Camino Finisterre hiking guide: route map, stages & where to stay

The Camino Finisterre (in Galician Camiño de Fisterra-Muxía) is the only route of the Camino de Santiago that starts in Santiago de Compostela instead of ending there. It runs west through the green hills of Galicia to the Atlantic at Fisterra, which the Romans thought was the end of the known world, and then north along the Costa da Morte to Muxía. It is waymarked with yellow arrows and stone markers with the scallop shell, and most people walk it in 4 or 5 days, sleeping in pilgrim hostels (albergues).

The route

The walk starts at the cathedral on Praza do Obradoiro and soon leaves the city for woods and farmland. It crosses the river Tambre on the old stone bridge at Ponte Maceira and reaches Negreira. The second day is the longest: through quiet villages such as Vilaserío and Santa Mariña, over the highest ground of the route (about 470 m), to Olveiroa. Soon after Olveiroa, at Hospital, the way splits: one branch goes to Cee and Fisterra, the other to Dumbría and Muxía. After a 13 km stretch with no services, the path drops steeply to the sea at Cee, follows the coast through Corcubión and along Langosteira beach, and enters the fishing town of Fisterra. The lighthouse on Cape Fisterra is a further 3.4 km each way, on a road and path above the sea. The last day goes north across the peninsula to the river mouth at Lires and over the hills to Muxía, ending at the Virxe da Barca sanctuary on the rocks.

This guide follows the route as mapped on OpenStreetMap: Santiago to Fisterra via Cee, then Fisterra to Muxía. It splits it into 5 stages, about 23.0 km each, ending at the towns with public albergues. The total climb is about 2,000 m. The walk to the cape and back is not counted in the stages.

Highlights

• Ponte Maceira: a stone bridge over the river Tambre, in a village often listed among the most beautiful in Spain
• The descent to Cee: wide views over the Corcubión estuary and the Atlantic after two days inland
• Cape Fisterra: the lighthouse from 1853, the waymark stone that marks the end of the Camino, and the sunset over the ocean
• Langosteira and Lires: a long sandy beach before Fisterra and a quiet estuary halfway to Muxía
• Muxía: the Virxe da Barca sanctuary on the rocks by the sea, and the A Ferida sculpture that remembers the Prestige oil spill of 2002
• The Fisterrana and the Muxiana: free certificates for pilgrims who finish at Fisterra or Muxía

When to walk the Camino Finisterre

You can walk the Camino Finisterre all year, and the public albergues are open all year. The sea keeps winters mild, but this is one of the rainiest parts of Spain, so bring good rain gear in any month. May to June and September to early October usually have the best mix of weather and space in the albergues. July and August are the busiest months. In winter many private albergues close, so check before you go. In 2026 the public albergue in Olveiroa is closed from 28 September to 13 October.

How many days do you need?

The 5 stages in this guide take 5 days. Many walkers do Santiago to Fisterra in 4 days and take a bus back; strong walkers sometimes do it in 3. The second stage, Negreira to Olveiroa, is 33 km; you can split it at Vilaserío or Santa Mariña and take 6 days in total. You can also walk to Muxía first: from the Hospital junction it is about 27 km to Muxía via Dumbría, and then about 28 km along the coast to Fisterra.

Getting there and logistics

Santiago de Compostela has an airport and a railway station. You can use the credencial (pilgrim passport) from your Camino or get one at the Pilgrim Welcome Office in Rúa Carretas, near the cathedral. Public albergues of the Xunta de Galicia in Negreira, Olveiroa, Fisterra and Muxía cost 10 € a night and cannot be booked, so arrive in the afternoon; they open at 13:00. Private albergues cost about 15 to 20 € and most take bookings. There are no shops or bars between Hospital and Cee (13 km) or between Lires and Muxía (14 km), so carry water and food. Monbus buses connect Fisterra, Cee and Muxía with Santiago.

Difficulty

The Camino Finisterre is an easy to moderate walk on country lanes, forest tracks and some roads. The climbs are short; the highest point is under 500 m. The hard part is the distance: two days are around 30 km. Rain, mud and long stretches of asphalt are the usual problems. Wild camping is not allowed in Galicia, so plan to sleep in albergues, hotels or campsites.

History

The cape at Fisterra (from Latin finis terrae, "end of the earth") was seen as the end of the known world in Roman times. In the Middle Ages, hospitals were set up along the road from Santiago so that pilgrims could continue to the cape. The lighthouse was built in 1853. Muxía has long been a place of pilgrimage to the Virxe da Barca; its sanctuary burned after a lightning strike on 25 December 2013. The Compostela is only given for walking to Santiago, so the towns at the end give their own certificates: the Fisterrana and the Muxiana.