Ferreira

Camino de Santiago stage town on Camino Primitivo

Ferreira (often signposted A Ponte Ferreira) is a tiny rural parish of Palas de Rei, in the Ulloa district, and the usual end of the first stage out of Lugo on the Camino Primitivo — about 26 km by most guidebooks. The day leaves Lugo's walls by the old bridge over the Miño and the chapel of San Lázaro, site of a former leper hospital, then follows the quiet LU-2901 local road and asphalted farm tracks with little climbing; it is an easy but shadeless day, so carry water. San Vicente do Burgo, with its 18th-century Baroque church, has a bar just off the route, and a signposted 2.5 km detour leads to Santa Eulalia de Bóveda, an enigmatic late-Roman, half-buried temple with painted birds on its walls — one of the most unusual monuments in Galicia (check opening hours before you go). The village takes its name from its small single-arch stone bridge over the River Ferreira, traditionally called Roman, on the old road between Lugo and Iria Flavia. There is no Xunta albergue here: the public ones are in San Romao da Retorta, about 7 km earlier and small, and As Seixas, roughly 5.5 km further on. Ferreira instead has several private albergues, including Albergue Ponte Ferreira in a restored stone house some 300 m past the bridge and A Nave de Ferreira, most of them seasonal (roughly spring to October) and offering communal dinner and breakfast, which matters because the village has few other services. Book ahead in high season. Tomorrow's 20 km to Melide crosses the Sierra do Careón into A Coruña province and joins the Camino Francés.

• 218 kmfrom route start
• 558 mElevation
• 15.1 kmfrom Lugo
• 31.2 kmto Melide

Highlights

• Usual end of the ~26 km first stage from Lugo: mostly quiet asphalt with little climbing
• Small single-arch stone bridge over the River Ferreira on the old Lugo–Iria Flavia road
• Signposted 2.5 km detour to the late-Roman temple of Santa Eulalia de Bóveda
• No Xunta albergue — several private, mostly seasonal albergues with communal dinner; book ahead
• Next day: about 20 km over the Sierra do Careón to Melide and the Camino Francés

Albergues in Ferreira

No albergue on file yet — search all accommodation below.

Stages through Ferreira

Nearby towns

Nearby stages

Frequently asked questions

How far is Ferreira from Lugo?

15.1 km from Lugo, 31.2 km to Melide on the Camino Primitivo.