# A Weekend in the Gerês, an Hour and a Half from Ourense Two nights in Portugal's only national park: the Roman road among oaks, viewpoints over the reservoir, the granary villages of Soajo and Lindoso. An hour and a half from Ourense. Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/portugal/northern-portugal/peneda-geres/itineraries/weekend-from-ourense · Revisado: 2026-11-12 Dónde: Peneda-Gerês Peneda-Gerês is Portugal's only national park and the foreign national park closest to Galicia: from Ourense, the Portela do Homem border is an hour and a half away, and on the other side the Mata da Albergaria begins. A weekend has room for both faces of the park. On Saturday, the Gerês mountains: the Roman road among oaks, the viewpoints over the Caniçada reservoir and the Arado waterfall. On Sunday, the Lima valley: the granary villages of Soajo and Lindoso. ## When to go and how to get around? From May to June the waterfalls are full and the hills are green; in September and October there are fewer people and mild light. In July and August the pools and the Portela do Homem road fill up. In winter it rains a lot and the high ranges can see snow. You need a car: the villages, viewpoints and waterfalls are far apart and the roads are slow, with animals loose on them. Wild camping is not permitted. AreaWhat to seeBase Gerês mountainsGeira, Albergaria, Pedra Bela, AradoGerês village or Campo do Gerês Lima valleySoajo, Lindoso, Porta do MezioTravanca campsite, at the Mezio ## Where to sleep? In the village of Gerês, the Águas do Gerês Hotel, Termas & Spa has 53 rooms and 2 suites facing the hot springs, with a restaurant. In Campo do Gerês, inside the park, Parque Cerdeira has granite bungalows, family rooms, cabins and pitches from €25; it is closed from 3 to 27 November and from 6 January to 6 February. If you prefer to sleep on the Lima side, the Travanca campsite, among pines next to the Porta do Mezio, has pitches and bungalows for two. ## A lunch with a view If you fancy a special lunch on Sunday, O Abocanhado is in Brufe, a village in the Serra Amarela at about 800 metres, with its granite-and-wood dining room hanging over the Homem river valley. Lunch from 12:30 to 15:30. It does not publish a closing day and in 2026 is closed on holiday from 9 to 20 November: call ahead. The access roads are narrow: allow time. ## El plan ### Friday · 18:00 · Entering by the Portela do Homem An hour and a half from Ourense via Celanova, Bande and Lobios. When you cross, put your watch back. Go down through the Albergaria to the spa village of Gerês and ask for the Gerês.Card at your accommodation: it is free and gives discounts at museums and on the boat. ### Saturday · 09:00 · The Geira and the Mata da Albergaria Return to the Portela do Homem and walk down the Braga – Astorga Roman road, past milestones, to the Ponte Feia, above a waterfall on the Homem river. Return by the São Miguel waterfall. Two and a half hours with no climb. ### Saturday · 12:30 · Lunch in Campo do Gerês Restaurante Cerdeira, inside Parque Cerdeira, serves lunch from 12:00 to 15:00: the Pedaço do Gerês or salt cod with broa. ### Saturday · 15:30 · Boat on the Caniçada The Terras de Bouro council's tourist boat sails all year round from the Rio Caldo Nautical Centre. Ask about departures and price by phone; with the Gerês.Card, from 15 July to 15 September, half price. ### Saturday · 18:00 · Pedra Bela, Junceda and the Arado waterfall Go up the track from the village. At sunset the light falls straight onto the reservoir. ### Sunday · 10:00 · Soajo and Lindoso Three quarters of an hour to Soajo: 24 espigueiros on a slab of granite and a 16th-century pelourinho. A quarter of an hour further, Lindoso: 64 espigueiros at the foot of a castle from around 1250. ### Sunday · 13:00 · Lunch at the Porta do Mezio and the return Alto Minho cooking in a former forest house; call ahead. With children, the biological park and the tree-climbing course, €3 entry. Return to Ourense via Lindoso and Entrimo. ## Un consejo más Put your watch back when you cross the border and plan in Portuguese time: the restaurants and the boat follow that time. ## Cuándo no ir August at the pools at midday. It is when there are most people at the Portela do Homem and at the Arado waterfall. ## Preguntas frecuentes ### How long does it take from Ourense? An hour and a half to the Portela do Homem and the village of Gerês, about 90 km. From Pontevedra, about two hours via Braga. ### Do you have to pay to enter the park? No. You pay for the activities, such