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Stage guide · Holy Year 2027
About 850 km following the Bay of Biscay: from the border at Irún to San Sebastián, Bilbao and Santander, the beaches of Asturias and the entry into Galicia at Ribadeo, then inland to join the Francés at Arzúa. Fewer people than on the Francés and more hills.
Work out your Camino
Move the slider to your pace. Suseia then splits the route into stages based on the albergues in each town, and you can adjust them by hand.
Each dot is a day of walking to Santiago.
The route at a glance
Basque coves and hills dotted with farmhouses, the fishing towns of Cantabria, the meadows and cliffs of Asturias and the inland Galicia of Mondoñedo and Sobrado. Every day the path climbs a hill and drops to a beach.
Stage by stage
The usual split along the coast and through Gijón. There is a variant via Oviedo, which leaves at Villaviciosa and returns to the coast at Avilés; and from Arzúa the path is the same as the Francés.
Green hills, farmhouses, La Concha bay and the Guggenheim. Short stages but lots of hills.
Fishing towns, huge beaches, the boats of Laredo and Somo, Santillana del Mar and Comillas.
Cliffs, meadows and beaches, with Llanes, Ribadesella, Gijón and the towns of the western coast.
You enter over the Los Santos bridge to Ribadeo, and the path leaves the coast for Mondoñedo, Vilalba and Sobrado until it joins the Francés at Arzúa.
Distances are approximate: they can vary by a kilometre or so depending on the variant you take.
When to go
May to September is the best time: the northern climate is mild in summer and it hardly ever gets hot. July and August coincide with the beach season, so book in the coastal towns.
In spring and autumn it rains often. In winter many albergues close and storms make the seaside stages uncomfortable.
2027 is a Holy Year. The Norte will still be quieter than the Francés, but in summer the coast fills with tourists as well as pilgrims.
The Compostela
To get the Compostela you must walk at least the last 100 km. Vilalba, capital of the Terra Chá, is about 118 km from Santiago: five or six stages through inland Galicia until you join the Francés at Arzúa.
Baamonde is just under 100 km, so if you start there you won’t reach the minimum.
Start with the Vilalba – Baamonde stage →Common questions
About 850 km from Irún to Santiago via Gijón. The Oviedo variant is a little shorter.
Yes: it has more climbing, especially in the Basque Country, and fewer public albergues. In return there are fewer people and coastal scenery almost every day.
From Villaviciosa you can go to Oviedo, visit the cathedral of San Salvador and return to the coast at Avilés, or carry on from Oviedo along the Camino Primitivo.
Choose where you start and how many kilometres you want to walk each day. Suseia builds your plan all the way to Santiago, free and without signing up.
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