oldest story associated with the Way of St. James: According to tradition, the body of the apostle around A.D. 44 by ship from Jaffa, traveling up this very estuary and river to Iria Flavia, now known as Padrón. This version doesn't simply retell the Traslatio—it reenacts it. The path itself, on the other hand, is young, and it is honest about it: 2011/2012 made up of hiking enthusiasts and communities from O Salnés, and its leader, Tino Lores, refers to it as"un invento" — a fabrication. Yet people still believe him, in droves: about 5,000 pilgrims in 2017, 23.845 in 2024, an average of 160 per day. There’s just one thing to keep in mind before taking the first step: The nautical miles don’t count toward the Compostela — The most beautiful part of this journey is the one that doesn't count.

A stone boat, a bird, and a path that acknowledges its own creation

First, the stone boat. The tradition—which dates back to as early as the Breviarium Apostolorum of the 6th century, canonized in the Codex Calixtinus On the 12th—the disciples Theodorus and Athanasius take the apostle's body around A.D. 44 from Jaffa, in a stone boat, up the Ría de Arousa and the Ulla to Iria Flavia bring. Queen Lupa refuses to grant the burial site, sends the two to face wild bulls that are tamed, and converts when a dragon is also slain—the burial forest of Libredón becomes Compostela. The water that your boat plows through on the third day is this stretch, and it is furnished: 17 stone cruceiros are located in and along the water; according to the Xunta, they form the world’s only maritime-fluvial Way of the Cross—from a boat, you can see about eleven of them, depending on the tide. There’s nothing medieval about them: they were erected by between 1963 and 1965 a lawyer named José Luis Sánchez-Agustino, using donations from government agencies and private individuals. At the destination lies the rock that gave the town its name: the Pedrón Beneath the high altar of Santiago de Padrón—a Roman altar dedicated to Neptune, which legend says served as the mooring post for the Apostles’ boat. Both are true, depending on which question you ask.

The bird sings at the end of your first day. Ero, a certain Alfons VII of the Hofmann family, founded the monastery around 1150 on land he owned Armenteira; Bernard of Clairvaux sent him four monks, and his admission to the Cistercian Order is documented in 1162. He asked the Virgin Mary for a glimpse of paradise, heard a bird singing in the monastery forest—and when he returned, no one recognized him anymore. Alfonso X the Wise established the scene in the 13th century as Cantiga 103 included in his collection of Marian hymns, melody and all, and the section explicitly states the duration:“Esta é como Santa María fez estar ao monge trezentos anos ao canto da passarýa.” — three hundred years to the song of the little bird. Not two hundred, as half the internet copies from one another: The *Cantiga* says “trezentos” and the primary source trumps the travel brochure. The chorus:“Quena Virgen ben servirá, a Parayso irá.” Xosé Filgueira Valverde, a scholar from Pontevedra, wrote his doctoral dissertation on this particular cantiga — A doctoral degree after three hundred years of Vogelgesang, and the author is from your home town. Here's something to enjoy with your evening drink: The Albariño It is said that the Cistercians of Armenteira brought it to Salnés in the 12th century. The monastery where the monk listened to the bird is what brought wine to the region—you’re sleeping in the very origin of what’s in your glass in the evening.

And the honest answer: This trail has only been around since 2011/2012. Tino Lores, president of the Asociación de Amigos del Camino Portugués, has teamed up with municipalities in O Salnés to connect Poio, Armenteira, and the Ría—and he’s not fooling anyone: He himself calls the result"un invento", Pilgrims are explicitly directed to the “invento reciente.” There is no medieval route guide for this land route, no hospice, no pilgrim regulations—it was land of monasteries, mills, and vineyards. The pilgrim office in Santiago draws its conclusion from this:„the boatride does not count at all because you do not walk“ — This variant is not recognized as a separate route there, and the nautical miles do not count toward any certification; however, the Galician Federation of Hiking Associations (FEGAC) includes it on its list, and recognition as part of the Way of St. James has been requested but not yet granted (as of August 2026). And yet: 5,000 pilgrims in 2017, over 8,500 in 2019, 23,845 in 2024 — has doubled within a year, according to a big data study by the Mancomunidade do Salnés; roughly one in five pilgrims passing through Pontevedra turns off here, and three out of four come from abroad. A route that admits to being made up—and one that 24,000 people a year believe in: Lores’ statement from 2017 now sounds like a prediction that has come true:“Tenemos ruta, peregrinos y albergues, es cuestión de esperar.”

