Finisterre

Camino de Santiago, as its name indicates, finishes in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, but for ages many pilgrims continued the pilgrimage reaching Costa da Morte, in particular cape of Finisterre, which also goes with the name of the end of the known world. There was a long time in our civilization in which it was believed the world ended on that place and that there was an abyss in the deep sea where souls of the dead rested. Hence the name Costa da Morte (coast of the death) and the place name of Finisterre (the end of earth). The pilgrims landed on its shores to burn their clothes on its beaches as a sign of purification, and from then until now there is nothing more rewarding than seeing the sun die from one of its cliffs.

When you get to Santiago through the Camino de Santiago, no matter which route you have choosed, whether by the French Way, whether by Vía de la Plata, whether by the Northern Way … Many are attracted to the possibility of continuing to Finisterre and the first feeling that comes to mind is that as we have achieved our challenge and our purpose to perform Camino de Santiago, we can afford the license and gift of approaching Finisterre. We think we can afford the luxury of going through this route quite sure that we will have no problem extending the route and it would be wonderful to do it, but it is a mistake instead of a gift. The route is pretty rough, broken with constant slopes up and down and not so well marked such as the French Way for example. It will not be easy to get and we’ll have to make our best effort to get it but the effort is certainly worthwhile.

The trail begins at the very Obradoiro square and to see the first few arrows we should go down the steep road that begins just outside the front of Hostal de los Reyes Católicos, it is the RUA DAS HORTAS and from there we will follow the path which takes us away from Santiago through residential areas with nice houses, though not long before we dive into lush forests of eucalyptus soon after leaving the city.

The logical thing is to make this journey in two days, using the first day of pedaling to get as close as possible, and using the second day to reach Finisterre around noon so you have enough time to accommodate, visit the lighthouse and search a good place to watch the sunset and put an end to your journey.

The most logical stage for the first day bicycling because of the distance and many other conditions is SANTIAGO – OLVEIROA, in this small village there is a great hostel where it will be relatively easy to get a place and in the town there is the charming and intimate restaurant AS PIAS where you can taste succulent local dishes at very affordable prices, in AS PIAS there is also accommodation in double and single rooms making it one of the places with better reception of all the routes, and it is worth going even if you only have a beer in its peculiar bar.

From Olveiroa, as discussed above and in just half a day, we will arrive at FINISTERRE and once there the advice I give you is to go directly to the lighthouse to see the end of the world and then back to town, find accommodation, settle and go see the sunset, not at the lighthouse, that is where most people think is the best sunset, but to the beautiful beach Mar da Fora that is near the center of town and where you will undoubtly enjoy of a great sunset.

In Finisterre there are several good inns and hostels. Emphasize here that a few kilometers from Finisterre (in Corcubión) you can find a great choice of accommodation in the rural house “CASA DA BALEA“, this house is run by a person very committed to Camino de Santiago, and apart from an excellent service they offer, upon reservation, to pick you up at Finisterre and get you to the country house. You can see more information on their website: http://www.casadabalea.com

As for transport, there are daily buses covering the route Finisterre – Santiago and they are more than used to carry bicycles, but you have to keep in mind that they only can accommodate 3 or 4 bikes per bus, and if there are more than this amount you may not be able to load the bike, in this case for your tranquility, through the transport service of Bicigrino online shop, bicycles can be taken up in Finisterre if you leave them in our collection points (consult at tomas@bicigrino.com) and from there we can transport your bike directly home.