Ponte Ulla

Via de la Plata

Camino Sanabrés

Camino de Invierno

To end of camino
21.4
Altitude
65

San Miguel de Castro

2.70

Ponte Ulla

4.30

Outeiro (San Pedro de Villanova)

Services
Bar
Yes
Grocery
Yes

Día grocery store on the way out of town; stock up if you are going to the albergue in Outeiro. Excellent panadería and bakery in town right on the Camino, in the block or two after you cross the river.

Bar Ríos. Immediately across the bridge on your right. Tel. 981 512 305. Restaurant and rooms available. Room prices seem to vary by season, from 10-15-20 €, based on what pilgrims have reported. Food reported to be quite good. Menú del día 12€, with additional charge for wine after the first glass.

Pensión O Cruceiro da Ulla; tel. 981 512 665; info@ocruceiro.es. Located across the street from the Día grocery store. Newly constructed, functional, good service and good prices. They also have an albergue.

Hostal Churrasco de Juanito; tel. 981 512 619. Located on the Camino, soon after crossing the river. 30€ room, 14€ menú reported as overpriced and not great. A pilgrim walking in October 2014 said he got a room for 15€ and a meal for 8€, so walking off-season appears to have its financial benefits. More negative than positive reports on this establishment, however.

For any foodies out there, the Restaurante Villa Verde is the place to go. Walk straight from the bridge into Ponte Ulla. When you get to the intersection with the AC-240 road, to the left is the Camino. Turn right, go up the hill and in a few minutes you’ll see the Restaurante on the right side of the road, located in an old stone house, very pretty. No menú del día, all a la carte. One 2016 pilgrim describes a yummy meal for 42€, which is probably beyond the typical pilgrim budget. It may be worth a splurge, though, because the pilgrim enjoyed a feast of home-smoked salmon over fresh tomatoes, roballo (my favorite Galician/Portuguese fish, maybe something like sea bass in English ??), and a walnut and banana torte. Coffee and a few glasses of albariño.

The Road

The camino follows briefly a section of the N-525 as it leaves Ponte Ulla; this section can be a bit dangerous so keep an eye open for the two times it leaves the road. The first is to your left, so you’ll need to cross the road. The second is to your right which means you will have to cross back. 500m separate the two crossings. If these crossings sound unnecessarily dangerous to you, you are not alone.

After the second crossing, the camino returns to safer side roads as it climbs to Outeiro.

City Map
Accommodation in Ponte Ulla

Comments

Camino de Sant… (not verified)

Route is improved and we'll sign posted.

Camino de Sant… (not verified)

I walked this stage in early 2023 and it seems they have rerouted the Camino so you no longer have to cross the highway. There's a new marker that takes you down slightly to a service road .... Just stay on the right, it's quite obvious.

I could still see an arrow on the other side of the road but if you follow the new markers it feels safe.

Happy walking!

Camino de Sant…

Okay for a night out of the albergue but not anything more.

Camino de Sant…

My advice is to not cross the highway. It’s very dangerous three Lane Highway 90 km/h with you blind turned on each end. My advice is to walk along the right side of the highway where there’s a concrete divider between you and the road. I stupid at the Camino makes you cross this highway walk a little bit and then cross it again when you can just walk alongside the road and get there and it’s much much safer.