Other Names

In Spanish, the trail is called Variante Espiritual del Camino Portugués, in Galician Variante Espiritual do Camiño Portugués, internationally usually simply Spiritual Variant — The organizers are promoting it under the slogan O orixe de todos os camiños, the source of all paths. The boat leg has its own name: Ruta Traslatio, after the apostle's death. This is not the same as the Ruta do Mar de Arousa e Río Ulla — This is the shipping route managed by a foundation, featuring 17 stone crosses; it’s older than the other route and is a separate entity with its own certificate for ships. There are two things you should avoid confusing: The Padre Sarmiento Trail It also starts in Pontevedra, also passes through Poio and Combarro, and also ends in Padrón—but in between, it winds 193 kilometers all the way around the Ría de Arousa instead of crossing it: The Espiritual route cuts across the peninsula and takes a boat for the rest of the way; the Sarmiento route covers the distance on foot—on the same body of water, but alongside it. And the Ruta da Pedra e da Auga It is not the Way of St. James, but a 6.5-kilometer-long mill trail that this route simply follows on its second stage—downhill, in the direction of the beautiful scenery.

Who it's ideal for—and who it's not so ideal for

This route is for you if you’re traveling the Camino Portugués and want to trade a three-day detour for three days of scenery that the main route doesn’t offer: a Cistercian monastery with an 800-year-old legend and nuns who make soap, a gorge with over thirty restored mills, vineyards on granite posts—and then a boat ride among mussel rafts that no other Camino in the world can offer you. You won’t be alone, though: about 160 pilgrims a day, three out of four from abroad, ranging from Portugal to Taiwan—yet it rarely gets crowded, because the traffic is spread out over a long season.

To be honest, though, it's not for you if you rely on kilometers: The nautical miles don't count toward the Compostela — The Pilgrimage Office does not recognize this variation as a separate route, and anyone who starts in Pontevedra and takes the boat will have walked only about 49 kilometers by the end. If you want the certificate, start in Tui or earlier and have the 100 kilometers under your belt before you turn off—as of February 2025, they don’t even have to be the last ones before Santiago. It’s also not for you if you hear “coastal route” and expect flat terrain: 1,365 meters of elevation gain over 49 kilometers of walking is about 28 meters per kilometer, and most of that comes on the first day between Combarro and Armenteira. And between November and March, the boat only runs for groups of ten or more—so you’re left with the 36-kilometer walking route around the Ría, with plenty of asphalt and sparse markings. You plan around such gaps beforehand, not while you’re on the trail.

Route & Landscape

You'll start in Pontevedra at the Virxe Peregrina — a church whose floor plan is modeled after a scallop shell; there’s no better way to start the Camino de Santiago —, you walk across the Ponte do Burgo out of town and, after about two kilometers, turn west off the Camino Portugués. Next comes Poio with its monastery, in whose cloister a 200-square-meter mosaic depicts the European Routes of St. James (laid between 1989 and 1992 by students of the Czech artist Antonín Machourek) and behind which stands one of Galicia’s largest hórreos, then the waterfront promenade and Combarro: sixty Hórreos, stone storage structures on mushroom-shaped bases, about half of them in a row directly above the water; protected since 1972. We’re only a third of the way through the day here—after that, the trail turns inland and uphill, a good seven kilometers over the ridge of the Monte Castrove, past the petroglyphs at Chan de Valdedeus, up to the monastery A Armenteira.

The second day is the best. Right behind the monastery begins the Ruta da Pedra e da Auga, the Path of Stone and Water: 6.5 kilometers along the Río Armenteira downward, past more than thirty restored mills, small waterfalls, and stone bridges. At the bottom, the Val do Salnés, the Albariño's native landscape—vines on granite posts as far as the eye can see—and across Barrantes, Ribadumia and Pontearnelas you can reach Vilanova de Arousa, the birthplace of the poet Valle-Inclán. From there, you can't continue on foot, but rather by boat: out into the Ría de Arousa, weaving through the bateas—the mussel rafts that fill your plate in the evening—into the Río Ulla and upstream, past the Viking Towers of Catoira, to Pontecesures, where the twelve-arch Roman bridge blocks the way for every ship. The last two to four kilometers to Padrón You'll walk there on your own again—all the way to the rock that the town is named after.

Stages, Terrain & Difficulty

Expect Four days: three land legs and one boat leg — although, according to Padrón, the short final section usually ends up being part of the boat trip. The difficulty is distributed more unevenly here than on almost any other route: Day one is a real challenge, day two is a stroll with a view, and day three is a boat ticket. You have to read the elevation gain line correctly: 1,365 meters sounds moderate over 79.9 kilometers—but nothing goes uphill on the water, so the elevation gain is spread entirely over the approximately 49 kilometers that you actually walk: about 28 per kilometer. Most of the elevation gain is on the climb from Combarro to Armenteira, which really takes its toll on your legs after 15 kilometers; the rest is the rolling terrain of Salnés. Terrain: Forest trails, mill paths, village roads, and a good portion of asphalt—nothing technically difficult. All stage distances are approximate; only the total length of 79.9 km is definitive.

