At last, your travels bring you to Logroño – capital of the province La Rioja and a city with a rich cultural heritage, many churches and the culinary fame for its Vino & Tapas. Check in at your hotel, and enjoy the rest of the evening!

(Tip: in order to shorten this stage’s walking distance and to avoid walking the busy streets out of Logroño, you may wish to consider taking a taxi for the first 5 km. (3.1 mi.) out of the city center to the Park La Grajera.) Today’s journey is also longer; however, with only a few hills to roll over, it is mostly an easy walking day. You are in the world-famous wine region of La Rioja, and today’s scenery, whichever way you’ll look, will remind you of that. Passing by many vineyards, you will reach the charming town of Navarrete. Afterwards, you will be walking in the middle of more and ever more grape fields until, before the journey’s end, you will get on top of some hills to enjoy truly magnificent vistas of this epic wine country, nested in a vast valley and rimmed by far-away mountains. You will then reach Nájera – a truly charming small town with very proud history: it was once the Capital of the Kingdom of Navarra, and it is home to the medieval Monastery of major significance – Santa María la Real. Wind down and relax by the river or in one of the pretty bars down the narrow streets of Nájera’s Old Town. 

Distance: 29.5 km. (18.3 mi.)
Difficulty: Easy terrain, but moderate to challenging distance

After the first couple of hours of walking, you will start noticing a change in scenery: the vineyards will gradually begin to give way to gentle, grass-clad hills, which will render picturesque panoramic views. With rather few villages in-between as well as fair terrain, you will soon find yourself reaching today’s destination: Santo Domingo de la Calzada. Visit its famous cathedral and learn about the miracle of the „Hanged Innocent“ that (supposedly) took place here, and you will find out why the Cathedral houses a massive bird cage with living chickens inside. Consider also going up the bell tower right across from the Cathedral, and soak up some amazing 360 views of the surrounding countryside.

Distance: 22 km. (13.7 mi.)
Difficulty: Easy

The first 7 km. (4.4 mi.) of today’s journey are the last ones in La Rioja – soon after leaving the lovely little town of Grañón, you will be crossing the next border: into the Province of Burgos, the first province inside the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León. The Camino will now continue running over smooth hills and sunflower fields, and traverse a number of typical little Castilian villages. Your eyes will by now have gotten used to seeing medieval churches just about everywhere you walk as the Camino, following its deeply-rooted Pilgrimage tradition, almost always passes next to them. This day’s easy journey in the middle of genuinely pleasant countryside will eventually lead you into the town of Belorado. Enjoy the quaint main plaza as you spend your evening exploring the compact town center.

Distance: 23.5 km. (14.6 mi.)
Difficulty: Easy

The first half of today’s stage has a similar look and feel to it as the last day’s: more wide-open spaces with smoothly-rolling hills with fields of corn, sunflowers and wild grass, and more small villages to walk across and take a break in. However, the scenery will change both quickly and radically as you leave the village Villafranca: you will be gaining 200 m. (600 ft.) of altitude over a steady ascent as you enter the Montes de Oca (Goose Hills). After numerous days of crossing fields and vineyards, you will find yourself walking in the forest again, all the way until you reach the tiny village of San Juan de Ortega. Make sure to visit its famous monastery and enjoy the genuine peace and quiet for, tomorrow, the stage’s destination will be as different as it can be: Burgos, the largest City on the entire Camino Francés.

Distance: 24.6 km. (15.3 mi.)
Difficulty: Moderate

This morning begins with a lovely forest walk – the last one for quite some time – to the charming village of Agés. Then, the Camino passes by the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Atapuerca and ascends the hill to summit at the Wooden Cross La Cruz de Maragrande. Standing at this summit, take in the vast panorama of the valley ahead, with the city of Burgos lying at its bottom. The descent from the Wooden Cross is quite gradual; as the terrain soon flattens out, villages pop up one after another. At Orbaneja Riopico, the Camino splits into two options for entering Burgos, the one along the river Arlanzón certainly being the more pleasant one. Burgos offers a plethora of attractions to explore, and touring its UNESCO-listed Cathedral alone make take a couple of hours. Therefore, it is the place where many pilgrims decide to take a rest day. But, whether you spend one or more nights in this fascinating city, take a quick hike up to the Mirador del Castillo (only 7-10 min. from the Cathedral Plaza) for an absolutely gorgeous panoramic view of the Cathedral and the Old Town. And doing so at sunset / twilight may be even more rewarding than at daytime.

Distance: 25.3 km. (15.7 mi.)
Difficulty: Moderate

Farewell, Burgos; farewell, Camino – and safe travels on your journey back home or to your next adventure! Or, here is another option well-worth considering: to continue onto our next Part 4 of the Camino Francés, from Burgos to León.

¡Buen Camino!