All (Andalusian) roads lead to Santiago
More than 1,400 kilometres separate Malaga from Santiago de Compostela on a route that follows the stages of St James Way from Andalucía to Galicia
St James Way is not only made up of the well-known routes: the French Way, the Primitive Way and the Northern Way. The branches of Europe's best-known pilgrimage route reach the northernmost and easternmost limits of the continent. But they also reach Andalucía.
Iglesia de Santiago in Malaga
The start of Mozarabic Way is found at the doors of this church on Calle Granada in Malaga city. Encarni Hinojosa
Iglesia de Santiago in Malaga
One of the doors of the building with the shells characteristic of the pilgrimage. Encarni Hinojosa
Iglesia de Santiago in Malaga
Sign outside the church which identifies it as the start of the route. Encarni Hinojosa1 /
From the heart of Malaga, specifically from Iglesia de Santiago on Calle Granada, you can start the route to the home of the apostle along the so-called Mozarabic Way. A total of 1,480.33 kilometres traverse the northern border of the province, cross Cordoba to Mérida and continue along the Vía de la Plata towards Santiago de Compostela.
This is the map of the Andalusian Pilgrims' Routes to Santiago de Compostela including highlighted accommodation (in green) and associations related to the Camino (in red):
A total of 71 stages run throughout Andalucía, with Almeria being the province with the largest number of sections. Although in terms of distance, Cordoba is the territory with the greatest number of kilometres.
In Malaga province, there are eight daily stages to cover before crossing the border with Cordoba. Almost 100 kilometres that leave the city through Puerto de la Torre and pass through municipalities such as Almogía, Villanueva de la Concepción, Antequera, Villanueva de Algaidas and Cuevas Bajas.
How long would it take to get from Malaga to Santiago?
The work of the St James associations is essential to be able to map out these routes, which are broken down into daily stages, adapted to the terrain through which they run and designed so that the daily kilometres are not physically demanding. The Asociación Jacobea de Málaga puts the number of daily stages from the capital of the Costa del Sol to the Galician city at 50. The association recommends 50 days to complete the pilgrimage. But as well as being a spiritual journey, the Camino de Santiago is also a sporting challenge for hiking enthusiasts. So, would it be possible to reduce the journey time?
The first step is to work out the total distance of the journey from Malaga to Santiago de Compostela.
Within Malaga province, the Mozarabic Way is 237.58 kilometres long.
Added to that are the further 308.04 kilometres of walking through Cordoba province.
And the final 934.71 kilometres of the Mozarabic Way are from Mérida to Santiago itself (commonly known as the Vía de la Plata).
Altogether, this accumulates to 1,480.33 kilometres (according to maps from the Instituto Geográfico Nacional).
AUX STEP FOR JS
This total distance could be covered in the suggested 50 days established by the Asociación Jacobea de Málaga or by walking them with your own route. In order to calculate the stages, it is important to first establish a walking pace. This can be calculated by recording how long it takes to walk one kilometre.
For example, 15 minutes per kilometre is an average relaxed walking pace.
From this calculation, it's easy to figure out how long the entire route would take.
Once calculated in minutes, it's easy to convert them into days.
But this equation assumes 24 hours of walking per day - with no rest or stops along the way. Which is obviously impossible.
But of course if the days are doubled, the hours walking per day would be halved. Even so, 12 hours of walking each day would be very demanding.
AUX STEP FOR JS
So, with a little bit of walking and rest, without setbacks, injuries or stopping too much along the way, you could do the Camino de Santiago (Mozarabic Way) in 30 days. But this pilgrimage is more than just a sporting experience. It is also spiritual, cultural and dynamic, so it is advisable to follow the structure of 50 daily stages recommended by the Asociación Jacobea de Málaga to make the most of all areas of the experience.
This data was taken and calculated from the Camino de Santiago maps offered by the Instituto Geográfico Nacional.
