For many Spanish speakers, very familiar and for others totally unknown, this phrase has a connotation, it refers to the route taken by pilgrims heading to Santiago de Compostela to visit the tomb of the Apostle Santiago.

Since the 9th century it has been forged as one of the most important pilgrimage routes in Europe, becoming a network of roads of the kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula; therefore, it is not a single route that the Apostle Santiago traveled, but a set of roads that converge to go to Compostela.

What makes people in the 21st century abandon their comforts to go on a pilgrimage route? What does the Camino de Santiago have that makes it one of the things you have to do once in your life? The pilgrim participates in a path that has its roots in history. The Camino de Santiago has a different spirit than going out to walk any route.

The pilgrims who have made the journey attest to the special spirituality of this journey. You too are called to experience it, so be careful not to be infected by living this experience as a consumer product, or as a competition or as a few-day excursion. Live it without haste, enjoying each place, each person, each moment and each circumstance. Live it as the route that can change your life, that allows you to feel that holiness that we all need to live well, to relate in peace, to love life, family, friends.

There are more than 300,000 pilgrims each year and that number grows every year thanks to the testimony of the walkers who have made this experience real.