Camino Mozárabe
Self-Guided Tour 1
Granada ⇒ Cordoba
This trip starts in Granada, one of the most beautiful cities in Spain, and famous for its magnificent fortress and mosque, the Alhambra. Besides Córdoba with its Mosque-Cathedral, you will also encounter many picturesque villages.
Tour Type: Self-Guided
Duration: 10 Days Total / 8 Days Walking
Total Distance: 176.4 km. (109.6 mi.)
Difficulty: challenging / moderate
Average distance: 22.1 km. (13.7 mi.) / Day
Prices (per person):
Double Room:
Starting from € 490
Single-Occupancy Room:
Starting from € 680
What’s Included:
9 nights in single / double room
En-suite facilities
English-speaking emergency assistance
Your full digital Travel Info Package
Details ⇒
We are proud to be working together with hand-picked, high quality and mostly locally owned and operated service providers.
Your journey will be booked through, and your Travel Package will include all the information you will need to access your lodging locations and to process your check-in.
Optional Add-ons:
Breakfasts (subject to availability)
Lodging for additional night(s) stays
Airport transfers (by taxi)
Details ⇒
Breakfasts are not available everywhere, and they are often served late, starting around 8 am. However, if you wish to include brekfasts, we will be happy to do so, where possible.
Spending an extra night in a given town throughout your journey is often a good idea: you give your body a rest, relax and enjoy exploring the town. In Santiago, two nights are included in most of our Tours by default as we believe it’s the least a Pilgrim would need to enjoy the City; however, you have the option to opt out of it.
We will be happy to arrange for an airport shuttle transfer for you from your airport of arrival to the starting point of your journey. The same goes for the departure, unless you end your journey in Santiago and fly out of Santiago Airport. In that case, a taxi can be easily arranged for the time of your choice directly at the Reception Desk at your Hotel.
What’s not Included:
Flights
Luggage transfer on walking days
Travel Insurance
Tour guide
Meals
Details ⇒
We do not book flights, nor organize any rail or commercial bus-line travel. However, if you need assistance in deciding how to get to and back from your Camino Tour, we will be happy to assist you with tips and ideas!
There are no companies that provide luggage transfers on the Camino Mozárabe. If you wish to make use of this service, you can organize it directly on site through a local taxi company. The accommodations will be happy to help you with the organization.
We strongly recommend to all our travelers to get a Travel Insurance; however, we do not sell any such policies. For our international clients, it is best to get a policy in their country of residence, as some countries offer insurances only to their own residents.
This is a date-flexible tour; therefore, it is self-guided – no Tour Guide will be accompanying you. If you are interested in joining a Group Tour with a Tour Guide, please check our Guided Tours page. (Note: our Guided Tours take place on set dates that are planned ahead.)
Highlights
This trip starts in famous Granada, one of the most beautiful cities in Spain. Take your time to visit the famous Alhambra: a magnificent fortress and mosque, built in Moorish style. The ancient district Albaicín, which nestles on the hillside next to the Alhambra, is also worth visiting. The picturesque little houses have whitewashed facades and are connected by narrow alleys.
Then begins the Way of Saint James. As early as the tenth century, after the discovery of the tomb of James the Apostle, Christians, the so-called Mozarabs from the south of Spain, which was dominated by Islam at that time, would travel to Santiago de Compostela. Marked as the Way of Saint James not until 1999, the Camino Mozárabe leads you on this stage on the Route of the Caliphate, mainly on dirt roads and past olive plantations, over one and another mountain range, from Granada to Córdoba, the two most important centers of the Arabic era in Spain.
Read More about this tour ⇒
Besides Granada and Córdoba with its Mosque-Cathedral, you will encounter many picturesque villages, many of which have their own castles and watchtowers. Examples include, among others, the mountain village of Moclín and its medieval castle towering over the town, and Alcalá la Real, whose fortress also stands on a high rocky ridge above the city.
Impressions from the Camino
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrival in Granada
Arrival in Spain from your home country. Use public transportation from the airport in Granada to the hotel. Proceed to your room. Possible walk around Granada. Prepare mind and body for the Camino.
Day 1: Arrival in Granada
Independent arrival in Spain from your home country. Use public transportation from the airport in Granada to the hotel. Proceed to your room. Possible walk around Granada. Prepare mind and body for the Camino.
Day 2: Granada – Pinos Puente • 20 km. (12 mi.)
Your first pilgrimage stage begins today, which will take you on a flat route mainly through the greater Granada area. Outside the city, the route will take you around the elevation of Sierra Elvira to today’s destination, Pinos Puente. This municipality gained importance in the time of Christopher Columbus, as it was here where the treaty that secured the expedition to the Americas was signed.
