Bike tour Portuguese Way of Saint James

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS

✓ Complete the Portuguese Way to Santiago following routes which are older than the nation itself
✓ Stay overnight in a selection of the best hotels
✓ Visit award-winning winemakers and stay overnight in a centuries-old manor house with silver and bronze medals in world competitions for green wine (Vinho Verde) production
✓ Spend two nights at the exceptional Medieval fortress Parador de Baiona, the arrival point of one of the ships of the Columbus fleet
✓ Ride along bucolic rural landscapes and past monuments from the time of the Crusades
✓ Conquer the medieval Town of Santiago de Compostela

EAT

Sample local seafood and fish such as scallops, mussels and octopus.

Black pork and goat kid, highest quality local olive oil, tapas

Local restaurants and taverns carefully selected for their authenticity and quality

DRINK

Douro reds, Alvarinho green wine with seafood.

Local craft beers.

TOUR ITINERARY

DAY 1:

ALONG THE MINHO RIVER

Welcome to Portugal!

Your guides will meet you at your Hotel in Porto or at the airport and transfer by van to Ponte de Lima, one of the oldest towns in Portugal.

After a coffee and an individual bike fitting we’ll hop on our bikes and head out for the first ride. If the longest journey begins with one step, ours will start across the monumental Roman bridge of Ponte de Lima.

Today we will ride along the river on a quiet and bucolic hard-packed, dirt bike path, ideal to get used to the bike, which will take us to the village of Ponte da Barca.

Check into our Hotel, a manor house by the Lima river, and explore the camellia gardens and paths along the river before our traditional dinner – Ponte da Barca is known for its hearty food like kid, sirloin steak or trout.

Meals: Picnic Lunch / Dinner
Destinations: Ponte da Barca
Accomplished: 18km ride, elevation gain: 80 meters
Accommodations: Hotel Fonte Velha

DAY 2:

FROM ONE VALLEY TO THE OTHER

Today we travel from Lima valley to Minho valley, just like thousands of pilgrims have done in the past centuries.

We’ll first ride through Arcos de Valdevez, an historic mark on our history and closely related to the birth of our nation, and up on the hills be surprised by Sistelo village – also known as the portuguese Tibet – a tiny village up on the hills, proclaimed as one of the Portuguese 7 wonders, which is now a UNESCO candidate site.

Our Hotel is a manor house chosen by the french general, when in 1808 napoleon troops invaded Portugal. Meet Adriano and Sofia, our hosts and winemakers who have been producing prized Vinho Verde (the local green wine) and taste their Alvarinho with a strong peach aroma, winner of several medals in International wine contests.

Meals: Breakfast/ Picnic Lunch / Dinner
Destinations: Monção
Accomplished: 53km ride, elevation gain 800 meters
Accommodations: Hotel Solar de Serrade

DAY 3:

INTO SPAIN

Ride along the Minho river through pastures and vineyards, to the international steel bridge a 19th century bridge inspired by the Eiffel Tower which separates Portugal from Spain.

On one side Valença and its medieval walled fortress, on the other Tui and its late Romanesque Cathedral. Up to here we will be riding 18km flat along the “rails to trails” bike lane, from here we have the famous ascent through the Monte Aloia Natural Park and then descent into Baiona, where we will stay overnight in the Parador.

It was here that La Pinta – one of the ships of the Colombo fleet – landed and spread the good news of Columbus’ arrival in the Indies (not India, as they believed). This is our favorite Parador when it comes to location, a walking path sandwiched between the Atlantic and the Parador fortress wall will open up the appetite for our tapas dinner.

- Meals: Breakfast/ Picnic Lunch / Dinner
- Destinations: Baiona
- Accomplished: 50km ride, elevation gain 850 meters
- Accommodations: Parador de Baiona

DAY 4:

BAIONA LOOP

The most common symbol of the “Way” is the scallop shell. Not only it is evidence of the proximity to the sea (Santiago de Compostela is very close to the Atlantic Ocean) and as such used by medieval pilgrims as a symbol of its successful journey, but also the structure of its shell (roads converging at one point) symbolizes the confluence of paths to the holy city.

Today we are going to experience this other route, the Portuguese Way of Santiago along the coast, with the blue sea framing the serene and ancient monastery of Oia, the bustle of the fishing port of “A Guarda”, the verdant valley of “O Rosal” with corn from the Americas and its water mills.

The local community here keeps semi wild horses up on the hills, car traffic is so insignificant that horses and sheep feed on the fresh grass along the road, we will be secluded and only hearing the animal bells until our return to civilization and the coastal villages.

Your guides are happy to recommend their favorite local restaurants for dinner.

Meals: Breakfast/ Picnic Lunch
Destinations: Baiona
Accomplished: 63km ride, elevation gain 780 meters
Accommodations: Parador de Baiona

DAY 5:

ALONG THE OCEAN

For the first 20km of this stage of the Portuguese Way of Santiago we will be riding on a flat bike path along the sea, the bays and beaches – to the fishing town of Vigo. Galicians say that when God created the Earth, he reached out to Galicia to form the Rias with his fingers, we will go around a part of these fingers.

According to several studies, about a quarter of the population of Europe in the fourteenth century carried out this risky and harsh epic journey that is the Way of St. James. We will be far from these challenges but what awaits us after crossing the town of Vigo is a “mountain stage” on our scale, with privileged panoramic open views of the Cies Islands providing the motivation for the tapas that await us in Cinco Calles, Pontevedra.

Bicycles and cyclists, all have a right to rest in the Historic Parador of Pontevedra, a XVI century Renaissance Palace. The city is an important stopover on the Caminho de Santiago that bears witness to the circular Church of the Pilgrim’s Virgin, boasting a floor plan in the shape of a scallop shell. Have a cerveza with the tapas and research the local restaurant scene for dinner on your own.

