Camino Inglés (English Way)
Camino Inglés (English Way) features on the Gingerguide audio walk through A Coruña. Give it roughly ~30 min: enough to look, hear a two to three minute story on the spot, and ask the AI guide whatever the story leaves open.
- Type historic
- Suggested visit ~30 min
- A Coruña A Coruña guide
About Camino Inglés (English Way)
The medieval pilgrimage route from A Coruña to Santiago de Compostela, used by British and Irish pilgrims who arrived by sea to avoid the overland journey through France, covering 75 kilometres of Galician countryside to the Cathedral.
The Camino Inglés, the English Way of St James, is one of the lesser-known routes of the Camino de Santiago, but one with a long and significant history. During the medieval period, when overland travel through France was dangerous and expensive, British and Irish pilgrims took ships from ports in England, Ireland, and Flanders to Galicia, landing either at A Coruña or at Ferrol (35km north), from where they walked to Santiago de Compostela. The route from A Coruña covers approximately 75 kilometres through the Galician countryside, through small towns and agricultural landscapes, past ancient churches and cruceiros (stone crosses), and takes about four to five days on foot. Today it is a popular route for pilgrims seeking a quieter alternative to the crowded Camino Francés. Because the A Coruña route is only about 75 kilometres, short of the 100-kilometre minimum normally required for the Compostela certificate, pilgrims starting here qualify for the Compostela only under a special provision (by also completing a short certified stage in their home country). The route begins in A Coruña's Old Town, at the Church of Santiago (fittingly), and ends at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
Did you know? Geoffrey Chaucer's Wife of Bath, in The Canterbury Tales (c.1390), mentions that she has 'been at Rome' and 'wandered by the way' to Santiago de Compostela, 'thries hadde she been at Jerusalem; She hadde passed many a straunge strem; At Rome she hadde been, and at Boloigne, In Galice at Seint Jame'. The Camino was a cultural reference point throughout medieval literature.
How long is a visit to Camino Inglés (English Way)?
Set aside roughly ~30 min for Camino Inglés (English Way). That covers a good look and the narrated story, and because you set the pace you can always stay on.
Is Camino Inglés (English Way) worth your time?
Camino Inglés (English Way) is among the 12 narrated highlights the Gingerguide team chose for A Coruña, so it is worth a look. Hear the story for the context, then ask the AI guide for anything more.
Nearby stops in A Coruña
Hear the story of Camino Inglés (English Way)
Preview the A Coruña tour free in the Gingerguide app.