Camino dos Faros: Malpica to Camarinas in Comfort

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Day 1: Arrival in Malpica

Malpica is situated close to A Coruña. Once you arrive and check in at your lovely hotel, walking around the town and visiting the quaint port can be a good option before taking a look at the restaurants to decide where to have a tasty fish or seafood dinner today. 

• Overnight at Hotel Fonte do Fraile (or similar)
  

Day 2: Malpica to Barizo | 13.2km

During the first walk, you get directly into the mood of the Camiño dos Faros as you follow gravel roads and small, sometimes uneven and exposed footpaths along the coast, passing a beach, a chapel and the Sisargas islands. The route ends at the doorstep of your rural seaside hotel near Barizo. Dinner is not included because the hotel only serves ‘a la carte’ menus. And you might want to try next door’s restaurant “As Garzas” awarded with a Michelin star in 2018 (but remember to book in advance).

• Walking for the day: 13,2km,5 h, ↑400m ↓400m
• Overnight at Hotel Casa da Vasca (or similar)
  

Day 3: Barizo Circular Walk | 13-16.2km

Today you walk first to the Faro Nariga, one of the most famous lighthouses of the Costa del Morte. After the lighthouse, you continue to the beautiful beach of Niñons, where you can either take a taxi back to your hotel or start the return route along gravel roads that service a windmill park.

• Walking for the day: 16,2km, 6.5-7h, ↑720m ↓720m (shorter option: 13km, 5h, ↑615m ↓615m)
• Overnight at Hotel Casa da Vasca (or similar)

Day 4: Roncudo to Ponteceso | 14-18km

To avoid a long stretch of steep coastal footpaths through a vast empty area, a taxi will take you in the morning to the tiny hamlet of Roncudo. From there, you either follow the Camiño along winding footpaths to the cape O Roncudo, after which there is no alternative for a 3km tarmac lane until you reach the fishermen’s village of O Corme OR you take a shortcut to O Corme.

After a coffee break at O Corme you have to choose again: between the long spectacular Camiño along the coast with some exposed parts, or a shorter, higher route through shady woods before you reach the extensive sand plateau that separates the river mouth of Ponteceso from the Atlantic Ocean. Finally, you walk along a long stretch of sandy trail before you reach Ponteceso, where a taxi will take you to your modern beach hotel in Laxe.

• Walking for the day, low route: 18km, 6.5h, ↑525m ↓650m
• Walking for the day, high route: 14km, 4.5-5hours, ↑325m ↓450m
• Overnight at Hotel Vida Mar de Laxe (or similar)

Day 5: Laxe to Camelle | 15.3km

A beautiful stretch of coastline and one steep hill separate Laxe from the large sandy beach of Traba. The dunes have been violated by the ocean on several occasions, thus creating a wetland with lagoons that attract many birds. After a swim or a meal at the only bar-restaurant along the route today, you follow an old coastal ox-trail, that has been carved into the granite rock and winds around strange wind-sculptured rock formations. In the harbour of Camelle, a taxi picks you up for a transfer back to Laxe because there is no hotel nearby.

• Walking for the day: 15,3km, 5,5h, ↑485m ↓485m (alternative walk less exposed for rainy and windy days: 12km, 4h, ↑275m ↓275m)
• Overnight at Hotel Vida Mar de Laxe (or similar)
  

Day 6: Arou to Mourin/Camariñas | 13.6km

Our recommended route for today starts at the village of Arou and takes you first along two tiny harbours before you climb up Europe’s highest dune. Then a genuinely wild scenery awaits as you descend and cross a chain of small beaches called Praias de Trece. You finally reach the Cemetry of the English, a symbolic burial place to honour the lives of sailors and passengers that died in three shipwrecks that happened on this coast between 1883 and 1893. The last kilometres are easy as you hike along a gravel road for a while (taking some shortcuts close to the coast at times) before you head into the woods and walk to the doorstep of your cosy hotel, where you will also have dinner tonight.

NOTE: For those who prefer less exposed and easier routes, or on days with strong winds, there is an alternative high route starting near Sta Mariña, that offers the view across the Praia do Trece before you reach the cemetery.

• Walking for the day: 13,6km, 5h, ↑415m ↓375m (alternative route: 12km, 4-4.5h, ↑270m ↓385m); If your accommodation tonight is in Camariñas, the walk will be 2km longer: 15.6km, 5.5h, ↑415m ↓420m
• Overnight at Hotel Puerto Arnela (or similar)
  

Day 7: Mourin to Camariñas | 13km

As you walk back to the coast from Mourin, you will be surprised by the dramatic location of the most imposing lighthouse on the route: the Cabo Vilán, also the first electrified lighthouse of Spain. You can visit the house (now it holds a visitors’ centre and café) before you continue along the coast, past a modern fish factory and a chapel located on a hilltop above Camariñas. Today’s route is relatively short, which allows you to have a longer lunch at the Arnelo restaurant in Camariñas. We recommend visiting the small museum dedicated to the typical handcrafted lace of Camariñas. After lunch, you walk back to your hotel or order a taxi when it’s time to return for dinner.

• Walking for the day: 12-13.9km, 4-4,5h, ↑270m ↓385m
• Overnight at Hotel Puerto Arnela (or similar)

Day 8: Departure

After breakfast, a taxi will take you to Vimianzo, where you can get on the bus to either Coruña or to Santiago.

Click to view default hotels

• Hotel Fonte do Fraile  (Malpica)
• Hotel Casa da Vasca (Barisco)
• Hotel Vida Mar de Laxe (Laxe)
• Hotel Puerto Arnela (Camariñas)

*Hotels are subject to availability. In case a particular hotel is fully booked for your desired dates, we will replace it with a hotel of equal or higher value and quality level. We will provide exact accommodation details to you upon booking confirmation.