Walking Guide to the Camino de Santiago History Culture Architecture

2023 edition now available. Fully updated in October / November 2022.

A practical guide to walking the Camino de Santiago/Camino Francs with information about pilgrim hostels and services plus lots of background information about the history, culture and architecture of the places you will pass through.

It covers the Camino from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to Santiago de Compostela.

This guide grew out of the caminoguide.net free community-based guide to the Camino which is kept up-to-date with the help of feedback from pilgrims past and present.

The guide includes:

The Route: distances between places with pilgrim hostels, descriptions of difficult points along the route.

Maps: route maps showing the Camino in rural areas and large-scale maps of the major cities and towns showing the location of Pilgrim Hostels and other facilities.

Accommodation: up-to-date and accurate information about pilgrim hostels, the facilities provided and prices. (Please note, this guide is intended for people walking the Camino de Santiago the traditional way staying in pilgrim accommodation, it does not contain information about hotels and guesthouses.)

Services: information about services (shops, restaurants, tourist information, internet, etc.) plus the dates of local festivals.

Sights: historical and architectural information about the sights you'll see along the Camino.

History: a brief history of the towns and villages along the Camino, describing significant events, people and legends.

Gastronomy: descriptions of the traditional dishes to watch out for in the different regions and recommendations on where to try them.

Placenames: the meanings and origins of the names of villages and towns.