as the boat, the Porta do Mezio or the bikes. ### Can you go with children? Yes. The Geira is flat, the villages can be seen in a short time and the Porta do Mezio has a biological park and tree-climbing course. ### Can you go with a dog? Along the Geira, the viewpoints and the villages, yes, on a lead. In the park there are free-roaming livestock. ### What is the Gerês.Card? A free card from the Terras de Bouro council for people staying in the municipality: free entry to the Vilarinho da Furna and Geira museums and 50% off the Rio Caldo boat from 15 July to 15 September. ## Dónde dormir if you're driving - **Águas do Gerês Hotel, Termas & Spa**: A spa hotel in the centre of the village The Águas do Gerês is in the heart of the spa village, opposite the baths and the spa, on the main avenue. It is an old building rebuilt and renovated that keeps the air of spa hotels. It is rated three-star superior, with 53 rooms and 2 suites with air conditioning, television and free wifi, a restaurant, terrace, bar with billiards, a children's games room and a meeting room. The hotel's outdoor pools, seasonal, are about 500 m away, and the private, unattended car park about 300 m. The spa and baths are the other reason to sleep here: after a day of walks along the Geira or the viewpoints, a hot bath is welcome. Eating at the hotel The Essentia do Gerês restaurant mixes local produce with international recipes and prepares dishes for special diets if you ask. Buffet breakfast from 8:00 to 10:30, lunch from 12:30 to 15:00 and dinner from 19:30 to 22:00; the terrace and bar are open from 11:00 to 22:30. Getting there and what is nearby From Ourense you enter via Lobios and the Portela do Homem and go down the Mata da Albergaria road to the village; from Braga, about 45 minutes. From the door, walks leave on foot through the spa park, and in a few minutes by car are the viewpoints of Pedra Bela and Junceda and the Arado waterfall. The Rio Caldo boat leaves on the other side of the bridge. - **Parque Cerdeira**, desde 25 € / pitch: A campsite with granite houses at Campo do Gerês Parque Cerdeira is at Campo do Gerês, in the part of the national park that looks onto the Vilarinho da Furna reservoir and the Mata da Albergaria. It combines camping pitches under the trees with roofed accommodation: bungalows of granite and wood of various capacities, from €67; family rooms for two or four people; POD-type cabins and tree tents. For motorhomes there are pitches with water and drainage, XL pitches and a service station; camping and caravanning from €25. What it has Its own restaurant (the Cerdeira Restaurant), minimarket, barbecues, laundry, wifi, electric-car charging and private family bathrooms rented separately. The pool opens from 15 June to 15 September, from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 19:00, closes on Mondays and is paid for. There is a playground, minigolf, adventure park, electric-bike hire, guided canoeing and guided walks. Hours and closures Camping check-in is from 14:00 and check-out until 12:00; bungalows and rooms, from 16:00 until 10:00. You can arrive at 22:00 at the latest. Motorhomes staying only overnight arrive from 20:00 and leave at 10:00, except in July and August. The park closes from 3 to 27 November, from 6 January to 6 February and on 24 and 25 December. - **Travanca Camping and Caravan Park**: Sleeping at the park's west gate The Travanca campsite is very close to the Porta do Mezio, in the municipality of Arcos de Valdevez, in the middle of the mountains and among pine woods. It is a good starting point for mountain routes and for the western part of the national park: Soajo is 6 km away and Arcos de Valdevez, with restaurants, bars and supermarkets, 11 km. Tents, motorhomes and bungalows There are roomy spaces for tents and areas prepared for caravans and motorhomes. The Bungalows da Travanca are T1 type, for a maximum of two people, with a kitchen, and look onto the hillside: designed for a quiet getaway. The 2026 price table is on the Porta do Mezio website; book by email (pctravanca@ardal.pt) or by phone, on 258 522 285 or 967 185 027. What is nearby A few minutes away, the Porta do Mezio, with a biological park, tree-top course, stargazing and a pool in summer, and its restaurant. By car, the Soajo granaries and, a little further, Lindoso. ## Dónde dormir in a campervan - **Parque Cerdeira**, desde 25 € / pitch: A campsite with granite houses at Campo do Gerês Parque Cerdeira is at Campo do Gerês, in the part of the national park that looks