On the Portuguese Camino de Santiago de Compostela

In search of less-frequented routes, pilgrims began to opt for others, less well known. Thus, the popularity of the Portuguese Way increased over time and now it has also managed to consolidate itself as one of the most traveled routes.

Choosing the place of departure

If you are not in too much of a hurry, you can also take a little more time to explore Porto. Even though a Portuguese proverb says that Porto is a place of work and Lisbon is a place of celebration, the city is anything but a grey industrial city. Especially worth seeing is the old town with its narrow alleyways that lead very steeply as far down as to the banks of the Douro River. In 1996, this was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Those who follow the arrows are guided through the outskirt of Porto and experience the flowing transition from the dynamic big city to the peaceful idyll of the province. The north of Porto is characterized by cornfields, ancient stone bridges, rivers and small villages with baroque churches.

The ancient fortified city of Valença, whose old town is still surrounded by imposing stone walls, rises above the Rio Minho, which marks the border with Galicia. The fortress is a vestige of the rivalries that existed in the past between the kings of Spain and Portugal. 

Finally, from Padrón, where legend has it that the decapitated body of the apostle James the Elder was brought ashore after his transfer from Palestine, it is only a day's stage to the finish. The arrival in Santiago de Compostela always evokes different feelings in the pilgrims: while some are happy to have finally overcome the exertions of the long walk with blisters on their feet and other physical ailments, others feel sorry for not needing to get up the next morning and continuing walking. For them, the way is the real goal and they are already secretly planning their next pilgrimage on the Way of St. James.