CaminantesThe Camino de Santiago in November: 11,072 pilgrims and 9h 47m of daylight
By August Frederik Kramer, who has walked the Camino twice · Last updated 22 September 2026
Two things about November can be measured, so here they are. 11,072 pilgrims collected the Compostela in Santiago in November 2025, 2.1% of the year and the number 9 month of twelve; that is about 369 arrivals a day. In 2018 the same month brought 7,651, so November has grown 1.4 times over in seven years.
The other measurable thing is light, and November is where it starts to bite. In the middle of the month Santiago gets 9h 47m of daylight. Take off 1h 30m for breakfast, coffee and lunch and walk at 4 km/h, and the day holds 33.1 km, and for the first time since January that is not enough for the longest stage on our network: the 34.9 km from Villaharta to Alcaracejos on the Camino Mozárabe is 27m longer than the light allows.
What November is like, in numbers
November is where the year stops. 11,072 pilgrims, against 62,854 in October: a fifth of the month before, and the count does not recover until March. In 2018 it was 7,651, so November has grown 1.4 times over while staying the quietest walking month on the calendar. It is also the month in which the light stops holding the network, for the first time since January: 1 stage is longer than the day allows, and any long day now needs a head torch or a shorter plan.
Where November sits in the year
The Pilgrim’s Office’s monthly count for 2025, with the daylight in the middle of each month at Santiago’s latitude. The three quiet months are shown together because the office’s chart hides their labels.
| Month | Pilgrims | Share | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|
| March | 14,068 | 2.7 % | 11h 51m |
| April | 54,642 | 10.3 % | 13h 21m |
| May | 78,650 | 14.8 % | 14h 36m |
| June | 74,043 | 14.0 % | 15h 19m |
| July | 67,013 | 12.6 % | 15h 04m |
| August | 77,095 | 14.5 % | 13h 59m |
| September | 81,534 | 15.4 % | 12h 34m |
| October | 62,854 | 11.8 % | 11h 08m |
| November | 11,072 | 2.1 % | 9h 47m |
| January, February and December | 9,751 | 1.8 % | - |
The whole year, the routes, the countries and where people start are in our guide to how many people walk the Camino. If the light matters more to you than the crowd, our winter guide is the page that turns on it, and our guide to the best time of year takes every month in turn.
Know these words before your Camino. Spanish is preparation, the same as boots and stages. Try the free topic
Where the numbers come from
The pilgrim count is the Pilgrim’s Office’s own, read from its public dashboard on 21 September 2026; it counts Compostelas issued, so it is a floor. Daylight is computed for Santiago’s latitude on the middle day of the month, ignoring hills and horizon. The walking budget is our own rule of thumb, 4 km/h with 1h 30m of stops, the same one the winter guide uses, so the two pages cannot disagree.
Common questions
How many people walk the Camino in November?
11,072 pilgrims arrived in Santiago in November 2025, according to the Pilgrim’s Office, about 369 a day. It was the number 9 month of the year.
Is November busy on the Camino?
November carries 2.1% of the year’s pilgrims. The busiest month is September with 81,534; the quietest three, January, February and December, share fewer than ten thousand between them.
How much daylight is there in November?
9h 47m in the middle of the month at Santiago. At 4 km/h with 1h 30m of stops that is 33.1 km of walking, which is less than the longest stage on our ten routes needs: 34.9 km from Villaharta to Alcaracejos, 27m short of the light.
Keep reading
The Camino in August: 77,095 pilgrims, and no longer the busiest month
August was the peak in 2018 and is third now. What the month still has is light: 13h 59m of it, measured, and every stage on every route fits inside the day.
The Camino in October: 62,854 pilgrims and the daylight to walk them in
How busy October really is, from the office that counts, and how many hours of light it gives you: two measured things, and what they leave on the longest stage of any route.
The Camino in September: 81,534 pilgrims and the daylight to walk them in
How busy September really is, from the office that counts, and how many hours of light it gives you: two measured things, and what they leave on the longest stage of any route.
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