
You become part of a community from all around the world who come together for a shared purpose, and those quickly start to feel like family.” “The Camino is a unique blend of physical challenge and cultural holiday,” says Jusino. Here, pilgrims balance between land and sea on the Camino del Norte. Multiple routes of the Camino de Santiago hug the rugged Atlantic coastline. Yet for all, the extended stretch of incredible food, beautiful historic sites, fantastic beer and wine, and camaraderie are what make the Camino de Santiago one of the most legendary hikes in the world. For others, the sense of self-discovery and achievement that a walk along the Camino can bring offers an undeniable allure. For many, the Camino is the trip of a lifetime-a 500-mile journey through some of Europe’s most beautiful landscapes. In this guide, we’ll cover:Įveryone has a different reason for embarking on the Camino de Santiago, and here lies the trail’s unavoidable appeal.

All that said, if you’re planning to tackle the Camino de Santiago, there’s a lot to keep in mind, like logistics, places of interest and finding the best route for your budget, time frame and fitness level. “Walking the Camino is a chance to intentionally slow down and move at a human pace, to join a history that’s so much bigger than any of us individually.”Ĭrossing the rugged Pyrenees and spanning undulating plains before winding through lush hillsides, the Camino de Santiago is a unique window into the Iberian Peninsula’s historical, natural and cultural beauty. “People are drawn to the Camino because of its staying power,” says Beth Jusino, author of Walking to the End of the World: A Thousand Miles on the Camino de Santiago. In 2017 alone, over 300,000 hikers, known as “peregrinos,” or pilgrims, completed the trek to Santiago. The trail has been walked since the early ninth century, hosting kings and queens, Roman armies and legions of Catholic pilgrims, but in recent years it has attracted an ever increasing and diverse crowd.

Although the Camino is actually a network of trails, its most popular route, the Camino Francés, spans from the city of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port at the base of the French Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain. The Camino de Santiago, or the Way of Saint James, is an epic Catholic pilgrimage to the Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela.