Distance: 20 km. (12 mi.) | Difficulty: Easy
Day 3: Pinos Puente – Moclín • 14 km. (9 mi.)
Even though today’s stage is quite short, you will have to overcome some elevations. Passing by olive plantations, the steep ascent to the mountain village of Moclín and its medieval castle, which you can see from some distance, takes place behind Los Olivares.
Distance: 14 km. (9 mi.) | Difficulty: Moderate/ Challenging
Day 4: Moclín – Alcalá la Real • 23 km. (14 mi.)
The beginning of today’s stage leads you first downhill and immediately uphill again. After this rather demanding section, you will continue on dirt tracks from the province of Granada to the province of Jaén in a more pleasant way. With slight ascents and descents, you will pass by an olive oil and cheese factory. Shortly before today’s destination, Alcalá la Real, you will already have an impressive view of the fortress Fortaleza de la Mota, which dominates over the roofs of the city.
Distance: 23 km. (14 mi.) | Difficulty: Moderate
Day 5: Alcalá la Real – Alcaudete • 24 km. (15 mi.)
The route continues steadily downhill through the province of Jaén and through a landscape characterized by olive plantations. After having crossed the San Juan River, you will shortly pass by a stonemason business. From here, a dirt road with almost no shadow leads you in a steady up and down until you reach Alcaudete. The ruins of the castle situated above the town are just as impressive as the Gothic church with its square steeple.
Distance: 24 km. (15 mi.) | Difficulty: Easy/ Moderate
Day 6: Alcaudete – Baena • 25.4 km. (15.8 mi.)
The route continues today past the already-familiar olive plantations from the last few days, with the ruins of the castle behind you. At the lowest point of today’s stage, you will cross the Guadajoz, a river that also serves as a natural border with the province of Córdoba. Constantly ascending, after a few kilometers/miles, you will have a beautiful panoramic view over olive plantations back to Alcaudete. A highlight of the stage is the descent to Laguna del Salobral, a picturesque lake surrounded by olive trees and hills. After your arrival in Baena, it is worth visiting the restored Moorish fort, from which you can enjoy a great view of the white houses of the small town.
Distance: 25.4 km. (15.8 mi.) | Difficulty: Moderate
Day 7: Baena – Castro del Río • 21 km. (13 mi.)
During today’s stage, you will first go up and down past seemingly endless olive plantations until you finally cross the Guadajoz halfway through the stage. After that, the route becomes visibly flatter and, on a little-frequented country road, you will hike near the river, which meanders through the riverbed, to Castro del Río, where the poet Miguel Cervantes began his novel Don Quixote.
Distance: 21 km. (13 mi.) | Difficulty: Easy
Day 8: Castro del Río – Espejo – Santa Cruz • 22.5 km. (14 mi.)
In Castro del Río, the road splits in order to reach Córdoba. You take the longer variant via Espejo and Santa Cruz, where you also spend the next night. Initially, you will hike parallel to the Guadajoz and soon reach a hill from where you can see Espejo with the Castillo El Ducal. After having passed the village, you will walk steadily through the well-known olive plantations until you reach today’s destination, Santa Cruz, which you could already see for the first time shortly after Espejo.
Distance: 22.5 km. (14 mi.) | Difficulty: Easy/ Moderate
Day 9: Santa Cruz – Córdoba • 26.5 km. (16.5 mi.)
In the morning, you will leave Santa Cruz and initially start your pilgrimage with an ascent, crossing the Arroyo Jaco River. Soon, you will reach the point where the path you have traveled joins the shorter variant from Castro del Rio. With constant ups and downs, you will reach the first houses of Córdoba, the former metropolis of Moorish Spain, long before the end of your stage. Use the rest of the day to visit the Jewish quarter, the Roman bridge and, of course, the Mosque-Cathedral. Formerly a mosque, a Gothic cathedral was built inside, which may not be very impressive from the outside, but from the inside, with its many columns and decorations, it is well worth seeing.
Distance: 26.5 km (16.5 mi.) | Difficulty: Moderate
Day 10: Departure from Córdoba
Farewell, Córdoba; 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 2 of the Camino Mozárabe, from Córdoba to Mérida.
¡Buen Camino!
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Tour Combination Options
Our Camino Mozárabe: Self-Guided Tour 1 can be easily combined with:
Camino Mozárabe:
Self-Guided Tour 2
Córdoba ⇒ Mérida