1. Pontevedra → A Armenteira — about 23 km — The stage with all the climbing. Start at the Virxe Peregrina, past the Ponte do Burgo, and after about two kilometers, the turnoff for the Camino Portugués. Then Poio (Monastery with a Camino mosaic and a 123-m² hórreo) and Combarro With its sixty hórreos along the water—only a third of them are done so far, but the photos have been taken. After that, things will get serious: well A 7-km climb up Monte Castrove, partly a forest trail, partly a concrete ramp, passing the petroglyphs at Chan de Valdedeus. About 6.5 hours—the most challenging stage. ⚠️ At the finish, only a hostel with 16 beds — Reserve in advance (reservations can be made starting one day in advance).
2. A Armenteira → Vilanova de Arousa — approx. 23 km — The most beautiful and easiest stage of the hike: Right behind the monastery, the Ruta da Pedra e da Auga — 6.5 km down the Río Armenteira, past more than thirty restored mills, waterfalls, and stone bridges, the Aldea Labrega. Then Weinland: Barrantes, Ribadumia, the bridge from Pontearnelas, most recently the beaches off Vilanova de Arousa. About 5.5 hours, mixed terrain.
3. ⛵ Villanova de Arousa → Pontecesures (Boot stage "Ruta Traslatio") — about 28 km on the water — The stage you won't find anywhere else. Docking at the Estación Marítima Mar de Santiago, out into the Ría de Arousa, through the bateas, then along the Río Ulla Upstream to the Roman Bridge—no boat can go any further. Travel time: 1 to 1¼ hours; along the way, you’ll see the Cruceiros in the water (17 in total; about 11 are visible, depending on the tide) and the Torres do Oeste from Catoira; Stamps for the Credencial are available on board. Departure between 8 and 9 a.m., depending on the tide — Make a reservation, don't just hope; From November through March, the boats operate only for groups of ten or more.
4. Pontecesures → Padrón — approx. 2–4 km — The finale, usually added on the same day: via the twelve-arch Roman bridge, rebuilt in the 12th century by Maestro Mateo, according to Padrón. There, the Pedrón beneath the high altar, the Casa-Museo Rosalía de Castro, Iria Flavia featuring Galicia's first cathedral and Cela's tomb—and 132 steps up Santiaguiño do Monte, where the apostle is said to have preached.

If you don't want to or can't go out on the water—whether due to seasickness, the winter months, or because you want to keep track of the kilometers—you can walk from Vilanova de Arousa to Pontecesures: approx. 36.4 km Through Vilagarcía de Arousa and Catoira, with plenty of paved roads, industrial areas, and faint markings; you shouldn't attempt this without the route in the Camino Ninja app. Anyone who wants to hike this stretch of the shoreline anyway should follow the Padre Sarmiento Route better served—it runs right through there and is signposted accordingly. The most challenging part of the entire route, however, remains the first night: A Armenteira has exactly one pilgrim hostel, and it has 16 beds.

