Camino de Invierno: the secret way to Santiago

Tired of the beaten tracks of the Camino Frances? Go and find something different. The Camino de Invierno is one of the lesser traveled routes. It''s easy to access via Ponferrada and leads you ten days through the beautiful landscapes of Galicia. Follow me on my trip on the so-called "Winter Way" to Santiago de Compostela.

[@jimknol5332]

Thanks for the great video. Just finished the Invierno a couple of weeks ago and found it inspirational. Although there were mostly quiet solitude days, I met a number of pilgrims and walked with them from time to time.

[@Caminotips]

Thanks for watching & taking the time to write!

[@stevenforshaw2573]

Thankyou. Am thinking of walking this one again in March 2025. Really enjoying your gentle commentary, and remembering my first time there. It is a special, quiet Camino and with a beauty all of its own as you are portraying extremely well. 😊

[@Caminotips]

Thanks for your kind words and taking the time to write. I will probably also go back some day….but so many more caminos are still waiting. I just recently discovered the camino vadiensis & lebanego…..

[@stevenforshaw2573]

⁠Indeed, so many. Buen Camino. 😊🧌

[@RuedigerBerlich]

Thanks again for the great video, always worth watching and my go-to place if I want to give people an impression of the different caminos. Since you mention Le Puy: you could even go further -- why not start at the baltic sea, on the Via Scandinavica to Eisenach, cross Germany to Speyer on the Luther way and then move up the Rhine valley to Müllheim / Mulhouse, then into France (Badischer Jakobsweg; choosing the Pfälzer Jakobsweg to Kloster Hornbach and then on to Metz might also be an option). A long way, I know, but can I suggest a mixed tour on bicycle and on foot? Getting to Le Puy on bicycle is actually not that difficult. Just a thought. If you come through Karlsruhe -- consider stopping for a beer in one of our many breweries here :-) Have fun!

[@Caminotips]

Thanks for writing. So many opportunities….the only thing that keeps me from trying them is my profound lack of time.

[@gailerart3792]

You missed the most wonderful albergue at Villavieja.

[@Caminotips]

Yeah, I heard about that one too late…

[@NeelixTV]

Wieder ein tolles Video! Vielen, vielen Dank! 2015 war ich sogar paar Meter auf diesem Camino unterwegs, weil wir den Abzeig vom Frances verpasst hatten. Bis wir von zwei freundlichen Spaniern aufgeklärt wurden. Aber wenn ich sehe, wie ruhig und natürlich dieser Weg ist, bin ich fast schon traurig ihn nicht weiter gegangen zu sein. 😉

[@Caminotips]

Hey! Du hast jetzt die englische Version erwischt. Wie auch immer: Danke fürs Zuschauen und Schreiben - das mit den „ein paar Metern“ kenne ich aus eigener Erfahrung, das war meine erste Begegnung mit dem Invierno (in Ponferrada falsch abgebogen).

[@FrancesBoyesWatson]

Thanks for sharing your video. One question: did you meet any agressive loose dogs on the trail?

[@Caminotips]

I have read and heard quite some stuff on that. Actually we had one situation with loose dogs in a village. Try just to be safe to ignore them and leave their territory - in most cases that will do. I also had a whistle with me, just in case. Did not need it.

[@gammelmarkphoto]

Thanks for sharing your experience! Earlier this year I did my first Camino, from Porto to Santiago, it was a great experience, so next year I want to go again. But, with all the caminoes, and only one life, I am looking for another reoute. How would you feel about the Invierno in the middle og February? I like to be alone, but I also like the albergue to be open... I did end up sleeping on the street, one night in Vilanova de Arouse, because everything was closed in Ferbruary 🥶

[@Caminotips]

Hey! There are not too many albergues at all on the Invierno , so I went to small hostels instead. These hostels will probably be open in February too. When it comes to the albergues - most of them open in March, so that could be difficult to rely on these places. But: even later in the year there are not too many people on the Invierno, so there is no big reason to go off season. It will always be a rather quiet walk….