10 sections

	Via de la Plata Section 1 Walk from Seville to Monesterio - 108 km 6 Days/5 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round		Via de la Plata Section 2 Walk from Monesterio to Merida – 112 km 7 Days/6 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round
	Via de la Plata Section 3 Walk from Merida to Caceres - 78 km 6 Days/5 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round		Via de la Plata Section 4 Walk from Caceres to Placensia – 84 km 6 Days/5 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round
	Via de la Plata Section 5 Walk from Placensia to Salamanca - 134 km 8Days/7 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round		Via de la Plata Section 6 Walk from Salamanca to Zamora – 69 km 5Days/4 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round
	Via de la Plata Section 7 Walk from Zamora to Puebla de Sanabria - 159 km 9Days/8 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round		Via de la Plata Section 8 Walk from Puebla de Sanabria to A Gudiña - 53 km 5 Days/4 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round
	Via de la Plata Section 9 Walk from A Gudiña to Ourense – 91 km 7 Days/6 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round		THE LAST 100KM. Walk 1 week and get your Certificate! Via dela Plata Section 10 Walk from Ourense to Santiago de Compostela - 110 km 7Days/6 Nights, Half Board, hotels en-suite, year round

Information

This is the longest of all the Caminos. It travels through the provinces of Ourense, Pontevedra, and A Coruña, crossing nature reserves of great cultural and ecological heritage. Due to its length, this itinerary offers many alternative routes and a number of notable entry points into Galicia from Northeast Portugal. The Southeast Way is actually an extension of the Roman road known as the Via de la Plata, which connected Emerita Augusta (Merida) with Asturica Augusta (Astorga), and crosses the western part of the Iberian Peninsula from south to north, travelling over the basins of the Tajo and Duero Rivers. The Way was laid out in early Christian times with older roads providing a convenient template.

During the early Middle Ages, the route was still in use; first with the Visigoths and later under Islamic rule. The term "Via de la Plata" (the Silver Way) is derived from the Arabic Bal'latta, which the Moslems used to describe this wide, stoned-paved public way, leading north to the land of the Christians. It was used, in part, by the infantry of Cordoba during the military expedition conducted by Almanzor against Santiago in August 997. The term Via de la Plata is somewhat of a misnomer then, as it has nothing to do with the mining – or trade – of silver.

In the late Middle Ages, the route was once again Christianised by the Andalusian Mozarabs, who found making the pilgrimage to Santiago less perilous following the conquest of Seville and Cordoba by Ferdinand III. With the return of the cathedral bells to Santiago, the route between Cordoba and Santiago entered a new era; from 1250 the Way was used by pilgrims from Andalusia and Extremadura. Some would continue on to Astorga, linking up with the French Way, while others would take the cut-off leading to Puebla de Sanabria – A Gudina-Laza/Verin-Ourense-Santiago, which made the route shorter and more direct. The way that passes through Laza is 214km in length, whereas the route through Verin is 233 km. A third possibility takes pilgrims through Northeast Portugal, towards Braganca or Chaves, entering Galicia in the southern part of the province in the direction of Verin, continuing along towards Laza or Xinzo de Limia. These itineraries all converge in the city of Ourense. From there, the route continues as far as San Cristovo de Cea. Many pilgrims sought the hospitality offered by the monastery at Oseira. Others preferred to hurry on to Dozon. From this location, they would set out for Lalin, Silleda, Ponte Ulla and Santiago.

There were pilgrim hospitals in Verin, Monterrei, Xunqueira de Ambia, Allariz and Ourense. The Hospital of Saint Lazarus was founded in Verin. Monterrei was the site of a pilgrim hospital – the entrance of which still stands bearing an inscription with the date of its foundation (1429), although it is known that accommodation was offered to pilgrims in the county refuge as early as 1320. The hospital in Xunqueira de Ambia, built in the vicinity of the collegiate church by Alonso de Pina, is recorded in Ourense archives as dating from 1520-1540. This centre could accommodate more than one hundred pilgrims from Spain and elsewhere. The pilgrim hospital of Allariz was founded between the 13th and 14th centuries. The building is still standing, and the symbols of Santiago and Saint James can still be seen carved on the facade. In the city of Ourense there was the hospital of San Roque, located on the site of the modern day promenade, the Alameda do Concello, that attended to the sick, the poor as well as the pilgrims. The elegant Renaissance portal still stands in the Praza da Trinidade – the frontispiece bearing an image of Saint James the Pilgrim.

Another institution worthy of mention is the Monastery of Oseira. In the cloisters and hospital of this monastery, which date back to the 12th century, the Cistercian monks would care for the pilgrims.

As for the military orders in charge of safeguarding the Way, one of the most important is the Order of Saint James, on the Laza-Xunqueira-Ourense route. The Santiago commandery of Barra protected the stretch going from Codesedo, at the foot of Monte Talariho. Here, there is a roadside shrine to Vilar de Gumareites. The Order of Saint John of Jerusalem (later the Order of Malta) set up a priory in 1170 and was responsible for protecting the Vilanova Bridge and the Way at the far end of this royal town. The late 12th-century Romanesque church is still standing; this, along with the medieval bridge, constitutes a site of great historical historical significance. The Knights Templar were based in Santa Marina de Aguas Santas and shortly before they were repressed, they had begun to construct a church on the site of the "Forno da Santa".

In the province of Pontevedra stands the chapel of the Holy Spirit, as well as a small hospital in A Estrada. In 1589, a native of A Estrada, Juan Gonzalez de Figueroa, bequeathed his house to be used as a hospice for pilgrims travelling to Santiago de Compostela.

Stages of the Via de la Plata

This is the list of the sections and stages of our Walking holidays on the Via de la plata. Click on the Camino section to go directly to the walking holiday.

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