• Remove ads on the forum by becoming a donating member. More here.

Search 74,075 Camino Questions

Minimum age for children to walk on 800km Camino Frances

Bowmanfamily36

New Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Le Puy to SdC 2019, VF 2022 (Besancon to Rome)
Hello
In the future sometime, we would like to take our 2 Aussie teenage grandchildren with us to walk the Camino from SJPdP to SdC. We think it would be a wonderful life experience if they are in their early to mid teens , maybe 12-15 yrs old?
Is a 12 and half yr old (girl) too young?
We want them to carry their own back packs and we are happy to go slow each day as necessary. Also thinking of walking in late Sept and October to avoid heat and crowds.

For those who have walked with their children (or grandchildren) - could you offer any guidance or tips?
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
When I walked with my teenage son in 2016 there was a Korean family who were walking with a 5 year old daughter and a 7 year old son. They were walking the same distances we were, and the kids had more energy than us at the end of the day. I don't know that there is a minimum age. It depends on the kid.

There was another family who walked with a 10 year old son and 12 year old daughter and vlogged their whole Camino on YouTube. You can find them as "WorldTowning" and watch their Camino de Santiago Playlist and see how they found it and what worked and didn't work for them.

And another family with three kids of various ages vlogged their whole 2022 Camino on YouTube. You can find them as "GettingLost onthetrail".
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
I'm a bit embarrassed that I often get tagged in threads like this as if I'm the forum authority on walking with kids - but it is true I have walked the Camino with eight of them from six to 18 years years (and hiked at home with all of them from before birth) - and multiple trips with 8-13 year olds. But I am not alone, plenty more have done it too. My specialty when discussing this kind of thing is NOT giving advice or telling you what to do, but asking questions that might help you work out what matters for YOU!
That said, to answer your first question, there is no minimum age.
My main questions at this point in the conversation would be: are the kids interested? do they walk?
 
Last edited:
We walked with our 13 year old grandson; in 2 years we'll take another grandson (who will be 13 too)
I made the decision to do this after meeting an Alaskan couple with 2 kids aged 8 and 12 who walked from Le Puy - we met them in Rabanal.
We did a lot of preparation with him, but I think that you're more concerned about your grand kids than your own. (We didn't want to hand a broken kid back to his mother).
That age worked for us also with his schooling, the time off school didnt impact on his NCEA studies - key education milestone.
 
The youngest pilgrim I have ever seen was about 2-3 months old. I have seen a few other very young minigrinos over the years, and more than usual this year. Most are about 6 to 7 years old or more.
 
3rd Edition. Vital content training & pack guides avoid common mistakes, bed bugs etc
Our (Aussie) boys were 9 and 11 on their first camino and 11 and 14 on their second. I agree with Kiwi-family - probably most important question is 'do they want to walk'. This was a fabulous experience for everyone as well as for us as a family unit. Every day we let the kids know that they could set the pace. Every day, they out-walked us!!!!
 
Just finished a 300km walk with my 2 boys and did a section of the France last year. They loved it both times and we saw younger children along the way. They are 16 and 14 now. None of the Albergues we went to seemed to have an issue with children.

This year we found ourselves using Booking.com to find rooms. For some reason, if you put the children's ages, it won't find Albergues. I found it was easier to search for 3 adults. Occasionally I had to search for 3 adults in 3 rooms to get the Albergues to show up. Maybe someone has a better way but this worked for us. More often than not, we ended up at a municipal or a nice Albergue popped up along the way that we just stopped at. Great when you see a pool!
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
There is no minimum age to walk any Camino. However, there is a minimum age to receive your own Compostela. In general, a pilgrim requesting a Compostela, and meeting all of the other conditions (credencial, sellos, distance etc.) must have:

- (if Catholic) received their first Holy Communion - they might ask if in doubt - OR
- reached ten years of age - considered the cut-off point for children to understand what they have just accomplished, within the historical and cultural context.

This is why children in strollers, carriages, and papoose carriers do not get their own Compostelas.

One year, there was a young Korean boy who did the entire Camino Frances, with his parents, using a stand-up push-type scooter when possible. But, he walked his own pilgrimage - the whole 800 Km. As I recall he was nine-years old. They gave him a Compostela - it was a judgement call.

I thought I read somewhere above that the children involved in this current Camino, were young teens. Assuming this is correct, they should have no problems requesting their own Compostelas.

In the past, in cases like this, where parents show up with young children, we have suggested a Distance Certificate issued to the "Familia Perez-Lopez," etc. in lieu of a Compostela to the child.

