Cantabria is preparing for a new date with Jacobean hospitality. Güemes will host the Pilgrim's Bordón Festival on October 2, 3 and 4, 2026, one of the meetings included in the calendar of activities of the Friends of the Caminos de Santiago de Cantabria.
The Camino de Santiago is not built only with kilometers, yellow arrows or large monuments. It is also kept alive thanks to the people who welcome pilgrims, share experiences and dedicate part of their time to preserving a tradition of welcome that spans generations.
That spirit is found in Güemes, a Cantabrian town located on the Camino del Norte, one of its most recognizable places.
The Pilgrim's Staff Festival represents a new opportunity to value coexistence and the human ties that are created around the pilgrimage.
Three days dedicated to the pilgrim spirit
The 2026 edition will be held during the first weekend of October, from Friday the 2nd to Sunday the 4th.
The event appears in the official agenda of activities of the Association of Friends of the Caminos de Santiago de Cantabria, also known as Pilgrims for Cantabria
The meeting also comes at a particularly significant moment for the Jacobean routes, a few months before the Compostela Holy Year 2027, which will once again place the Camino de Santiago at the center of international attention.
Beyond the numbers of pilgrims, events like this offer the opportunity to reflect on what makes the Camino different: encounter, solidarity, respect and hospitality.
Güemes, a reference point for hospitality on the Camino del Norte
Talking about pilgrimage in Güemes inevitably means talking about La Cabaña del Abuelo Peuto, a hostel deeply linked to the hospitality tradition of the Camino de Santiago.
The establishment, located in the Cantabrian town, maintains a hospitality philosophy based on donations and the participation of a team of hospital workers. Their activity constitutes an example of the importance of volunteering within the Jacobean network.
For many walkers, hostels represent more than just a place to rest after a stage. They are spaces where people of different nationalities and generations share conversations, experiences and moments that end up forming part of their memories of the Camino.
In this context, Güemes has become one of the names of hospitality on the Camino del Norte.
The staff, symbol of an entire tradition
The staff is one of the oldest and most recognizable elements of pilgrim iconography.
For centuries it has accompanied those who traveled long distances to the main pilgrimage sites. Its practical use as a support for walking also ended up making it a symbol of effort, perseverance and journey.
For this reason, the name of the Pilgrim's Staff Festival is especially evocative.
The staff reminds us that each pilgrimage is built step by step and that, sometimes, the most important support does not come from an object, but from the people we meet along the way.
An appointment before Xacobeo 2027
The celebration comes when associations, municipalities and entities related to the Camino begin to intensify their preparations for 2027.
The next Holy Year is an opportunity to publicize routes such as the Camino del Norte, but also to remember the importance of conserving its heritage and its host traditions.
Cantabria is part of this common heritage thanks to its coastal landscapes, its historic towns and the work carried out by numerous hospital workers and associations.
Güemes will once again be, for three days, a point of reference for those who continue to understand the Camino as an experience of encounter between people.
Because the Camino de Santiago does not end when the pilgrim arrives in Compostela. It also continues in every friendship, every conversation, and every gesture of hospitality that remains after the trip.
Dates and place
From October 2 to 4, 2026
Güemes, Cantabria — Camino del Norte
Detailed program: pending confirmation.
