Partner
Association St. James Way in Latvia
The Latvian St James Way association, founded on 8 January 2019: within a few years it has built a network of about 550 km – from Valka via Riga to the Lithuanian border – and issues the Latvian pilgrim passport.
The Caminos on the map
Caminos of this partner
Camino Latvia northCamino Latvia north runs 274.8 kilometres from Valga on the Estonian border to Riga – the trunk of the Latvian Camino network. First the quiet farmland of Vidzeme, then the Gauja valley with red sandstone cliffs at Cēsis, Līgatne and Sigulda, finally pine forest and the beach of the Gulf of Riga. Every stage ends at a church.Explore this Camino- Camino Latvia eastThe Camino Latvia East runs 145.2 kilometers from Riga up the Daugava River and through the Zemgale Plain to Germaniškis on the Lithuanian border—where the Camino Lituano begins and the scallop shell trail continues south. It is the only one of the three Latvian routes that does not end, but rather passes the baton.Explore this Camino
- Camino Latvia westThe Camino Latvia West stretches 133.4 kilometers from Riga through Semigallia to Žagarė on the Lithuanian border—the flattest of the three Latvian routes, with an elevation gain of just 341 meters over the entire route. Along the way: the Tīreļi World War I bog, the never-conquered Dobele Castle, and the Tērvete Fairy Tale Forest. This route is where the Latvian Way of St. James literally began in 2019.Explore this Camino
Who stands behind the route
The Association St. James Way in Latvia, in Latvian Latvijas Svētā Jēkaba ceļa asociācija, was founded on 8 January 2019 – backed by both of the country's archbishops, the Catholic and the Lutheran, which is anything but a given in Latvia. Its aim: to make Latvia, the country between the Estonian and the Lithuanian Ways of St James, walkable as a continuous pilgrim route towards Santiago.
Eight weeks after its founding, on 3 March 2019, about 30 pilgrims from Latvia, Lithuania and Poland walked the first 22 kilometres from Žagarė to Tērvete. Since then a network of about 550 kilometres has grown, 95 per cent of it waymarked by 2024. A Way of St James younger than most of its pilgrims' smartphones – and already linking two neighbouring countries.
The association's routes
- Camino Latvia north – 274.8 km from Valga/Valka on the Estonian border through the Gauja valley to Riga, the trunk of the network
- Camino Latvia west – 133.4 km from Riga through Semigallia to Žagarė on the Lithuanian border, the route where it all began in 2019
- Camino Latvia east – 145.2 km from Riga up the Daugava to Germaniškis, where the Camino Lituano takes over
What the association does for pilgrims
The association waymarks the routes with yellow arrows and the scallop shell on a dark blue background, every stage ends at a church, and for the 2026 season the waymarking was checked and improved. It issues its own Latvian pilgrim passport – €4, available at 14 points around the country, including Valka, Cēsis, Riga and Dobele, and accredited by the cathedral in Santiago. If you walk the complete Latvian route, you receive a completion certificate for a €10 donation (as of September 2026).
You sleep in churches, parish houses, community centres and guesthouses – booked ahead, at least three days in advance. On top of that come events such as the St James's Day celebration on 25 July and news on the website, in English and Latvian.
Contact and getting involved
Website: caminolatvia.com (English, Latvian) with contact page, stages and pilgrim passport sales points. Connections to the Estonian Way of St James in the north and to the Camino Lituano in the south.