The Camino ends 2017 exceeding its record: 301,006 pilgrims

A year of records on the Camino de Santiago

2017 is dismissed as a very special year for the Camino de Santiago, the year in which the psychological figure of the 300,000 pilgrims arrived at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela was exceeded for the first time. In total there were 301,006 pilgrims, 8.3% more than in the previous year, those who have traveled the Jacobean routes in 2017, beating in almost 23,000 people the absolute record of 278,041 travelers, established only 12 months ago. The figure also raises the bar regarding the last Holy Year of Xacobeo, improving the data for that year of 2010 in 28,589 pilgrims.

It was last December 13 when the arrival of the 300,000 pilgrim was recorded in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. It was an American student living in Michigan, Andrew Larkin, who had spent the last months in Burgos learning Spanish. Without intending it, Larkin has already gone down in the history of the Camino de Santiago becoming the pilgrim who manages to break the ceiling of 300,000, a challenge hitherto unthinkable, but that with the trend of the Jacobean route in recent years, could return to be exceeded in 2018.

The Spaniards were 44% of the total on the Camino de Santiago

2017 also leaves us some interesting information on the Camino de Santiago, according to the statistics of the Pilgrim's Office. There have been 147,857 women and 153,149 men who have traveled the Jacobean routes; the vast majority on foot (278,462 pilgrims), many others on bicycles (21,931), some on horseback (417) and increasingly brave in wheelchairs (43). The Spaniards already some years ago that we stopped being majority in the Way of Santiago; in 2017 we reached 44% (132,465 pilgrims) while pilgrims from the rest of the world accounted for 56% (168,541).

These are the countries that most pilgrims have contributed to the Camino de Santiago in 2017:

On the other hand, speaking of Spanish pilgrims, these are the autonomous communities that most pilgrims have contributed in 2017:

The 10 favorite starting points or starting points for the pilgrims in the year that has just ended have been the following: