The Camino de Santiago routes

Seven official routes reach Santiago and one leaves from it. Here they are side by side, measured the same way and in the same order, so the choice does not depend on which page you happen to find first.

Pilgrims by route, January to July 2026

Figure checked Pilgrim Office, January–July 2026.

Which one suits you

The useful question is not which route is best, but which one matches what you have: days off, fitness and tolerance for crowds. With that, the list narrows on its own.

Each row links to the route in question
If you want…	Route	Why
Your first Camino, with one week	Francés from Sarria	Everything solved: waymarking, services every few kilometres and constant company
The same, with far fewer people	English Way from Ferrol	The same 100 km and the same Compostela, with a fraction of the pilgrims
The sea instead of farmland	Coastal Portuguese	Whole days beside the Atlantic and gentle climbs. It is the fastest-growing route
Heritage and old towns	Central Portuguese	Roman roads and medieval bridges through the interior
Real mountain walking	Camino Primitivo	The hardest one. Needs preparation and the sense to read the weather
A full month	The whole Francés	From Saint-Jean, 33 stages and three completely different landscapes
Coastline without rushing	Camino del Norte	Eight weeks and the trickiest logistics of any route
To keep walking after arriving	Finisterre and Muxía	Three or four days from Santiago out to the Atlantic

The seven, one by one

Camino Francés

Starts at: Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port
Distance: 775 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: 133.450

Central Portuguese Way

Starts at: Lisbon · Porto · Tui
Distance: 242 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: 63.110

Coastal Portuguese Way

Starts at: Porto
Distance: 265 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: 60.000

English Way

Starts at: Ferrol
Distance: 118 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: 17.000

Primitive Way

Starts at: Oviedo
Distance: 313 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: 13.800

Northern Way

Starts at: Irún
Distance: 815 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: 11.000

Camino to Finisterre and Muxía

Starts at: Santiago de Compostela
Distance: 118 km
Total climb: —
Pilgrims in 2026: —

Common questions

Which Camino route is the easiest?

By elevation, the Portuguese from Tui and the Camino to Finisterre. What most people call «easy» is really «best served», and there the Francés from Sarria wins.

Do all routes give you the Compostela?

All the ones that reach Santiago, provided you walk the last 100 km on an official Jacobean route. The Camino to Finisterre does not, because it leaves Santiago rather than arriving.

Can you combine two routes?

Yes. The classic links are from the Norte to the Primitivo in Asturias, and from the Coastal Portuguese to the Central at Redondela.

Which route is best for a first-timer?

The Francés from Sarria if you want company and services, the English Way from Ferrol if you want quiet. Both fit in one week.