Where to stay, where to go?

All the albergues in all those places are good. Consider Mazarife instead of Villadangos on the first day. The three tiers of bunks in Villadangos can be a bit off-putting if you end up in the top one!!

I agree with falcon, take the less travelled route and stop in Mazarife..if you feel up to it, stay in Villavante. I enjoyed it there. There is no harm stopping short of O Cebreiro in La Faba. A fine albergue. I really enjoyed my time in Molinaseca. Alfredo's place in Santa Marina is one of my favourites.

Albergue De La Piedra is a great place in Villafranca. But, looking at your itinerary (if you have to have one), you have a very short day from Cacabelos to Villafranca, then a tough day up to O Cebreiro. You might be better off walking to somewhere like Trabadelo or Vega de Valcarce. You would still have lots of time in Villafranca and it would make the next day a whole lot easier.

As already mentioned, the route via Valverde is not a relaxing one, though the church at Villadangos has a great, uncensored and fabulous Matamoros. While the Mazarife route is quieter (by far!), a bit longer, but it also shares long straight very featureless sections between Mazarife and Villavante.