O Barco de Valdeorras
Camino de Invierno
All the services you could want are in this town, and the local wine is remarkably good! Those who wish to stay at the albergue of Xagoaza should stop in town to stock up on provisions, as the albergue is in a village 3 km outside O Barco and 1.4 km off the trail. It has no services, but the hospitalera may provide a meal.
O Barco is a long, narrow town, strung out along the river. Hostals and pensions are plentiful (turgalicia.com lists 11 of them).
Wifi, restaurants, bakeries, and bars aplenty in the downtown area. O Barco is the center of the Valdeorras D.O. wine-producing region, and those with a taste for Spanish wine should sample the up-and-coming local Mencia and Godello vintages, proudly poured at every bar in town at bargain prices.
Recommended places to eat: Casa Galaica, Av. Eulogio Fernández, has a great menú. Casa Paradelo (Rúa Xirimil, back street near the station) has a nice garden area out back. Asador Viloira (pensión and restaurant across the first pedestrian bridge). Bar San Roque reported very pilgrim friendly by several pilgrims.
The town of O Barco has a much-loved riverside park. In the summer months, huge numbers of kids and teenagers go “tubing” through a little white water section of the river. Families and friends congregate there. The park is lined with cafés and playgrounds. In good weather, it is absolutely the best place to spend some time if you just want to chill out and enjoy the ambiente.
NOTE: The new albergue of Xagoaza is not actually in O Barco, but rather 3.5km out of town to the north. If you wish to stay, contact Gloria at 639 921 679 for her to open up.
Leave O Barco on the river walk. After you pass the cafés, parks, and playgrounds, you will come to a small wooden footbridge with two freshly painted arrows. This bridge does not take you across the river itself; it takes you over a small tributary emptying into the river. The path is wide and covered in gravel, so it is obviously a path used by townspeople. After passing the sanitary plant, a mojón takes you off the path. At the roundabout, turn left . Keep walking straight and cross the tracks. You will stay parallel to the highway, on an access road, all the way into Arcos.
Accommodation in O Barco de Valdeorras.
| Albergue de Peregrinos Xagoaza 10€ 20 |
| Polideportivo de O Barco |
| Hostal Mayo Booking.com |
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