A full first day of 15.7 miles that Gronze warns is no stroll: constant short ups and downs across the flank of Monte Naranco, then a steep climb from the medieval Gallegos bridge to Escamplero, before an easier run down to the Nalón valley. There are bars at Escamplero, Premoño and Paladín, but nothing at Peñaflor. Grado has five places but only 51 dorm beds, and both albergues close from November to February; Escamplero's 16-bed albergue, 7.3 miles in, makes a shorter first day.
Medieval Gallegos bridge, mile 5.9Steep climb to Escamplero, mile 7.3Escamplero bar closed WednesdaysBar and beds at Paladín, mile 11.8Afuega'l Pitu cheese in Grado
Distance
15.7 miles25.2 km
Climbing
1,390 ft up1,960 ft down
High point
820 ftLow point 110 ft
Walking time
6 to 7 hours
Difficulty
Moderate
Beds in Grado
5 placesFew
Map of the stage
Places to stay in Grado
Nearby, if Grado is full
Look out for
The walk12Places to stay: green for dorms, blue for rooms3Other places to stayASightsVillages on the wayDashed ring: position approximate
The line is the waymarked route as OpenStreetMap has it. Places to stay are where Gronze or their own websites put them. Tap a marker for details; the numbers and letters match the cards and the lists below.
Where to sleep in Grado
5 places · Few
Two albergues with 51 dorm beds between them, two hotels and a tourist apartment. Only the Hotel Auto Bar says it is open all year: both albergues close from November to February. If Grado is full, San Juan de Villapañada's albergue is 2.2 miles further on, 870 yards off the route (see the next stage).
Public albergue · dormPilgrims only
Albergue de peregrinos Villa de Grado
Municipal albergue opened in 2016 and run by volunteer hosts from the International Fraternity of the Camino (FICS). Walkers get priority over cyclists; breakfast is included for a donation.
Beds
16 dorm beds in one room
Price
Donation, breakfast included
Season
1 March to 31 October
Where
In the centre, at Calle Maestra Benicia 1
Meals
Kitchen with microwave and fridge; breakfast by donation
Booking
No reservations: first come, first served; check-in 15:00, doors close 22:00; sleeping bag required
An indiano mansion from 1900 with a front garden and a large plot behind, restored as an albergue in 2018. Bunks are built for privacy, each with its own light, socket and locker, and there is a café for breakfast and drinks.
Beds
35 dorm beds in five dorms and four private rooms
Price
Dorm €18; double €60; buffet breakfast €6; dinner on request
Season
3 March to 31 October
Where
In the centre, beside the main road, at Calle Eulogio Díaz de Miranda 30
Meals
Microwave and sink, café; breakfast €6 and dinner to order; washer and dryer
Before and after the stop, with the distance from it.
Public albergue · dormPilgrims onlyOpen all year
Albergue de peregrinos de Escamplero
8.4 miles before Grado
At the far end of Escamplero, 55 yards from the route; 7.3 miles into the stage and 8.4 miles before Grado
Small municipal albergue in the old school, the usual choice for a shorter first day or a morning spent in Oviedo. Register and pay at the bar-restaurant El Tendejón de Fernando, which is closed on Wednesdays, or at the butcher's.
Beds
16 dorm beds in four rooms, in bunks up to three high
Price
Dorm €6
Season
Open all year
Meals
Kitchen with microwave and fridge; bar-restaurant nearby, closed Wednesdays
Beside the route at Paladín, 11.8 miles into the stage and 3.9 miles before Grado
A large hostel on a farm beside the route, with a restaurant that cooks Asturian dishes from its own garden (vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free on request), a garden and a summer pool. A sensible stop if you want to break the stage 3.9 miles short of Grado.
Beds
30 dorm beds in four dorms and seven private rooms
ModerateAt 15.7 miles with about 1,400 ft of climbing it sits at the top of the moderate band, made harder by repeated short climbs and one steep ramp up to Escamplero.
Guides' own ratings: Gronze: 3; Eroski: alta (for its longer stage to San Juan de Villapañada, 19.0 miles); Senditur: moderada
Underfoot. Pavements for the first 2.7 miles out of Oviedo, then mostly farm and forest tracks and quiet lanes, with some stretches of road with little or no shoulder near Escamplero, L'Arache and Peñaflor.
The route leaves the cathedral along Calle Schultz and follows bronze shells through 2.7 miles of streets and parks to San Lázaro de Paniceres, the first village. Uneven paths then roll across the lower slopes of Monte Naranco past the lonely Carmen chapel at Llampaxuga, drop through eucalyptus to the Huerta stream and climb to Lloriana. A road descent leads to the medieval Gallegos bridge over the Nora, then a gentle stretch through chestnut and oak gives way to a steep ramp up to Escamplero, the high point of the day at about 820 ft. From there you drop past the Fátima chapel into the quiet Andallón valley and continue by road to Premoño, where the Santa Ana chapel is all that remains of a pilgrim hospital. Wooded paths and lanes lead to Paladín and Puerma, then a path follows the Nalón, the largest river in Asturias, to the bridge at Peñaflor. The last 1.7 miles are flat, through a tunnel under the narrow-gauge railway and between orchards and fields into Grado.