Highlights Along the Way

• Santuario da Virxe Peregrina, Pontevedra — The starting point is a church shaped like a shell: the floor plan of a scallop shell with a cross inscribed within it, construction began in 1778, and the first Mass was celebrated in 1794. The Virxe Peregrina is the patron saint of pilgrims and of the province.
• Mosteiro de San Xoán de Poio — first mentioned in 942; in the cloister, a Camino mosaic measuring approximately 200 m², laid between 1989 and 1992 by students of the Czech mosaic artist Antonín Machourek — and behind the monastery, a 123 m² hórreo, one of the largest in Galicia.
• Combarro — about 60 preserved Hórreos (according to the Concello’s count), about half of them in a row directly above the Ría, plus seven granite cruceiros; protected as a historic ensemble since 1972. Storage rooms built into the rock, balconies overlooking the water.
• Mosteiro de Santa María de Armenteira — A Cistercian church in the austere Bernardine style: three naves, a rose window with lobed arches, and—a rarity in Galicia—a dome over the crossing; cloister built between 1575 and 1778. Cistercian nuns have been living here again since 1989—they make soap and run the Hospedería.
• Ruta da Pedra e da Auga — 6.5 km Mühlenschlucht along the Río Armenteira: over 30 restored mills, waterfalls, stone bridges, and the “Aldea Labrega.” Considered by guidebooks to be the most beautiful stretch of the entire route—you’ll be walking downhill.
• Val do Salnés and Albariño — the region where this grape variety originated, accounting for over 90% of the Rías Baixas’ total area; it is said to have been introduced in the 12th century by the Cistercian monks of Armenteira. Here, a glass of wine in the evening is part of the local tradition.
• Vilanova de Arousa — Birthplace of Ramón María del Valle-Inclán (house-museum), who further expanded the Ero legend in his 1907 work *Aromas de Leyenda*; his son Carlos initiated the restoration of the Armenteira Convent in 1961. The poet wrote down the legend, his son rebuilt its monastery—and in the harbor, your boat sets sail.
• The 17 Cruceiros in the water — which, according to the Xunta, is the world’s only maritime-fluvial Way of the Cross: twelve crosses in or by the water, five in the harbors, erected from 1963 to 1965 on the initiative of attorney José Luis Sánchez-Agustino. Depending on the tide, you can see about eleven of them from a boat.
• Roman Bridge at Pontecesures — Construction began in the 1st century; it was rebuilt in the 12th century by Maestro Mateo, the master architect of the Pórtico da Gloria; today it has twelve arches. This is where the boat trip ends—which is why the pilgrims’ boat docks here and not in Padrón.
• Padrón — the Pedrón Beneath the high altar of Santiago de Padrón: a Roman altar dedicated to Neptune, which, according to tradition, held the apostles’ boat and gave the town its name. Also worth visiting is the Casa-Museo Rosalía de Castro (Galicia’s national poet died here in 1885), Iria Flavia — until 1095, the seat of the Bishop of the Tomb of St. James — and 132 steps up to Santiaguiño do Monte.
• Herbón and the Pepper Punchline — Five kilometers away lies the Franciscan monastery, whose monks brought paprika seeds from Mexico in the 17th century: the origin of the Pimientos de Padrón, which have been protected as “Pemento de Herbón” since 2010. The saying about them remains in Galician: Os pementos de Padrón, uns pican e outros non.

How Pilgrims Find Their Way onto This Path

Almost everyone comes on foot, because this route doesn't start in the middle of nowhere, but right in the middle of the Central Portuguese Way: If you're walking up from Lisbon, Porto, or Tui, you'll spend the night in Pontevedra and make a single decision the next morning—go straight through Caldas de Reis or head west toward the water. The turnoff is about two kilometers past the town and is signposted. About 20 percent All pilgrims passing through Pontevedra now turn off the route—one in five.

The second wave is coming in from the coast: The Portuguese Coastal Trail From Porto via Vigo, it joins the Central Route at Redondela and also takes pilgrims through Pontevedra—just before that same junction. There’s one thing you should keep in mind: For the Compostela Only kilometers run count, and the boat leg doesn't count. Anyone who Tui Or, if you start earlier, you’ll definitely have covered the required 100 foot-kilometers before turning off; if you start in Pontevedra and take the boat, you’ll end up with about 49—that’s not enough. And those who do not walk the connecting route travel directly to Pontevedra (see “Getting There”) and start there—in which case it’s a hike with a boat ride, not a Compostela project.

Continue the pilgrimage?

The variant ends in Padrón, not in Santiago — and it ends exactly where it rejoins the main trail: From Padrón on, you're back on the Central Portuguese Way, back in society, and you still have about 24 to 25 kilometers Ahead of you—via Iria Flavia, A Escravitude, and O Milladoiro to the Praza do Obradoiro. This is a long but manageable day’s hike with about 400 meters of elevation gain and plenty of paved roads. You’ll arrive in Santiago on foot, and that’s exactly the point after the boat ride.

If you don't want to stop in Santiago, keep going to the end of the world: The On the Way to Fisterra leads to Cape Finisterre and Muxía in three to four stages, covering about 90 kilometers. And anyone who, after the boat ride, feels that this ría deserves more than just a brief visit will find in the Padre Sarmiento Route The long overland version of the same route: 193 kilometers from Pontevedra, all the way around the Ría de Arousa, also ending in Padrón—the same starting point, the same ending, and the entire coastline in between.

Preparation & Practical Information

The boat is the plan. Everything else on this route can be improvised, but the boat leg cannot: The season runs from March through October, with daily departures; from November through March, tour operators only run tours for groups of ten or more. Pilgrimage departures are between 8 and 9 a.m.—later time slots are for tourist trips—and The schedule depends on the tide and changes daily. Book online in advance, and the time will be listed in the confirmation; a pilgrim who showed up at the pier without a reservation paid 40 euros and didn’t leave until 2:00 p.m. There’s hardly any shade on deck, but there is wind: Make sure to pack your windbreaker or rain jacket and sunscreen at the top of your backpack, not all the way at the bottom.

