The English Way|Camino de Santiago|Sections from Ferrol and A Coruña

Cammino Inglese

From Ferrol to Santiago de Compostela. 5 sections. 122 kilometres. Alternative Route from A Coruña.

The English Way is the first historic maritime route to Santiago de Compostela. From the 11th century until the beginning of the 15th century, an increasing number of European pilgrims, British and Irish in particular, boarded their merchant ships and sailed towards Galician shores. They were joined by the Scandinavians, Flemish, Baltic and Northern French, in maritime adventures full of storms and trouble.

From the shore, they continued their route on foot from two main locations: Ferrol and A Coruña, still the preferred starting points today. The route from Ferrol is over 120 kilometres and takes pilgrims through Narón, Neda, Pontedeume and Abegondo until Mesía. The village of Bruma brings pilgrims coming from A Coruña, a shorter route, together with those coming from Ferrol to continue through Ordes and Oroso until Santiago de Compostela.

When Henry VII ruled the separation of the Church of England from the Catholic church in the 16th century, this route declined but it is booming again today. The truth is, there are many attractions on the English Way, be it the landscape, history or art. The route combines wild Galician seas and mountains with beautiful towns such as Pontedeume or Betanzos.

The Camino starts in Ferrol with its first section to Neda, and from there it continues to Pontedeume, although most pilgrims decide to walk the 31 km from Ferrol to Pontedeume in a single day.

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How to get to the starting point?

FERROL

How to get to Ferrol by train: There are daily trains from Madrid and Oviedo to Ferrol. From there, you can also go to A Coruña and continue to other Galician destinations. Please check timetables at Renfe. The railway station is at Av. Compostela, very close to the Plaza de Armas, the city centre.

How to get to Ferrol by bus: There are daily buses connectingFerrol to different parts of Spain with Alsa, and inside Galicia, you can use Monbus and Arriva. Ferrol’s bus station is at Paseo de la Estación (+34 981 324 700).

How to get to Ferrol by car: The toll highway AP-9 takes you to Ferrol. Likewise the N-651 crosses the bridge of As Pías.

How to get to Ferrol by plane: There is no airport in Ferrol, the closest one is Alvedro, in A Coruña, located 50 kilometres away. You can use the toll highway to get there.

A CORUÑA

How to get A Coruña by train: The railway station of A Coruña is at Calle Joaquín Planells Riera (+34 902 320 320) and there are daily trains to Madrid, Barcelona and Bilbao-Irún. There are also commuter trains to Santiago, Vigo, Ferrol and Monforte de Lemos. Please check timetables at Renfe.

How to get to A Coruña by bus: Alsa reaches A Coruña from different Spanish destinations. There are city bus lines from the bus station, you can check all lines here.

How to get to A Coruña by car: The toll-highway AP-9 goes from the Galician-Portuguese border all the way to A Coruña through Vigo, Pontevedra and Santiago de Compostela. Likewise, it links the city with Ferrol. Besides, the Autovía del Noroeste (toll-free) connects A Coruña with Madrid and the Autopista de Carballo (toll highway) also gets you to the city.

How to get to A Coruña by plane: The airport of Alvedro is 8 kilometres from the city centre of A Coruña and has direct flights to Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, London, Lisbon and Amsterdam. The airlines operating those flights are Air Europa, Iberia, Tap-Portugal and Vueling. Asicasa (+34 981 231 234) links the airport with the city by bus. There is also a taxi stand.