STAGE: Zafra - Villafranca de los Barros

We set off along the old Camino de la Sierra, with a gentle slope up to the top, where we leave the ancient province of Betica and pass into Roman Lusitania. From here, along a comfortable road, we reach Los Santos de Maimona.

This is a town with the cross of Santiago and two scallops on its municipal coat of arms. Its church, with a beautiful Plateresque façade, and its town hall, which occupies what was once the palace of the Encomienda de Santiago, are two of its most outstanding monuments.

We continue along pleasant, quiet roads, between olive trees and vineyards, until we cross the railway line and the motorway. Then, going round the chapel of San Isidro, our steps lead us to Villafranca de los Barros. In this beautiful village we can enjoy its renovated 16th century church, with an interesting Gothic façade, and the chapel of the Virgen Coronada, Mudejar from the 15th century but renovated in the 18th century. The town's wines, with the Ribera del Guadiana designation of origin, are one of its main industries and a good reward for the thirsty pilgrim.