New record on the Camino de Santiago: 2022 is already the year with the most pilgrims in history

This September 21, the barrier of 347,578 sealed compostelas was overcomeThat was the highest number of pilgrims in a year and had been reached in 2019This summer there have been between 2,000 and 3,000 pilgrims daily and there have been days of more than 4,000El Camino de Santiago goes from record to record. Xacobeo 2022 has managed to achieve a new milestone: being the year with the most pilgrims in history. And he has done it when we are still in the month of September. This Wednesday, September 21, the barrier of 347,578 sealed compostelas has been overcome. That record had been achieved just before the pandemic, in 2019. That year was listed, until yesterday, as the best in history. This 2022 has more than three months left to pulverize that historical figure. A complete recovery success after two very complicated years marked by the coronavirus health crisis. In 2020, the Jacobean routes ran out of pilgrims and the hostels were closed. 2021 was called to be a big year for being Xacobeo, but it was not what was expected due to capacity restrictions and the absence of international pilgrims. It closed with 178,000 sealed compostelas. However, this 2022 has already started with symptoms of normality on the roads. And in April everything indicated that it would be a record year. By the end of that month, more than 38,000 pilgrims had completed the route, exceeding pre-pandemic figures. This positive trend was confirmed in the summer. For the first time in history, the 200,000th pilgrim arrived in Santiago before the feast of the Apostle (July 25). This summer the influx at the Pilgrim Assistance Office, the place where the compostelas are sealed, has been massive. Between 2,000 and 3,000 daily pilgrims have been counted, and there have even been days when 4,000 daily accreditations have been exceeded. Now, for the 400,000 compostelasThat the Camino de Santiago is in fashion is a reality and, although the French Way is still the busiest, the rest of the routes are booming. According to figures from the Pilgrim’s Office, in August 40,745 did the French Way; 17,530, the Portuguese; 6,590, the English: 6,200, the Primitive; 4,756, the North Road; 2,137, the Via de la Plata; and 627 other roads. Now, the next challenge will be to close the year exceeding 400,000 compostelas. That milestone is not that far away. In this month of September, the pilgrims continue to arrive at an average of 2,000 per day, although it is true that the foreseeable thing is that the volume of walkers drops considerably during the autumn.