With many options — there are more than 14 well-known routes — picking the right Camino for you and your group can feel overwhelming. In order to make your decision a bit easier, we present you with the third and last guide of our three-part “Choosing My Camino” series, where we give our expert insights into which Camino route you should embark on based on your personal interests.

Solo Travelers

Top Choice

There are many reasons why a pilgrim could choose to embark on the Camino alone. For those looking for self-discovery and a quiet natural environment that unplugs them from the incessant white noise of their urban lives, the spiritual variant of the Portuguese Way is a sure bet. This lesser-known option joins both the central and coastal routes of the Portuguese Way with the Maritime Way, which follows the legendary path that St James’ disciples took while transporting his body to Galicia. With a geography that’s fairly flat, this is considered one of the easier Caminos and one in which you can really get lost in thoughts and self-reflect during the long walks through a varied landscape composed of forests, vineyards, and beaches.

Plan B

Social butterflies that decide to do the Camino alone will have a wonderful time on the popular French Way, especially on its Galician section, which gets very crowded during its peak summer season but stays continuously busy year-round. The great influx of travelers on this stretch — there are stages where it merges with the Primitive and the North Way — creates a strong spirit of camaraderie and the perfect atmosphere to socialize with talkative fellow pilgrims and mix with the very friendly locals.

A Pilgrim’s Experience

“Earlier this year I turned 30 and I was going through a transitional period in my life. I felt the strong urge to get out of my comfort zone and live an adventure on my own, one in which I could reconnect with myself, explore nature and meet new people. As a young woman, I was initially a bit worried about solo travel, but after plenty of research, I felt confident that the French Way was an incredibly safe option. I was not wrong. Every path was extremely well signposted and all stages were full of fellow pilgrims. Not a day passed without hearing a “Buen Camino” or a “Ultreia et Suseia” from the mouth of a passing friendly face: I may have gone solo to El Camino, but I never felt alone.” — Amelia

Snowheads and Latecomers

Top Choice

Most pilgrims walk the Camino during the warm weather season: late spring and summer are the busiest seasons of the year and many routes virtually close during the winter months. Nevertheless, there’s an option specifically designed to please those adventurous travelers who prefer the colder weather or didn’t find the time to embark on their pilgrimage earlier in the year. The Winter Way is an alternative to the popular Galician section of the French Way that starts in Ponferrada, swapping the mountains of O’Cebreiro for the valley of the river Sil. By avoiding the high altitude and humidity of the Os Ancares wilderness (which can be quite inaccessible in snowy winters) and opting for the drier terrain of the Bierzo region, you’ll be able to fully immerse yourself in this spiritual journey without having to worry about snowbound stages and inclement winter weather.

Plan B

Another year-round option is the Portuguese Way: both the Coastal and Central variants lack mountain stages, the terrain is forgiving and mostly flat, and the weather is mild even in traditionally cold months like January. While in Summer this popular route can be almost as busy and crowded as the French Way, wintertime offers a more relaxed experience that will suit travelers looking for spiritual tranquility and a lower-paced journey. Be aware that some Camino-specific services and businesses may close during the winter season, although with each passing year there are more and more that choose to remain open all year long.

A Pilgrim’s Experience

“The end of the Xacobeo Year was rapidly approaching but I was determined to walk through the Holy Door of the Santiago Cathedral: I didn’t want to wait 7 years until it opened again. Although it was late October and I’d already walked the French Way before, I decided to give it a shot on the Winter Way. I was surprised by the beautiful landscapes of this area of Galicia, quite different from the ones I saw on my previous pilgrimage that went through the mountains. My favorite sight was probably the terraced vineyards of the area: I took around a million photos of the spectacular radiant colors of the autumn leaves.” — Fernanda

Insatiable Explorers

Top Choice

Are you an experienced pilgrim and have already completed all the most popular and well-established Camino routes? Don’t worry! If you still have that Camino spirit going strong inside of you, there are many hidden gems waiting for you to discover. One of our favorite lesser-known routes — and one that offers a radically different pilgrim perspective to its visitors — is the recently established Maritime Way of Muros and Noia. Since 2020, this one-of-a-kind journey has been officially recognized as a Jacobean route and is the only one that offers sailing as an official pilgrimage modality. Although you won’t be able to get the Compostela — it runs only 80 km from Muros to Santiago — its unique amphibian mix of walking and sailing, the spectacular landscapes of the Ría de Muros-Noia, and the calmness of its uncrowded paths and villages make this route the perfect option for a tranquil and pleasant pilgrimage.

Plan B

Do you fancy challenging yourself by getting the Compostela certificate in the most roundabout way possible? The Celtic Way is a mostly unknown variant of the English way that has an extraordinary peculiarity: it starts in Ireland. In order to complete this official route you’ll have to walk a minimum of 25 km in Irish territory and then cover the 75 km of the English Way’s A Coruña variant before reaching Santiago. You can choose from 9 different official Celtic Way routes in Ireland with distances that range from a minimum of 25 km to more than 95 km: Croagh Patrick Heritage Trail and Tóchar Phádraig (County Mayo), Bray Coastal Route and St Kevin's Way (County Wicklow), Kerry Camino and Slí ár Sinsear (County Kerry), Camino St Finbarr (County Cork), Boyne Valley Camino (County Louth), and St Declan's Way en (County Waterford and Tipperary). Remember that to get your Compostela in Santiago, you’ll have to stamp your Pilgrim Passport at least once during the Irish section of your journey and get the official Celtic Camino Compostela from Dublin’s Tourist Information Center before embarking on the Spanish stretch of your pilgrimage.

A Pilgrim’s Experience

“I discovered the Maritime Camino by reading an article a friend had sent to my email, as both an avid sailer and experienced pilgrim, it immediately caught my attention due to how different it was from the other routes. That summer I traveled to Sanxenxo and hopped on a catamaran that sailed through the Galician coastline and the Ulloa estuary, a beautiful journey that I will probably never forget. At the walking stages, I also stumbled upon the little village of Muros, a place so pretty that I decided to stay an extra night to get lost in its historic medieval old town and have a glass of albariño in one of its picturesque seaside terraces.” — Juan Diego

Remember that we at Bukitt Camino are here to make your pilgrim experience easy and comfortable! If you have any doubts, don’t hesitate to contact our Camino Sherpas via email, fill out our website form, or drop us a message on social media. For more tips, recommendations, guides, and all things Camino follow us on our Instagram and share your pilgrim adventures with #AllCaminosLeadToSantiago or #YourCaminoIsOurCamino. We hope to see you on The Way soon but in the meantime…Ultreia et suseia! Buen Camino!