Partner
Foreningen af Danske Santiagopilgrimme
The association of Danish Santiago pilgrims: since 1999 it has created and waymarked Den Danske Pilgrimsrute across Denmark, maintains it with its own route groups and issues the Danish pilgrim passport – over 5,100 members.
Visit website(opens in a new tab)santiagopilgrimme.dk
The Caminos on the map
Caminos of this partner
Hærvejen248.0 kilometres, 13 stages, one ridge: the Hærvejen is Denmark's pilgrim route along the country's oldest long-distance road. It begins in Viborg, where the two northern branches from Hirtshals and Frederikshavn meet, climbs onto the watershed between the North Sea and the Kattegat, reaches its highest point of 123 metres near Nørre Snede, passes the royal mounds of Jelling, the Randbøl heath and the old borderland on the Kongeå, and ends at the German border near Padborg, where the Via Jutlandica takes over. Around 1150 the Icelandic abbot Nikulás described exactly this axis — with Viborg as a station. The route is waymarked in both directions: scallop shell southwards, St Olav's cross northwards. To be honest: not a single St James church on the whole route, sparse signage, hostel season mainly June to August — and the route is not called "Danske Pilgrimsrute", even though it carried that name on this page for two years.Explore this Camino- Pilgrimsrute Nordjylland Vest208.2 kilometres, 10 stages, highest point 73 metres: the Pilgrimsrute Nordjylland Vest is the western northern branch of the Hærvejen hiking route, from the ferry quay in Hirtshals along the North Sea coast via the migrating dune of Rubjerg Knude, Løkken and Jammerbugten, then across the Limfjord at Aggersund — with Denmark's largest Viking ring fortress right beside it — and through Himmerland on the embankment of the old Himmerland railway to Viborg, where the Hærvejen begins its way south. In Aars the eastern branch from Frederikshavn joins in. Opened in May 2014 with a ceremony at Børglum Kloster. Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, the operator simply says Hærvejen; no St James church, no scallop shell on the whole branch — but a lighthouse that was driven away from the sea in 2019.Explore this Camino
- Pilgrimsrute Nordjylland Øst137.9 kilometres, 6 stages, highest point 95 metres: the Pilgrimsrute Nordjylland Øst is the eastern northern branch of the Hærvejen hiking route, from the ferry quay in Frederikshavn over the Jyske Ås ridge, through the sunken lanes of Hammer Bakker and across the Limfjord to Aalborg — the town an Icelandic abbot wrote down around 1150 and from whose street soil around 26 medieval pilgrim badges came, including scallop shells from Santiago — and on through Himmerland to Aars, where the western branch from Hirtshals joins and both continue together to Viborg and the Hærvejen. Opened in May 2014. Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, the operator says Hærvejen; the first 54.5 kilometres have no shop, Grindsted has no bed, and Aars has had no railway station since 1966.Explore this Camino
- Pilgrimsrute Fyn161.6 kilometres, 10 stages, highest point 81 metres: the Pilgrimsrute Fyn is the Funen section of the Danske Pilgrimsrute, from the Danehof castle in Nyborg through Funen farmland to Odense, to the tomb of Knud the Holy, the most important pilgrimage destination of the Danish late Middle Ages, then to the coast of the Little Belt, on foot across the old Lillebæltsbro of 1935 to Jutland, past the ruin of Koldinghus to Vejen, where the Hærvejen takes over. Run by the Foreningen af Danske Santiagopilgrimme since 1999. Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, the operator says "Nyborg – Vejen"; a third of the route is not on Funen at all; no St James church, no hostel network — and from the end of the Zealand route you can only get here by train, because the Great Belt Bridge is closed to pedestrians.Explore this Camino
- Pilgrimsrute Vestsjælland119.9 kilometres, 6 stages, highest point 94 metres: the Pilgrimsrute Vestsjælland is the western section of the Danske Pilgrimsrute through the middle of Zealand — from the royal crypt in Roskilde cathedral via the lakes of Lejre into the forest of Haraldsted, where Knud Lavard was slain in 1131, to the royal necropolis of Ringsted, where the Danish network splits, south around the Sorø Sø through the Tystrup-Bavelse basin past the primeval forest of Suserup, over the Hvilehøj of Hellig Anders to Slagelse and past the Viking ring fortress of Trelleborg from 980 to the Great Belt. Operator: Foreningen af Danske Santiagopilgrimme, sections "Roskilde – Ringsted" and "Ringsted – Korsør". Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, Sorø lies beside the route, not on it, no St James church on the way — and at the end the Great Belt Bridge is closed on foot.Explore this Camino
- Pilgrimsrute Nordsjælland104.4 kilometres, 6 stages, highest point 67 metres: the Pilgrimsrute Nordsjælland is the first section of the Danske Pilgrimsrute, from the scallop shell outside Helsingør station, where the ferry from Sweden docks, past the ruin of the Skt. Jakobs Kapel at Gurre — Valdemar Atterdag brought relics of the apostle for it from Avignon in 1361 — to the Cistercian monastery of Esrum, past Frederiksborg Slot in Hillerød, through Farum and Værløse to Ballerup, whose coat of arms bears two scallop shells and where the route's first pilgrim hostel has stood since 2017, to Roskilde with the cathedral and the Sankt Ibs Kirke, Ib being Danish for James. Inaugurated in 2006 as Ballerup–Roskilde, the birth section of the Danish network. Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, the operator says "Helsingør – Roskilde"; no medieval pilgrim by name, sparse waymarking, and from Sweden comes no pilgrim route, only a ferry.Explore this Camino
