Long-Distance
Routes
the Camino and others, with a family
Walking a long-distance route with children sounds like an eccentric thing to do and it is one of the most rewarding trips a family can take. Not because of the walking, which is often quite dull, but because of what a week of walking toward the same place every day does to a family. You talk. There is nothing else to do.
The Camino, and which one
The Camino de Santiago is not one route, it is many, converging on Santiago de Compostela in northwest Spain. Choosing the right one matters more than anything else.
The Camino Francés is the famous one and the busiest. The final hundred kilometers from Sarria is the most walked section anywhere, because that is the minimum distance to qualify for the compostela certificate. It is crowded and it is also extremely well supported, with a village every few kilometers.
For a family, that final stretch from Sarria is the right choice. Five to seven days, short stages, plenty of places to stop, lots of other people including other families, and a real sense of arrival at the end.
The Portuguese coastal route is quieter and prettier if you want fewer people. The Camino Primitivo is beautiful and considerably harder. Not a first family Camino.
How it works day to day
You walk from one town to the next, roughly ten to twenty kilometers depending on the stage, arriving in the early afternoon. You sleep, you eat, you do it again.
Accommodation ranges from municipal hostels to private pensions and small hotels. With children I would book ahead in private accommodation rather than relying on hostel beds, particularly in summer.
You carry a credential, a paper passport that gets stamped in each town, which children find compelling. Collecting stamps is a better motivator than any view.
At the end you present it and receive the compostela. Having a certificate with their name on it at the end matters enormously to a child.
Luggage transfer changes everything
Services will move your bags between accommodations each day for a modest fee per bag. Book it the night before.
This is the difference between a family trip and an ordeal. Walking fifteen kilometers with a day pack is pleasant. Walking it carrying everything you own is not, for anybody, and certainly not for a nine year old.
There is a certain purist view that carrying your pack is the point. Ignore it. Nobody is grading you and the children will not remember the pack, they will remember if it was fun.
Realistic stages with children
Ten to fifteen kilometers a day is comfortable for children aged roughly eight and up who are used to walking. Twenty is a long day.
Split the standard stages. The guidebooks divide routes into adult stages and there is no requirement to follow them. Walking half a stage and stopping in a smaller village is often the better day.
Build in a rest day. Even on a week-long walk, one day of not walking makes the second half much better.
Start early to avoid heat, especially in Spain in summer. Walking from seven to noon and stopping is far better than pushing through the afternoon.
Other routes worth knowing
The Cotswold Way and other English national trails are gentle, well waymarked and dense with villages and pubs. Very manageable for families and easy logistics.
The Rota Vicentina in Portugal follows the Atlantic coast with beaches at the end of most days, which is a considerable motivator.
Hut-to-hut walking in the Alps and Norway offers a similar structure with more dramatic scenery and more effort.
The principle is the same everywhere. Short stages, a destination each day, and somewhere to sleep that you did not have to carry.
Is your family ready
The test is not fitness, it is temperament. Can everybody tolerate several hours of moderate, unexciting effort every day for a week without needing to be entertained.
Children who can do that have a great time. Children who cannot will be miserable by day three and so will you.
Do a two day version first if you can. Walk somewhere overnight and back. You will know very quickly.
A family Camino is one of the trips people come back from changed, and the logistics are more manageable than they sound. If you are curious, tell me the ages and I will tell you which route and which stages.
Questions people actually ask
The ones that come up before anyone books. If yours isn’t here, ask me.
Which Camino route is best for families?
The final hundred kilometers of the Camino Francés from Sarria is generally best. It offers short stages, frequent villages, strong support infrastructure, other families walking, and qualifies for the compostela certificate.
Can you have your luggage transferred on the Camino?
Yes. Services move bags between accommodations each day for a modest fee, usually booked the night before. For families this makes a substantial difference to the experience.
How far should children walk each day on a long-distance route?
Ten to fifteen kilometers is comfortable for children around eight and older who walk regularly. Standard guidebook stages can be split, and a rest day partway through improves the second half considerably.
What is a Camino credential?
A paper pilgrim passport stamped in each town along the route, presented at the end to receive the compostela certificate. Collecting the stamps is often highly motivating for children.
What other long-distance routes suit families?
The Cotswold Way and other English national trails offer gentle walking with frequent villages. The Rota Vicentina in Portugal follows the coast with beaches at the end of most stages. Alpine and Norwegian hut-to-hut routes offer a similar structure with more effort.
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Written and kept current by Nicole Damiano, ASTA Verified Travel Advisor with FG Luxury Travel. If something here is out of date, tell me and I will fix it.
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