Good to know
At the cathedral turn left along Calle Schultz; the Camino del Norte towards Avilés leaves the other way, so don't follow it by mistake.
Follow the bronze shells in the pavement out of Oviedo; if you lose them, ask for the La Florida district.
El Tendejón de Fernando, the bar-restaurant at Escamplero, is closed on Wednesdays, and it is also where you register for the albergue.
Carry water and a snack: bars come every 3 to 5 miles, Peñaflor has none, and the bar at Escamplero may be shut.
Roads near Escamplero, L'Arache and Peñaflor have little or no shoulder, so walk facing the traffic.
Senditur reports muddy stretches and small streams between Gallegos and Valsera, a confusing junction shortly after Premoño and the odd loose dog.
Get your first stamp at the cathedral before you leave; the Carmen chapel at Llampaxuga is another place to stop for one.
Along the way
Mile 2.7
San Lázaro de Paniceres
Bar
Mile 4.8
Lloriana
Roadside bar
Mile 7.3
Escamplero
Bar-restaurant (closed Wednesdays), butcher's shop, albergue and pensión
Mile 10.3
Premoño
Shop-bar on the road, about 55 yards off the route
San Lázaro de Paniceres takes its name from a leper hospital that stood here in the 14th century. The Santa Ana chapel at Premoño is the last trace of a pilgrim hospital, and Peñaflor, at its bridge over the Nalón, had one under Alfonso VII in the 12th century; its parish church of San Juan is Romanesque in origin.
Grado, a royal market town
Alfonso X gave Grado its town charter in the 13th century, and its Wednesday and Sunday markets, held since the Middle Ages, are said to be the oldest in Asturias. The Baroque Capilla de los Dolores was built in 1713 to 1716 as a funerary chapel for the third Marquis of Valdecarzana: plain outside, richly decorated within. Emigrants who came home rich from the Americas in the 19th century built the 'indiano' mansions around town, among them Villa Granda and La Quintana, now an albergue.
Look out for
Mile 2.7
San Lázaro de Paniceres. The first village after the city, with decorated paneras, the raised wooden granaries of Asturias.
Mile 4.0
Carmen chapel at Llampaxuga. A lone chapel on the slopes of Monte Naranco and a good place for a rest and a stamp.
Mile 5.9
Gallegos bridge. A medieval bridge over the Nora; the hardest climb of the day starts on the far side. Distance approximate.
Mile 10.3
Santa Ana chapel, Premoño. A small roadside chapel, all that is left of the village's pilgrim hospital.
Mile 10.9
Roman baths at Valduno. Eroski recommends a detour of about 330 yards to the remains of Roman baths behind the church of Santa Eulalia de Valduno. Distance approximate.
Mile 13.9
Nalón bridge at Peñaflor. The route crosses the Nalón, the longest river in Asturias, into Peñaflor, a small village Gronze calls pretty.
Mile 15.7
Cheese and sweets in Grado. Grado is the largest producer of Afuega'l Pitu, one of Asturias's oldest cheeses; look also for escanda (spelt) bread and the tocinillos from the Tejeiro pastry shop.
What couldn't be confirmed, and where sources disagree
Difficulty: at 15.7 miles the day is on the edge between Moderate and Hard; it's rated Moderate because the climbing is modest.
Climbing: Senditur's GPS log gives 16.0 miles, 2,010 ft up and 2,550 ft down, more than Gronze's 1,390 ft and 1,960 ft.
Distances: those given for the Gallegos bridge, Llampaxuga, Valduno and the L'Arache bar are estimates. The bar is listed only by Eroski, whose distances run about 550 yards longer than Gronze's.
Premoño: Gronze (2026) lists a roadside shop-bar 55 yards off the path. Eroski says the old bar there closed in 2013, and puts a bar-shop 160 yards off the route at Valduno, about 0.6 miles further on. They may be the same place.
Villa de Grado: Gronze gives check-in from 15:00; a March 2025 article says pilgrims are let in from 14:00.
Apartamento Palmeral Suite: Gronze lists it with only a Booking.com link and no details.
Prices: none are published for Hotel Auto Bar, Hotel Areces, Apartamento Palmeral Suite, Hotel Casa Celesto or Hotel El Lacayo de Sestiello.
Hotel Auto Bar: its website, autobargrado.com, didn't load in October 2026.
Escamplero: Gronze gives +34 985 799 005 (the restaurant) for the albergue and +34 670 746 149 for the pensión.
El Lacayo de Sestiello: the hotel's own website gives +34 646 294 182 for bookings and +34 985 753 566 for the restaurant. Gronze lists only the restaurant number.
Villa Palatina: besides the WhatsApp number, it has a landline, +34 985 058 097. In October 2026 its website carried unrelated casino adverts, which suggests it has been tampered with, so it isn't linked. Gronze, Booking.com or the phone are safer.
Confirmed October 2026. Each place to stay shows when its own details were confirmed. Phone numbers, prices and opening seasons change from year to year, so confirm them before you rely on them.