Hope this helps,

Tom
 
Holoholo automatically captures your footpaths, places, photos, and journals.
Hello
In the future sometime, we would like to take our 2 Aussie teenage grandchildren with us to walk the Camino from SJPdP to SdC. We think it would be a wonderful life experience if they are in their early to mid teens , maybe 12-15 yrs old?
Is a 12 and half yr old (girl) too young?
We want them to carry their own back packs and we are happy to go slow each day as necessary. Also thinking of walking in late Sept and October to avoid heat and crowds.

For those who have walked with their children (or grandchildren) - could you offer any guidance or tips?
As mentioned by another poster, it depends on the kid and always will. A bratty kid? Problems. A spoiled kid, can be problems. Immature and uncontrolled emotional kid? Problems. How can one tell? Easy, see how they behave on a regular grocery store shopping trip or a shopping mall trip or a trip to the park/beach trip. The 'tells' are always there. If you 'know' the child/kid, then you will have your answer. And sometimes you don't need to 'know' the child/kid; rather, know the parents. How they are, most of the children will be. In any case, wish you the best. Chuck
 
Hello
In the future sometime, we would like to take our 2 Aussie teenage grandchildren with us to walk the Camino from SJPdP to SdC. We think it would be a wonderful life experience if they are in their early to mid teens , maybe 12-15 yrs old?
Is a 12 and half yr old (girl) too young?
We want them to carry their own back packs and we are happy to go slow each day as necessary. Also thinking of walking in late Sept and October to avoid heat and crowds.

For those who have walked with their children (or grandchildren) - could you offer any guidance or tips?
I know the weather can change but I started 1 year, from SJPD or Roncesvalle on Sept 27, thinking I would have cooler weather. Wrong!! It was very very hot. Mid Oct it began to get better but still very hot. You may want to google average monthly temperatures for some of the cities along the way. However, I realize you will be walking the entire length and need to strike a balance.
 
The youngest Peregrina I encountered during my CF was all but 3-mo old:) She and her parents were German
The next is an American couple with 6-month old daughter and 4-yo son
And then I saw a bunch of other kids here and there anywhere from mid-single digits and into their teens

12-15 is wonderful esp. if they are of 'adventurous' type!

and yeah - by all means being "this old" one should be able to carry their own backpack!

Good luck and Buen Camino
 
Holoholo automatically captures your footpaths, places, photos, and journals.
I think there is a lower age limit, to enter/sleep in the dormitiry in albergues. You have to find separate rooms
 
In the albergues where I have volunteered there was no lower age limit to sleep in dormitories as all we had were dormitories. Where we had children, they were walking with one or more parents or grandparents. I'm not saying that all albergues are like this. Just those where I have served.
 
Hi, we walked in May 2022 Portuguese Costal with 3 kids (age at that time 14y, 12y and 9y) - about 300km and it was perfect. You just have to adapt daily stages to their age. We had also some rainy days but the kids (and also we as parents) did it very well. The youngest carried almost nothing on his back (just a small backpack with some small stuff), the middle one some light stuff and the oldest carried all his stuff. In May there were not many people and sometimes we slept in private room or got some Booking.
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.

❓How to ask a question

How to post a new question on the Camino Forum.

Most read last week in this forum

It seems that after several pushbacks the new requirements come into force on December 2nd. Accomodation providers will be required to collect a raft of personal data from all guests. This will...
I keep unfortunately postponing my first Camino because of work and various personal issues. I enjoy good physical condition, have always done quiet sports activities and always walk without...
From December 1, 2024 to March 15, 2025, the Saint Jean Pied de Port municipal hostel will be closed on Sundays. Closure also foreseen on December 25/2024 and 01/01/2025. So no hostels open in...
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce9g93p405zo For general information and discussion. The consensus of the article seems to be that it will a bit of a nuisance, it may cause some delays but...
Good News for all pilgrims planning on walking from Paris to join the Via Turonensis at Tours or any pilgrim passing through Paris on the way to SJPP - Good News! On December 7th the Cathédrale...
Its quite cold here in the UK now, winter is upon us and the sun sets by 16.00hrs, so the days are short and the nights long. So this just adds to those endless hours thinking about past Caminos...

Featured threads

❓How to ask a question

How to post a new question on the Camino Forum.

Featured threads

Forum Rules

Forum Rules

Camino Updates on YouTube

Camino Conversations

Most downloaded Resources

This site is run by Ivar at

in Santiago de Compostela.
This site participates in the Amazon Affiliate program, designed to provide a means for Ivar to earn fees by linking to Amazon
Official Camino Passport (Credential) | 2024 Camino Guides
Back
Back
Top