The Camino de Santiago can be done from many places throughout Spain and, of course, among them is the Spanish capital city, Madrid.
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This capital is approximately 600 km from the main objective of the pilgrim, the Cathedral of Santiago. It is gaining more and more followers and is becoming an ideal place to start the Camino adventure.
Preliminary indications
If you are reading this post of our pilgrim blog it means that you are interested in knowing more about the Camino de Madrid, but before we get into the matter, it is necessary to take into consideration certain factors.
When to do the Camino?
This is undoubtedly one of the most important decisions when planning the adventure. Depending on the time of year, our clothing or the difficulty of the pilgrimage can change.
We should bear in mind that the summer season, in the central area of Spain, reaches really uncomfortable temperatures (30 degrees Celsius average daytime) at the time of the pilgrimage, more specifically, July and August. So, if we can, it is best to avoid these months.
We also have the winter season, being in the interior of the country, the snow will be present in most of the route, you will have photographs to remember, but your journey will be more complicated.
The best times to do the Camino from Madrid, from our point of view, are spring and autumn. The temperatures and climate are ideal for enjoying the experience.
How Should I do the Camino?
The classic and most popular option is to do the Camino on foot. However, planning the Camino de Santiago by bike is gaining more and more relevance because of the more prepared Caminos, wide paths and the natural environment.
This makes cycling the Camino a unique experience for lovers of this means of transport.
One of the advantages of doing the Camino on foot is that you can be accompanied by your dog, a great advantage to take into account if you have a strong bond with your faithful pet.
Why the Camino de Madrid?
- Connections: A compelling reason as Madrid is the centre of Spain. Whether by plane, train or bus, all the Caminos lead to Madrid. Moreover, if you come from another continent, landing in Madrid is almost obligatory.
- Unique landscapes: Along the route you will find beautiful inland landscapes such as the Sierra de Guadarrama and the Fuenfría mountain pass, among others.
- Signposting: The section is correctly signposted due to the increasing demand of pilgrims heading from the Spanish capital to the Galician capital.
Where to sleep in Madrid?
Before starting your new adventure, you can sleep in a large number of hostels in the city of Madrid itself, without having to go too far away.
In this case, from Pilgrim we recommend some accommodation where pilgrims who have already made this pilgrimage route have been more than satisfied.
Albergue Petrus – Korea’s Friends of the Camino Association
- City: Madrid
- Address: C. Melchor Fernández Almagro, 101, 2.
- Phone number: +34 653 954 145
Albergue de Acogida Municipal Tres Cantos
- City: Tres Cantos
- Address: Plaza Ayuntamiento, 1 (Tres cantos)
- Phone number: +34 912 938 000
Where to start your Camino?
The city is very big and you are probably wondering if there is an official place to start the Camino de Santiago but there is not.
The Church of Santiago (the parish church of Santiago and San Juan Bautista) is considered the oldest Jacobean temple in Madrid and the favourite place for future pilgrims to start the Camino.
However, as mentioned above, there is no official starting point, so you can start from wherever you want. Take a point of your choice and start one of the greatest adventures of your life.
Stages of the Camino de Madrid
| STAGES | START | END | KM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 | Madrid | Tres Cantos | 25,2 |
| Stage 2 | Tres Cantos | Manzanares el Real | 25,3 |
| Stage 3 | Manzanares el Real | Cercedilla | 20,4 |
| Stage 4 | Cercedilla | Segovia | 30,4 |
| Stage 5 | Segovia | Santa María de la Real de Nieva | 33,3 |
| Stage 6 | Santa María la Real de Nieva | Coca | 22,2 |
| Stage 7 | Coca | Alcazarén | 24 |
| Stage 8 | Alcazarén | Puente Duero | 24,9 |
| Stage 9 | Puente Duero | Peñaflor de Hornija | 27,4 |
| Stage 10 | Peñaflor de Hornija | Medina de Rioseco | 24,3 |
| Stage 11 | Medina de Rioseco | Cuenca de Campos | 25,3 |
| Stage 12 | Cuenca de Campos | Santervás de Campos | 21,6 |
| Stage 13 | Santervás de Campos | Sahagún | 19,2 |
From the town of Sahagún, the adventure continues through stage 18 of the French Way, which you will follow to the final destination, Santiago de Compostela.
Stages by bike
| STAGES | START | END | KM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 | Madrid | Cercedilla | 71 |
| Stage 2 | Cercedilla | Santa María de la Real de Nieva | 64 |
| Stage 3 | Santa María de la Real de Nieva | Puente Duero | 71,1 |
| Stage 4 | Puente Duero | Cuenca de Campos | 77 |
| Stage 5 | Cuenca de Campos | Mansilla de las Mulas | 67 |
When you finish the last stage you will find yourself in the middle of the French Way.
Stage 1: Madrid – Tres Cantos
The route starts in the central area of the capital at the Plaza de Santiago. The direction of this stage is always towards the north, to leave the Spanish capital.