Meals: Breakfast/ Picnic Lunch

Destinations: Pontevedra
Accomplished: 65km ride, elevation gain 1000 meters
Accommodations: Parador de Pontevedra

DAY 6:

THE FAMOUS PEPPERS!

Get ready for the wildest ride of the trip. The presence of pilgrims and references to the Way becomes more and more intense, the thermal village of Caldas de Reis is no exception and another chance to stop for stamping our pilgrim credentials.

After crossing the Ulla River and passing by an active franciscan convent, we know that we have reached Padron, the village where – according to legend – the ship with the remains of the apostle Santiago docked.

A must for a Rias Baixas wine and the famous Padron peppers!

Meals: Breakfast/ Dinner
Destinations: Padron
Accomplished: 68km ride, elevation gain 1300 meters
Accommodations: Os Lambrans

DAY 7:

ARRIVING IN SANTIAGO!

Today’s ride is shorter allowing a free afternoon to explore Santiago. A ticket to heaven and the forgiveness of sins were the rewards when arriving in Compostela, and although today most of us are not moved by these same motivations, we feel that we have reached a stage in life. We no longer find the dying pilgrims in survival mode, but we can be sure that everyone feels the spiritual element of the Way – be it a Strava cyclist with their timed stages or the heavy-laden backpacker.

The tension increases a few kilometers before, but it is when we cross the door of the Faxeira – the official entrance of the Portuguese Way of Santiago – and we navigate through the medieval streets to Praça do Obradoiro and the Santiago Cathedral, that we will be fulfilled.

After receiving our Pilgrim credential, the best in Galician gastronomy awaits us at the farewell dinner.

Meals: Breakfast/ Dinner
Destinations: Santiago de Compostela
Accomplished: 40km ride, elevation gain 730 meters
Accommodations: Hotel Monumento Convento de San Francisco

DAY 8:

FAREWELL

Sleep in or take an early morning stroll in Santiago.

After breakfast your guides will transfer you back to Santiago de Compostela airport and / or to Porto.

Today we do not say goodbye, we say ‘See you soon!’

EL CAMINO ITINERARY MAP

ARRIVAL DETAILS:

Airport City: Porto, Portugal
Pick-Up Location: Porto city center or Porto airport, Portugal

DEPARTURE DETAILS:

Airport City: Porto, Portugal
Drop-Off Location: Porto airport, Portugal
Drop-Off Time: noon

INCLUSIONS + DETAILS

ACCOMMODATION

✓ 7 nights in Hotel
✓ Of the Spanish Paradores, Baiona is probably our favorite due to its location and history. Other inns range from small boutique hotel, a 13th century convent, a manor house and winery, and selected accommodations that reveal the true character of the region
✓ Luggage transfers
*if a given hotel has no availability we will select an alternative as similar as possible to the hotel listed on the programme

MEALS

✓ Daily breakfasts, nutritious snacks
✓ 5 gourmet dinners at our favorite local restaurants
✓ 5 delicious picnics/lunches including a selection of local products
✓ Carefully selected wine and beer with every meal

ACTIVITIES

✓ Activities as outlined in the tour itinerary
✓ Entrance fees to historic sites, museums, parks, and all other events
✓ Gratuities for restaurants and hotel service

GEAR

✓ High quality bicycle selection
✓ Bike helmet
✓ Complimentary Olive Cycling t-shirt, water bottle

SUPPORT

✓ Experienced local bilingual guides with vast knowledge of the country and the region
✓ Support vehicle that follows the day’s route, distributes water and snacks, and offers lifts when you need a break from the saddle
✓ Pick-up and drop-off before and after your tour from predetermined meeting points
✓ Daily bike maintenance

NOT INCLUDED

✓ Flights / personal expenses / Tips

BIKES

KTM Life Track Touring

KTM Macina Sport 9 A+5 e-bike

KTM Macina Action 291

Trek Domane SL 5 – Carbon Road Bike (Adds €225)

Pinarello Angliru Disk – Carbon Road Bike (Adds €350)

2019 KTM Macina Mezzo – ERoad Bike (adds 350 euros)

TOUR GUIDES

Gonçalo Ramalho

Vitor Pinho

Why choose to ride the Portuguese Caminho?

It’s the second most popular route to Santiago.

It’s more tranquil than the French route and not as demanding, physically speaking, as the Northern route.

All of its stages offer us plenty of history and monuments to discover, together with plenty of bucolic and quiet forests in between.

Climate wise it’s also the mildest of the Caminho. This combination makes the Portuguese Caminho an excellent choice for beginners on the Caminho.

One can find all kinds of inspiration and reasons to ride the Portuguese Caminho. You will meet pilgrims to whom have been given a short life span, and you will hear tragic stories from pilgrims traveling through their mourning process, resembling the Emilio Estevez movie – The Way – that recently boosted the notoriety of the Caminho de Santiago, but what moves most cyclists we meet along the way is the scenery and history.

PRICING + DATES + AVAILABILITY

DATE	PRICE	AVAILABILITY
26 April – 03 May	3.680€	Available
20 – 28 May	3.680€	Available
02 – 10 June	3.680€	Available
13 – 21 June	3.680€	Available
30 – 07 July	3.680€	Available
08- 17 July	3.680€	Available
26 July – 02 August	3.680€	Available
30 August – 06 September	3.680€	Available
06 September – 13 September	3.680€	Available
04 – 11 October	3.680€	Available

Single Supplement: 700€

Difficulty Level: 3, 4. Requires minimum fitness (e-bikes) or reasonable fitness (traditional bikes), some longer climbs.