Bilbao Camp
Hostel, homestay or tent, shared
9 days, planned by Old Mule Routes
Nine days: Basque coast, then the last hundred kilometres of the Camino Francés on foot to Santiago.
| LANDMARKS |
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| Guggenheim |
| Casco Viejo |
| Ría de Bilbao |
Pintxos are ordered one at a time standing up and you move bar to bar. Sitting down to eat six of them in one place is the visitor mistake.
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| La Concha |
| Monte Igueldo |
| Parte Vieja |
| Getaria |
Sarria is where most people start, because a hundred kilometres on foot is the minimum for a Compostela and Sarria is just over it.
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| Sarria |
| Camino Francés |
| Credencial |
The old Portomarín was flooded by the reservoir in 1962 and the church was moved stone by stone up the hill, numbered as it went.
| LANDMARKS |
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| K100 marker |
| Barbadelo |
| Portomarín |
| Belesar reservoir |
The hórreos — raised stone granaries on staddle stones — start appearing here and are everywhere for the rest of the walk.
| LANDMARKS |
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| Ligonde |
| Palas de Rei |
| Hórreos |
Melide at the halfway point is where everyone stops for octopus, and the queue at Ezequiel is part of the day.
| LANDMARKS |
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| Melide |
| Pulpo a feira |
| Arzúa |
| Eucalyptus |
The botafumeiro — a fifty-kilo censer swung across the transept — is not flown at every mass. It is scheduled or sponsored, and nobody can promise it.
| LANDMARKS |
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| Monte do Gozo |
| Praza do Obradoiro |
| Cathedral |
| Botafumeiro |
Finisterre was the end of the known world and pilgrims burned their clothes here. Burning things is now discouraged and fined.
| LANDMARKS |
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| Cape Finisterre |
| Km 0 |
| Costa da Morte |
Santiago flies across Spain and to several European cities directly.
Day 1 · Fri, 18 Sept, 2026
Most of these can be added to your booking later — the operator confirms within a day.
Published by the operator. Nights on the ground can move with weather and permissions.
Hostel, homestay or tent, shared
Hostel, homestay or tent, shared
Hostel, homestay or tent, shared
Hostel, homestay or tent, shared
Hostel, homestay or tent, shared
8 breakfasts and 6 dinners across 9 days, at camp. It opens with dinner on day 1 and closes with breakfast on day 9.
14 meal services named in the itinerary. Vegetarian and vegan covered; Jain, gluten-free and allergies on notice at booking
“Self-guided European walking with route notes and luggage transfer”
Route notes, GPX and a van that moves your bag. No leader on the hill, which suits some people and not others.
The trek itself is good but the group was too large for the trail on the summit day. The lead was calm and knew when to slow the group down.
Thanks for writing this up. We've passed your note to the team.
Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. The campsites were well chosen — sheltered, and close enough to water. Whoever planned the days knew what they were doing. Would book with them again.
Did this over 9 days and it was the best walking I've done in years. Camp was pitched and the kitchen going by the time we walked in each evening. The team read the group well and adjusted without making a thing of it. Solid operator.
Appreciate the honest feedback; we're looking at the pacing on that section.
Did this over 9 days and it was the best walking I've done in years. Tents were warmer than expected and the camp was set up before we arrived. Plenty to eat and they were happy to work around a gluten allergy. Would send friends their way.
Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. Camp was pitched and the kitchen going by the time we walked in each evening. Would send friends their way.
Second trek with this operator and they've kept the standard up. Meals were good throughout and the vegetarian options weren't an afterthought.
Well organised from the pickup onwards. The daily distances were honest about what they'd be. Camp was pitched and the kitchen going by the time we walked in each evening. Simple food, well made, and enough of it. Good value for what's included.
The route is beautiful and the pacing was sensible — nobody was rushed on the climb. Solid operator.
Yes — a hundred on foot or two hundred by bicycle, with the credencial stamped twice a day for the last stretch. That is exactly why Sarria is the busiest starting point on the whole route, and why the last five days feel different from the rest of the Camino.
One other operator runs this trail. See all 2 side by side →