Camino de Santiago the Enchanting French Way

Meet up in Madrid at the airport and depart for Leon, via Van or Bus.

Leon a perfect day to rest, explore and enjoy.

This day is easy walking with a long up hill at the start, however it is easy going all day – except on the eyes. Long stretches of the Meseta, which is part of the Mental side of the Camino.

Today is a fairly easy walk into Astorga. We will arrive into Astorga with plenty of time to explore and enjoy this beautiful city.

Underfoot the route is easy walking mostly along an old rarely used asphalt road.  There is lots of tree cover during the day as you walk up into the Leon Mountains. There are many grass fields where it is pleasant to stop for lunch and rest if you are walking through the mid day sun. 

At all times of the year an early start will be chilly, so it is worth having your fleece out as you start walking.  The panorama views in the mountains are beautiful.

Today is a day that many pilgrims hope to be lighter, both physically and spiritually. The Cruz del Ferro is an iron cross on top of a 5 metre wooden pole.  Many pilgrims bring a stone from home to leave with the many thousands of stones already there.  Leaving a stone is the sign of leaving behind a burden, or letting go of something in your life.

Today is a fairly easy day walking as far as the Camino goes.  It is a long day, but most of the day is through vineyards and along easy tracks underfoot.  The maximum change in elevation over the day is about 70 meters.

Due to the long day, we start early. Todays walk is gently uphill and fairly easy until we arrive in Las Herrerias. At this point, we will start our climb. We will walk our last 8kms climbing from 600 meters to 1,335 meters. It is a beautiful climb with an amazing reward at the top, O'Cebreiro. This quaint little village is where we will rest our heads for the night. 

We start our day off with some hills but some beautiful views. These long days start to flow as your body is getting use to the walking. Beautiful scenery with ups and downs.

Call it a partial rest day, as we saunter into Sarria. A short nice day, time to rest and enjoy this town. Prepare yourself for the crowds, this is where most people start the last 100 kms walk.

Today's section is along small country roads and a few country paths, it is generally tree-lined and will provide good shade in the sun.

After the steep down hill along Portomarin main street and the a gentle uphill around Monte San Antonio the rest of the day is easy going through rolling country side.

Today is an easy day, apart from the length of the route, it is easy under foot and there are no long steep accents or descents.  The Spanish call this section the “leg breaker” not due to the surface, but due to the length.  If you have been walking for the last two weeks or more you will find it quite an easy stroll in comparison to much of the way already walked. This is the last long day.

As with the previous few days since Sarria there are lots of hamlets and villages along the way for food and water. 2/3rds of today we walk on natural pathways with good shade offered by the ubiquitous eucalyptus. We have a largely level path with just 3 shallow river valleys. We end with a climb around the Alto de Santa Irene. 

The long awaited, final stage. Only the uphill climb to Monte do Gozo presents any real resistance, and this feels a lot easier on the legs due to the fact that we are so close to Santiago Cathedral. The entrance to the city along the road does not affect the mood of the pilgrim who has finally arrived to la Plaza del Obradoiro.
Today we will get our Compostela!

We will travel along the Costa da Morte on a full-day tour from Santiago de Compostela. We will visit Cape Finisterre, go to the villages of Muros and Muxía, and see the waterfall in Ézaro. Along the way, learn about the history and culture of the Galician region. Guided tour by an outside company. Back by 5 with time for dinner and exploring Santiago.

This is your day to explore this amazing city. Time to shop and explore.

Today we will transfer to the Santiago Airport to start our way back home or onto your next adventure!