A journey through northern Spain – 10 days on the Santiago de Compostela

The Camino de Santiago is an adventure that many people have on their bucket list. If you’ve also dreamt about it and, like me, are passionate about road cycling, take a look at this Collection. Maybe you’ll decide to do the Camino de Santiago on skinny tryes.

I’ve chosen the French Route as it’s the most travelled by pilgrims on foot and there’s also a EuroVelo route signposted for cycle tourers. Therefore, this variant is the best option if it’s your first time on the Camino. Here, you’ll find more hostels and services and, above all, more people to share the experience with.

The road bike stages mostly trace the EuroVelo 3, but many sections are not asphalted. As a result, within each stage there are detours so you can continue cycling on asphalt.

Sometimes you ride on the hard shoulder of national roads, whilst other parts take you along small roads where the asphalt is in poor condition. You need to be careful as sometimes the bad state of the road can be rather bumpy. But even so, I recommend following the stages outlined here as they take you through places where the scenery is incredible.

Many of the villages en route have cobblestone streets that also test your bike. However, this is part of the magic of the Camino; you discover the life, art, culture and food of the regions you pass through. It’s worth stopping in these villages to stroll through the pretty streets and enjoy a coffee or pincho de tortilla. Many of the villages, especially the smaller ones, survive thanks to pilgrims.

The Route starts in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port in France. You can get there by bus from Pamplona or by train from Irún-Hendaye. Specialised taxi companies also operate from Pamplona and Roncesvalles and you can share a car with other pilgrims.

You pass through important provincial capitals such as Pamplona, Logroño, Burgos and León. Each of these cities is special in its own way, with spectacular sites such as the Citadel in Pamplona and the cathedral in Burgos. I recommend trying the food too: tuck into tapas on Calle Laurel in Logroño and search for the famous sausages in León’s Húmedo quarter.

Many unique villages lie along the French Pilgrim's Way to Santiago de Compostela. Some are surrounded by vineyards and have medieval castles and monasteries, some are full of small Romanesque churches, and others have a more rural feel, built of reddish stone and full of granaries. There’s something for everyone and you’ll fall in love with more than one.

At the end of each stage, you reach villages with pilgrims' hostels and other types of accommodation. The municipal hostels are the cheapest, but it can be harder for cyclists to get a bed as we usually arrive later than pilgrims who hike. Cyclists do more kilometres and often don’t leave so early, so you may want to book a private hostel in advance. The prices are still reasonable and you avoid any stress when you arrive.

Regarding meals, the closer you get to Galicia, the more often you find restaurants with pilgrim menus. They are hearty and usually around 15 euros.

You have to show your pilgrim’s passport to access the public hostels and pilgrim’s menus. Along the Camino, you can stamp your passport in accommodation, churches, chapels and shops. You can pick it up in churches and associations along the route.

As for water and food en route, I recommend taking enough food on each stage, just in case. When the route deviates from the EuroVelo, it sometimes passes through villages that aren’t so used to pilgrims and don’t have services such as bars or fountains. You’ll still find towns with bars, restaurants, shops or supermarkets and water fountains on every stage though.

Once in Santiago, remember to pick up your Compostela, a certificate for completing the Camino de Santiago. You can choose between one that says you’ve done the Way for religious reasons or one for sporting reasons.

To obtain it, you have to show your stamped pilgrim's passport and prove that you’ve cycled a minimum of 200 kilometres (124 mi). You can do this in the pilgrim's reception office, 33 Rúa das Carretas, very close to the cathedral.

To return home you have several options. The public postal company Correos offers a bicycle delivery service from Santiago so you don’t have to carry your bike with you on the return journey. Santiago airport has several connections to Spanish and European airports.

Alternatively, you can also take the train. Santiago has a high-speed train that takes you to Madrid in just over three hours. If you left your car in Pamplona on the first day, you have to take a slightly slower train. The Alvia takes you back to the start point in about eight hours.