The Camino de Santiago is an ancient pilgrimage trail across Northern Spain, stretching 500 miles from a small French village, St. Jean Pied de Port, to Santiago de Compostela near the Atlantic coast.

Rooted in Christian tradition, it traces the path of the disciple James who, according to oral tradition, walked  to "the end of the earth" to spread the gospel. He was spectacularly unsuccessful and returned to Jerusalem where he was martyred. 

By the year 1000, people begin trekking to Santiago in a pilgrimage quest for personal and spiritual enlightenment. The earliest known pilgrim guide dates to the 13th century. An infrastructure of inns catering to pilgrims was developed and many cathedrals were built centered around James's pilgrimage.

Pope John Paul II visited the  Camino twice in the 1980's and encouraged pilgrim traffic. People responded. Meanwhile deep changes were occurring in Western Christendom as people left organized churches but often pursued a deeper spirituality. For many, a spiritual pursuit often included pilgrimages.

Today, several hundred thousand people walk and bike the Camino each year. They stay in albergues, the local word for dorm type lodgings with showers and kitchen access. Organized tours for groups where logistics are pre-arranged are becoming common. 

May and September are the busiest months. A "Holy Year" occurs every seven years when St James' Feast Day, July 25, falls on a Sunday. Holy Years prompt more traffic.