In the last few decades, walking the Camino de Santiago has become more and more popular.
Tens of thousands of people now travel from all over the world every year to Spain to then spend weeks walking one of the routes of the Camino de Santiago, (in English St. James’s Way) — otherwise known as the pilgrimage ways that lead to a final destination — the shrine of St. James The Apostle in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain.
The route is around 500 miles long, and takes an average of five weeks to complete. Depending on how fast you walk and how often you stop off to see various sights along the way.
One of my favorite travel travel authors, Rick Steves, filmed a television show a few years ago covering much of the Camino de Santiago, so he could show not only what it is like for people walking the pilgrimage ways, but also some of the things you can see along the way.
In this half hour show, Steves starts in the Pyrenees in St. Jean Pied-De Port and walks part of the Camino de Santiago, stopping off at places like Pamplona, Puente de la Reina, Burgos and León. He ends the show in Santiago de Compostela.
The show is interesting for anyone to watch who would like to learn more about the Galicia area of Northern Spain. It is especially interesting, however, for anyone planning on walking the Camino de Santiago.
Particularly if you have a little time to spare to spend a few days exploring some of the towns you will be passing through, as Steves does a very good overview of some of the places to stop off at, and some of the things to see, while walking the Camino de Santiago.
Steves has uploaded this, plus many of his other shows on Spain, on his YouTube channel, so it is available to watch at any time.
You will find the show in its entirety below.
And, of course, if you are going to walk the Camino de Santiago, remember to book hotels along the route in advance. That way you always know you have somewhere to stay as night begins to draw nigh.