We will walk through the most symbolic areas of Madrid such as Plaza de Cibeles and Plaza de Castilla. Esta es una etapa para degustar los platos típicos de Madrid y unas tapas en las calles de la zona céntrica.
Stage 2: Tres Cantos – Manzanares el Real
Here you will begin to enjoy the nature of the municipality with its meadows and groves that contrast with the city of Madrid. You will cross the Tejada stream along its banks and you will always see the characteristic landscape of the Guadarrama mountain range.
Stage 3: Manzanares el Real – Cercedilla
You will discover the summer town of Matalpino, which is growing every year due to its natural setting, and Navacerrada, which is popular with cyclists, as it is part of a famous stage of the Tour of Spain.
In Navacerrada the yellow arrows lead to the town hall to reach the end point where Cercedilla starts.
Stage 4: Cercedilla – Segovia
This is one of the hardest stages of the Camino de Santiago so we recommend that you prepare your feet for the occasion.
We recommend using trekking shoes, essential footwear for summer and spring, as this is a very difficult stage and will give you greater freedom of movement.
After this hard day of walking, you will have a great reward, you will be able to enjoy the view of Segovia, admiring its cathedral until you reach the city.
Stage 5: Segovia – Santa María de la Real de Nieva
The starting point is the square of San Esteban until you reach Zamarramala where you will pass through the relevant signposted places and see the hermitage of Our Lady until you reach the most important place of this stage, the municipality of Santa Maria Real de Nieva, to enjoy its monastery and cloister..
Stage 6: Santa María de la Real Nieva – Coca
This day will take you through the province of Segovia until you reach Valladolid, an almost entirely flat stage, where the pine trees will protect you with their shade until you reach Coca, following the Eresma River.
Stage 7: Coca – Alcazarén
In this stage, we say goodbye to the province of Segovia to discover the province of Valladolid, walking through flat terrain with large pine forests and the Eresma River.
We recommend that after Villeguillo you take with you everything you need for any unforeseen circumstances because, on this stretch of approximately 19 km, there is no establishment or service station where you can make a stop or make a purchase for any unforeseen eventuality.
Stage 8: Alcazarén – Puente de Duero
You will continue with the line of flat stages, where on arrival at the Brazuelas farm, a symbol of the Camino de Santiago, such as the Crucero Jacobeo, requires a stop to observe it.
The stage ends at the old bridge over the Duero River, which leads to another stream, the Pisuerga River.
Stage 9: Puente de Duero – Peñaflor de Hornija
On this day, the stage begins in the village of Simancas until it reaches Wamba, a municipality with a rich history and a curiosity: it is the only town in Spain that begins with a “w”.
Here you should visit the Mozarabic church of Santa María. To finish the stage, two surprises await in the form of a steep climb which, after completing stage 4, will not be a problem for your legs.
Stage 10: Peñaflor de Hornija – Medina de Rioseco
This stage begins with a large watercourse which, as you walk along it, you will be able to see the remains of the Peñaflor wall.
After this, you will continue to Castromonte, where the pilgrims stop at the village bar to regain strength to finish in Medina de Rioseco.
Stage 11: Medina de Rioseco – Cuenca de Campos
This is the start of the penultimate stage, before crossing the French Way at Medina de Rioseco, known as the city of the admirals of Castile.
This is one of the villages with the most monuments and where a stop is obligatory in each one of them; Church of Santa Cruz, Santa María de Mediavilla and the church of Santiago.
You will also be able to walk along the Canal de Castilla, a historic work of Spanish civil engineering, before finishing the journey in Cuenca de Campos.
Stage 12. Cuenca de Campos- Santervás de Campos
This journey continues deep into Castile, nature, tranquillity and peace will be your allies before taking part in the pilgrimage route par excellence and discovering the French Way of the Camino de Santiago.
Stage 13: Santervás de Campos – Sahagún
We say goodbye to the province of Valladolid and enter the province of León, where the view is still similar. Before arriving in Sahagún and closing this route with nostalgia, you will discover that your adventure along the Camino de Madrid has been memorable.
Don’t relax, now it’s time to connect with the next stages of the French Way, route that you will follow from now on.
Will you continue until the end of the world?
Once you have arrived in Santiago and embraced the apostle St. James in the Cathedral, you will have finished the Camino de Santiago. However, more and more pilgrims decide to continue their Camino to Finisterre, considered the end of the world in ancient Roman times.
It is very possible that, after starting the Camino de Madrid, and having travelled almost 600 km, you do not have the strength to continue or perhaps you do not have more time to reach the town of Fisterra.
Don’t worry, at Pilgrim we have a 9 hour tour to Finisterre where you can visit this town, as well as other places such as the Ézaro Waterfall, the only European river that flows directly into the sea, or the town of Muxía.
If you are interested, please contact us at info@pilgrim.es.
With all this information we conclude our brief but complete information about the Camino de Santiago from Madrid. We hope it will be of help to you and that you will be able to realise it in the near future.
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