onto the Vilarinho da Furna reservoir and the Mata da Albergaria. It combines camping pitches under the trees with roofed accommodation: bungalows of granite and wood of various capacities, from €67; family rooms for two or four people; POD-type cabins and tree tents. For motorhomes there are pitches with water and drainage, XL pitches and a service station; camping and caravanning from €25. What it has Its own restaurant (the Cerdeira Restaurant), minimarket, barbecues, laundry, wifi, electric-car charging and private family bathrooms rented separately. The pool opens from 15 June to 15 September, from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 19:00, closes on Mondays and is paid for. There is a playground, minigolf, adventure park, electric-bike hire, guided canoeing and guided walks. Hours and closures Camping check-in is from 14:00 and check-out until 12:00; bungalows and rooms, from 16:00 until 10:00. You can arrive at 22:00 at the latest. Motorhomes staying only overnight arrive from 20:00 and leave at 10:00, except in July and August. The park closes from 3 to 27 November, from 6 January to 6 February and on 24 and 25 December. - **Travanca Camping and Caravan Park**: Sleeping at the park's west gate The Travanca campsite is very close to the Porta do Mezio, in the municipality of Arcos de Valdevez, in the middle of the mountains and among pine woods. It is a good starting point for mountain routes and for the western part of the national park: Soajo is 6 km away and Arcos de Valdevez, with restaurants, bars and supermarkets, 11 km. Tents, motorhomes and bungalows There are roomy spaces for tents and areas prepared for caravans and motorhomes. The Bungalows da Travanca are T1 type, for a maximum of two people, with a kitchen, and look onto the hillside: designed for a quiet getaway. The 2026 price table is on the Porta do Mezio website; book by email (pctravanca@ardal.pt) or by phone, on 258 522 285 or 967 185 027. What is nearby A few minutes away, the Porta do Mezio, with a biological park, tree-top course, stargazing and a pool in summer, and its restaurant. By car, the Soajo granaries and, a little further, Lindoso. ## Dónde dormir if you're camping - **Parque Cerdeira**, desde 25 € / pitch: A campsite with granite houses at Campo do Gerês Parque Cerdeira is at Campo do Gerês, in the part of the national park that looks onto the Vilarinho da Furna reservoir and the Mata da Albergaria. It combines camping pitches under the trees with roofed accommodation: bungalows of granite and wood of various capacities, from €67; family rooms for two or four people; POD-type cabins and tree tents. For motorhomes there are pitches with water and drainage, XL pitches and a service station; camping and caravanning from €25. What it has Its own restaurant (the Cerdeira Restaurant), minimarket, barbecues, laundry, wifi, electric-car charging and private family bathrooms rented separately. The pool opens from 15 June to 15 September, from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 14:00 to 19:00, closes on Mondays and is paid for. There is a playground, minigolf, adventure park, electric-bike hire, guided canoeing and guided walks. Hours and closures Camping check-in is from 14:00 and check-out until 12:00; bungalows and rooms, from 16:00 until 10:00. You can arrive at 22:00 at the latest. Motorhomes staying only overnight arrive from 20:00 and leave at 10:00, except in July and August. The park closes from 3 to 27 November, from 6 January to 6 February and on 24 and 25 December. - **Travanca Camping and Caravan Park**: Sleeping at the park's west gate The Travanca campsite is very close to the Porta do Mezio, in the municipality of Arcos de Valdevez, in the middle of the mountains and among pine woods. It is a good starting point for mountain routes and for the western part of the national park: Soajo is 6 km away and Arcos de Valdevez, with restaurants, bars and supermarkets, 11 km. Tents, motorhomes and bungalows There are roomy spaces for tents and areas prepared for caravans and motorhomes. The Bungalows da Travanca are T1 type, for a maximum of two people, with a kitchen, and look onto the hillside: designed for a quiet getaway. The 2026 price table is on the Porta do Mezio website; book by email (pctravanca@ardal.pt) or by phone, on 258 522 285 or 967 185 027. What is nearby A few minutes away, the Porta do Mezio, with a biological park, tree-top course, stargazing and a pool in summer, and its restaurant. By car, the Soajo granaries and, a little further, Lindoso.