Stage 18. Vilarinho – Barcelos (27.3 km)

Today you'll notice a radical change in the landscape. After leaving behind the outskirts of the port in Vilarinho, the route enters between agricultural and rural areas, where small villages will be the dominant tone until the end of the stage in Barcelos, home of the emblematic Rooster of Barcelos one of the symbols of Portugal.

This stage is part of the Portuguese Way. Would you like to walk it with your accommodation already booked? These organised trips include it: Portuguese Way from Oporto to Santiago.

The day links heritage and history. You leave Vilarinho, cross the medieval bridge of Zameiro and pass close to the monastery of São Simão da Junqueira, older than the Kingdom of Portugal itself, and the notable Romanesque church of São Pedro de Rates. Amid quiet villages with plenty of services for supplies, the day ends crossing the medieval bridge over the river Cávado to enter Barcelos.