I walked the Portuguese Way of the Camino de Santiago. Here’s what it was like

While the global pandemic halted travel, I dreamt of spending weeks walking the Camino de Santiago through Spain. In early June 2022, I finally made that dream a reality, following the Portuguese route from Porto to what is believed to be the resting place of St. James the Apostle in Santiago de Compostela during one of the busiest years on record.

A sweaty, stinky, sloppy, exhausted mess, gripping the cardboard tube holding my Compostela, I ended the pilgrimage in front of the desk clerk at my luxury hotel hopeful one last time that, as pilgrims say, “the Camino would provide.”

I had arrived hours before check-in but I prayed they could find me a room as soon as possible so I could get a much-needed shower, nap and food — in no particular order of priority.

My rough condition was the result of a 260 km (161 miles) journey following the Portuguese Way through Portugal and Spain, an adventure I took on with my 45+10L Deuter backpack filled with just the necessities.

Though traveling by myself I was far from alone on this journey. The centuries-old religious pilgrimage route has always beckoned pilgrims but is doing so in record numbers this year, perhaps best illustrated by the fact that in my sorry state, as the desk clerk continued to work to find me a room, a guy in the lobby walked up to me to ask if I had just finished the Camino de Santiago. “I’ve always wanted to do it. How was it?”

Why is it so busy this year?

Dating back to the 9th century, the Camino de Santiago is a pilgrimage to what is believed to be the final resting place of Saint James the Apostle. Though the length of each path is different, all are hundreds of miles long and eventually weave through Spain to the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela where you can visit the remains of the apostle.

The rise in the number of pilgrims this year is easily attributable to it being a Holy Year for Saint James, where the Cathedral’s Holy Door is opened and those who make the trek and walk through the door are granted a plenary indulgence.

And, like all travel, it’s the first summer where this journey has been “safer” following mass vaccination, and thus we’re seeing a rebound of two years of postponed travel plans.

On the day I arrived, the Oficina del Peregrino which issues the official Compostela certifying a pilgrim has completed the required kilometers for the pilgrimage, recorded 1442 pilgrims arriving. A spokesperson for the Cathedral told me that on some days this summer, the Oficina has issued more than 2,000 Compostelas, far outpacing any other years on record.