- Pilgrimsrute København – Roskilde51.4 kilometres, 2 stages, highest point 57 metres: the Pilgrimsrute København – Roskilde is the feeder of the Danske Pilgrimsrute for everyone arriving at Kastrup airport — off a plane or on the train from Malmö, because the Øresund Bridge is closed on foot. From the terminal it goes past the Romanesque Tårnby Kirke to Køge Bay, via Brøndby Strand and Vallensbæk inland, to Torslunde Kirke with the earliest picture of a Lutheran service in Denmark, to the wall paintings of Reerslev and through the old gravel pit of Hedeland to Roskilde: cathedral, royal tombs and the Sankt Ibs Kirke, Ib being Danish for James. Operator stages "Kastrup – Ishøj" and "Ishøj – Roskilde". Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, no St James trace on the route itself, suburbs instead of wilderness — and the St James connection waits at the finish.Explore this Camino
- Pilgrimsrute Sydsjælland – Lolland-Falster149.0 kilometres, 8 stages, highest point 51 metres: the Pilgrimsrute Sydsjælland – Lolland-Falster is the southern branch of the Danske Pilgrimsrute, from the royal crypt in Ringsted through the middle of Zealand to Næstved, to the Gåsetårnet in Vordingborg, where the peasants in the Middle Ages were obliged to carry pilgrims across the Storstrøm, over the new bridge to Falster to the pilgrimage church of Kippinge with its depot of crutches, across the bascule bridge at Guldborg to Lolland, to the Bridgettine abbey of Maribo, whose town arose to supply pilgrims, and down to the ferry quay of Rødbyhavn — the port through which St Bridget of Vadstena demonstrably travelled to Santiago. Operator: Foreningen af Danske Santiagopilgrimme, section "Ringsted – Rødby (mod Tyskland)". Frankly: the name is our Camino Ninja system, Lolland is flat and windy, hostels are rare, and since 2021 no train runs to Rødbyhavn any more.Explore this Camino
Who stands behind the route
The Foreningen af Danske Santiagopilgrimme was founded in November 1999 by Danes who had walked to Santiago themselves and wanted to start the Way from home. Today the association has more than 5,100 members, making it one of the large pilgrim communities of northern Europe – carried by volunteers who search for, describe and waymark routes and prepare other pilgrims for setting out.
Its great achievement is Den Danske Pilgrimsrute: a network of more than 1,000 kilometres in seven sections that runs through Denmark from the ferry ports in the north and east to the German border. Maps and route descriptions have been on the association's website since 2007; then waymarking with the international scallop shell began on Zealand – so that Denmark, as the association put it, stands “fuldgyldigt” (fully) on the map of the Camino de Santiago.
The association's routes
- Pilgrimsrute Nordsjælland – 104.4 km from the ferry port of Helsingør to Roskilde Cathedral, the first section of the network
- Pilgrimsrute København – Roskilde – 51.4 km from Copenhagen Airport (Kastrup) to Roskilde, the start for everyone arriving by plane
- Pilgrimsrute Vestsjælland – 119.9 km from Roskilde via Ringsted to the Great Belt Bridge near Korsør
- Pilgrimsrute Sydsjælland – Lolland-Falster – 149.0 km from Ringsted across Zealand, Falster and Lolland to the ferry to Puttgarden
- Pilgrimsrute Fyn – 161.6 km from Nyborg right across Funen to Vejen in Jutland
- Pilgrimsrute Nordjylland Vest – 208.2 km from the ferry port of Hirtshals to Viborg Cathedral; the route is looked after by Destination Hærvejen, the association issues the pilgrim passport for it
- Pilgrimsrute Nordjylland Øst – 137.9 km from Frederikshavn via Aalborg to Aars in Himmerland; the route is looked after by Destination Hærvejen, the association issues the pilgrim passport for it
- Hærvejen – 248.0 km on the old Army Road from Viborg to Padborg on the German border; the route is looked after by Destination Hærvejen, the association issues the pilgrim passport for it
What the association does for pilgrims
Volunteer stigrupper (route groups) for Zealand, Funen and northern, central and southern Jutland put up the yellow shell on a blue background and check the waymarking at least twice a year; at special places tiles and brass shells are set into the pavement. The association provides GPS tracks and stage descriptions and issues the Danish pilgrim passport (pilgrimspas).
Twice a year the members' magazine Pilgrimmen appears, with reports from the Camino, walks in Denmark and book reviews. There are also talks, pilgrim meetings, regional pilgrim circles and group walks – in Denmark and on the Ways to Santiago.
Contact and getting involved
Website: santiagopilgrimme.dk (in Danish) with all sections of Den Danske Pilgrimsrute, pilgrim guide, events and membership · Email: sekretariatet@santiagopilgrimme.dk. You can get involved as a member, in a route group or at events.