
The Camino Frances, or the Frances way, is an approximately 800 km pilgrimage in the northern part of Spain. Typically from fra French city Saint-jean-pied-de-port, just north of the Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela.
This pilgrimage goes from the Pyrenees, through a number of large cities, minor towns, and rural hamlets.
It takes you from the basque “country” of Navarra, through the well-known wine region of Rioja, over the Meseta, a plateau approximately 800 meters above sea level between Burgos and Leon to Santiago de Compostela in rocky Galicia.
A lot of pilgrims extend their journey to Santiago de Compostela with a visit to Fisterra – “The end of the World”. You can go there and maybe to Muxia either by bus or continue your pilgrimage with the Camino Fisterra – it is approximately 3 days walk.
You can decide to go the entire stretch, you can even decide to start all the way back in Paris, or somewhere else along the route.
The only requirement, if you want to receive the Compostella at the pilgrim’s office in Santiago, is that you have walked the last 100 km and that you have two stamps in your pilgrim’s pass per day.
A lot of pilgrims do, however, only walk a part of the road, and maybe do the entire
The Camino Frances is by far the most crowded of the Caminos. As a result, you will find it to be very social, with a lot of albergues, bars, Pharmacies, and other amenities along the routes. You will pass through a lot of tiny hamlets, for whom the pilgrims constitute a significant source of income.
The locals are almost always eager to assist you, whenever you get off the trail, and the way-marks – the yellow arrows – is almost everywhere.