The second mandatory task is the first night. And A Armenteira There is exactly one pilgrim hostel, the Albergue San Ero: 16 beds, 10 €, reservations required at least one day in advance, sleeping bags required, no stores in town—only vending machines at the hostel and bars at the monastery. It’s practically full on holidays. The Cistercian Nuns' Guesthouse Staying at the monastery is a nice alternative (25 beds in 13 rooms), but it requires at least two nights — three from July through September and during Holy Week — making it rarely practical for pilgrims traveling through the area. New hostels are being built along the route (Ribadumia with 40 beds, another one under construction at the monastery), but until they open, the rule is: secure your first night’s lodging in advance. You plan around such gaps beforehand, not while you’re on the road.

Otherwise, lead yellow arrows and seashells Reliable along both legs of the route—better than ever since the signage upgrades in 2021 and 2024; the only section with limited footing is the one between Vilanova and Pontecesures, where the Camino Ninja app guides you safely through. As on all routes to Santiago, you’ll need the Credencial, for the Compostela with two dated stamps per day During the qualification stage—you can get stamps in Poio, Combarro, at the Armenteira Monastery, and in Vilanova, on board the boat and in Padrón. Water and bars are plentiful, but things get sparse on the climb up to the monastery: The last reliable place to refill your water is Combarro. And plan your daily stages in advance, because the first night depends on the bottleneck and the day you take the ferry depends on the tide schedule—the easiest way to do this is right in the Camino Ninja app, where you can put together your stages and plan suitable accommodations at the same time.

What the journey will cost you

This route is inexpensive, but it has one feature that no other Way of St. James has: the boat ticket. The trip from Vilanova de Arousa to Pontecesures costs with the provider of this option 32 € one-way and 42 € round-trip (As of August 2026), including explanations of the "Traslatio" and "Credencial" stamps on board; some shipping companies charge €30; group boats depart with a minimum of 30 passengers. The four pilgrim hostels along the route cost €10 each — Armenteira (16 beds), Vilanova de Arousa, Pontecesures, and Padrón (48 beds, Xunta hostel since 1998) —; private accommodations range from 15–27 €, and in Vilanova up to 45 € per room. Those staying at the Armenteira monastery pay €60 for a single room and €90 for a double room, but this includes full board and requires a minimum stay of two nights; in Herbón, the Franciscan convent donativo, including a group dinner and a pilgrim’s blessing. When it comes to food, you’re in one of the best spots in Spain for a good deal: a “menú del día” for €12–16, Albariño starting at about €2 a glass—and the mussels come from the rafts you passed along the way. Realistic daily budget: 45–70 €, plus a one-time fee for the boat. The Credencial costs a few euros, the Compostela is free, and the Rosalía de Castro House-Museum charges €3.

Getting Here

The starting point is Pontevedra, and the city makes it easy for you: It's located along a railway line with frequent service Vigo – Pontevedra – Vilagarcía – Padrón – Santiago – A Coruña, From Madrid, you can take the high-speed route via Ourense. By plane You can arrive in Vigo (about 30 km away, the closest), Santiago de Compostela (most connections), or Porto—for many, the most affordable option, with good bus and train connections. Monbus and ALSA connect Pontevedra with Vigo, Santiago, Porto, and Madrid; the bus station is next to the train station. If you're coming on foot, take the Central Portuguese Way or the Portuguese Coastal Trail — Both run right through the center of Pontevedra.

Along the way, there is a second entry point that doesn't exist on any other route: the Estación Marítima Mar de Santiago In Vilanova de Arousa, the departure point for the boat leg—book tickets online in advance through the provider, and the tide-dependent departure time will be confirmed. The destination Padrón It’s on the same rail line as the starting point: the train station and bus routes connect it to Santiago and Vilagarcía in about 20 minutes. If you walk the last 24 kilometers—and you should—you won’t need to make the return trip until you reach Obradoiro anyway.

• Getting to the starting point: Flights to Vigo, Santiago de Compostela, or Porto; trains along the Vigo–Pontevedra–Santiago–A Coruña route (from Madrid via Ourense); long-distance buses (Monbus, ALSA) to Pontevedra; the bus station is next to the train station.
• Boat leg: Estación Marítima Mar de Santiago Ferry Terminal in Vilanova de Arousa — book online in advance; departure times depend on the tide; from November through March, only group trips are available.
• Return trip from Padrón: Train station and buses to Santiago (about 20 km) and Vilagarcía—those who continue on foot to Santiago will return from there.