Routes of the St. James Way in Galicia

Most pilgrims consider this the best route of the Way. It's the most famous route internationally and has major historical significance as one of the routes of the St. James Way. The French Way is made up of four specific main routes originating in France, which were first mapped out in the Codex Calixtinus in the 12th century.

These routes become two as they enter Spain, with one going through Roncesvalles and the other through Somport. They merge into one from Puente la Reina (Queen's Bridge) onwards. The route then goes through important towns such as Santo Domingo de la Calzada and Burgos y León before entering Galicia via the traditional mountain village of O Cebreiro.

This route mainly runs parallel to the coast of Cantabria. It has been known to exist since the 12th century and became quite a busy route from the mid-12th century onwards. Pilgrims from all over the north of the Iberian Peninsula and other regions such as England, Flanders, Germany, and Scandinavia traveled this way, and many of them arrived at the ports dotted along the route.

The Northern Way enters Galicia through Ribadeo and descends in a diagonal direction to Santiago de Compostela, though it is now possible to switch over to the French Way in Arzúa. The route crosses landmarks such as the city of Mondoñedo and the Cistercian Monastery of our Lady of Sobrado, which has welcomed pilgrims traveling the Northern Way since the Middle Ages.

This alternative version of the Portuguese Way stretches along the Atlantic coast from Porto to Redondela. From the Portuguese town of Caminha, it crosses the mouth of the Miño river up to Guarda, then runs through Baiona and Vigo before rejoining the Central Portuguese Way.

The Mozarabic Way follows a Roman road called the Silver Way (Vía de la Plata), which links the settlements of Augusta Emerita, in Mérida, and Asturica Augusta, in Astorga. From the mid-13th century, pilgrims from the south of the peninsula started using this route.

Some travelers followed the route to Astorga, joining the French Way, while others diverged to the town of Puebla de Sanabria or the northwest of Portugal towards Verín. Following either route, travelers cross the province of Ourense, from where pilgrims now travel through the towns of Deza and Ullà on their way to Santiago de Compostela.

This modern route commemorates the arrival of the apostle Saint James the Greater's corpse by sea. This was the final stretch of the journey that set off from the port of Jaffa, in Palestine, and went on to Iria Flavia, which was the episcopal see (bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction) when the apostle's tomb was discovered.

Since 1965, a marvellous maritime river procession has taken place every summer, with 17 cruiseships taking part from the shores and islets of the river. It is the only maritime Stations of the Cross in the world. The Torres de Oeste (West Towers) is another landmark on this route. This fortress is of Roman origin and the bishops of Compostela fortified it in the 11th and 12th centuries to defend Santiago de Compostela against attacks from the sea.