CAMINO KOALA
Camino Portugués Central · Itinerary

Tomar to Santiago de Compostela

Starts at the Convento de Cristo. Enters the hilly Beira interior immediately. Skips the flat Ribatejo stages.

19 stages448 km17-21 days8,750 m ascentBest Apr - Jun, Sep - Oct
Build my Camino from TomarSee all 19 stages
Back to the Camino Portugués Central and its other starting points
to Santiago de Compostela
448 km
walking days
19 stages
with the arrival night
20 days
total ascent
8,750 m
places to stay
905
OverviewStage by stageElevationOther startsPlan it
Overview19 stages · 448 km

Walking the Camino Portugués Central from Tomar

From Tomar it is 448 km to Santiago de Compostela along the Camino Portugués Central, walked here in 19 stages at an average of 23.5 km a day. Most pilgrims arrive the afternoon before, sleep in Tomar and set off early on day one, so plan for 20 days plus any rest days you want.

Day one goes from Tomar to Alvaiázere, 32 km with 800 m of climbing. The last day into Santiago de Compostela starts in Padrón, 24 km. The longest stage is Barcelos to Ponte de Lima at 33.5 km, and the biggest climb is 800 m on the way to Alvaiázere.

The walk passes through 5 regions: 🏔 Central Portugal / Beira (6 stages), 🏭 Northern Portugal / Douro (3 stages), Most pilgrims start here (1 stage), 🌿 Minho (4 stages), and 🇪🇸 Spain / Galicia (5 stages). It covers more than the 100 km on foot the Pilgrim Office needs to issue your Compostela.

Week by week3 weeks · 19 stages · 448 km

The walk from Tomar in weeks

Each block on the strip is one stage, sized by distance. The cards below group the stages into weeks, with the climb and the time each day takes. Flip a card for that week on the map.

19 stages, 448 kmEach block is one stage, sized by distance. Move along the strip.
Week 1 · days 1 to 7Tomar to São João da Madeira7 stages · 184 km · up 3,490 m
1Alvaiázere800 m600 mabout 7-9 hours32 km2Rabaçal630 m740 mabout 6-9 hours30.5 km3Coimbra490 m630 mabout 6-8 hours29 km4Mealhada280 m270 mabout 4-6 hours23 km5Águeda330 m350 mabout 5-7 hours25 km6Albergaria-a-Velha270 m140 mabout 3-5 hours16 km7São João da Madeira680 m480 mabout 6-8 hours29 km
Week 2 · days 8 to 14São João da Madeira to Tui7 stages · 160 km · up 3,200 m
8Grijó330 m430 mabout 4-6 hours19 km9Porto300 m370 mabout 3-5 hours15 km10Vilarinho430 m430 mabout 5-7 hours27 km11Barcelos640 m620 mabout 6-8 hours27.5 km12Ponte de Lima610 m630 mabout 7-9 hours33.5 km13Rubiães550 m400 mabout 4-6 hours18 km14Tui350 m440 mabout 4-6 hours20 km
Week 3 · days 15 to 19Tui to Santiago de Compostela5 stages · 104 km · up 2,060 m
15Redondela310 m340 mabout 4-6 hours21 km16Pontevedra470 m440 mabout 4-6 hours19.5 km17Caldas de Reis340 m380 mabout 4-6 hours21 km18Padrón380 m380 mabout 4-6 hours19 km19Santiago de Compostela570 m360 mabout 5-7 hours24 km
ElevationFrom Tomar to Santiago de Compostela, with the route before your start in grey

448 km of ups and downs

Move along the profile to read the height at any point.

Elevation profile8,750 m up and 8,430 m down from Tomar, high point 490 m
Before TomarLisbonTomarCoimbraPortoTuiSantiago de Compostela
Biggest climbsPlan a short day before or after
1Tomar to Alvaiázere800 m7Albergaria-a-Velha to São João da Madeira680 m11Vilarinho to Barcelos640 m2Alvaiázere to Rabaçal630 m12Barcelos to Ponte de Lima610 m
Longest daysOr split them with a bed in between
12Barcelos to Ponte de Lima33.5 km1Tomar to Alvaiázere32 km2Alvaiázere to Rabaçal30.5 km3Rabaçal to Coimbra29 km7Albergaria-a-Velha to São João da Madeira29 km
Other starting points4 more ways to walk the Camino Portugués Central

Fewer days, or more?

Pick a start further along for a shorter walk, or earlier for the whole road.

Compare them all on the route page
Full RouteLisbon to Santiago de Compostela24 stages · 613 km · 22-26 daysOpen itineraryMost PopularPorto to Santiago de Compostela10 stages · 231 km · 8-12 daysOpen itineraryTui to Santiago de Compostela5 stages · 104 km · 3-7 daysOpen itineraryCoimbra to Santiago de Compostela16 stages · 357 km · 14-18 daysOpen itinerary
Build my Camino

Turn this route into your plan, night by night.

Reading about the Camino Portugués Central is the easy part. Build my Camino gives you a day by day plan with a bed to book for each night, so the only thing left is to walk it.

  1. Pick a start and a dateAny of the 5 starting points, or any town on the route. Day 0 is the night you arrive.
  2. Shape your daysShorten a long stage, add a rest day or split a hard climb in two. The plan redraws as you go.
  3. Book a bed for each nightLive prices for the dates you chose, in one tap. Walk-in albergues and donativos are marked, so you know where you can simply turn up.
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Day by day itinerary, offlineLive trail map and your positionToday: distance and climb leftBook a bed from the pathReplan mid walk, rest days includedDaily Cast, one episode per stage
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