If you have come this far, you have probably decided to do the French Way from Roncesvalles. Whether you have booked this package or decided to do it on your own, the first question before embarking on this adventure will be: How to get to Roncesvalles?

Although Roncesvalles is the point of departure for most pilgrims on the French Way, we must make it clear that the real start is at Saint Jean Pied de Port. But due to the difficulty and time involved, the majority of pilgrims choose Roncesvalles. Below we tell you all the ways that exist on how to get to Roncesvalles.

Getting directly to Roncesvalles is not an easy task. You will have to get to Pamplona first, and then go to your final destination.

How to get to Pamplona by public transport

How to get there by BUS

Travelling by bus is usually the cheapest option to reach Pamplona. From the big cities of Spain there is more possibility of finding several connections throughout the day. From Madrid, Barcelona, Alicante, Valencia or Logroño we will find companies that offer the trip to Pamplona. For all those people coming from the south of Spain who want to take the bus to Roncesvalles, the ideal is to get to Madrid or Alicante to take it there.

The price varies according to the city from which we take the bus, from the cheapest in Logroño to the most expensive from the Spanish Levant in Alicante. The company in charge of this connection from Barcelona, Madrid and Logroño is Alsa. However, from Alicante or Valencia the company in charge will be Bilman bus. You can find all the information about timetables and prices on their websites.

How to arrive by TRAIN

Again, you will have to go to Pamplona in order to get to Roncesvalles from there. From the big cities like Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia, Alicante and even Malaga, there are a good number of trains and timetables that will adapt perfectly to your needs.

With Alvia (Renfe) we can reach Pamplona. This is the option most chosen by the pilgrims who decide to start their journey in Roncesvalles. The prices vary according to the city from which we are travelling, but obviously it is not cheaper than the bus although it is shorter.

How to arrive by PLANE

Without a doubt this is the fastest option to reach Pamplona. The duration from any of the points of Spain we have talked about ranges from three to four hours depending on the stopovers. We must say that it is probably the least economical option except for some offers that we can take from Madrid.

Pamplona

How to get to Roncesvalles from Pamplona

From Pamplona we can take different options to get to Roncesvalles. From Pamplona’s bus station, thanks to the company Autocares Artieda, we can connect with Roncesvalles. There are buses every day of the week except Sundays and holidays. In any case, we recommend that you check the timetables on their website. The duration of this section is approximately one hour and a quarter and its price is less than 10 ?. There is the possibility of paying a little more to be able to take our bike if we have decided to ride it.

Colegiata de Roncesvalles

The other option to get to Roncesvalles is to take a taxi, although it is much more expensive. The ideal is to share it. Tele Taxi San Fermín (tel. 948-23-23-00) has a Pilgrim Taxi service, which allows you to make an advance reservation and, optionally, share the taxi with other pilgrims. This service is for both Roncesvalles and Saint Jean Pied de Port.

How to get to Roncesvalles by car?

Many pilgrims prefer to take their car and stop worrying about their luggage, time and stopovers. Depending on the part of Spain from which we are leaving, the duration will be longer or shorter. Below we will specify the route from some of the most important points mentioned above.

From Madrid

The journey will take about 5 hours depending on the stops we make and the speed at which we go. We leave the capital by E-900/A-2 towards CL-101, where we take exit 41 to join the A-15, we continue along this same road towards the N-113 and take exit 101. We enter the AP-15 on our arrival in Navarre, where we will continue until we reach the N-234 which we will follow until we reach the NA-1720 until we finally reach Roncesvalles.

From Barcelona

The estimated time will be about 5 and a half hours. We leave by the AP-7, to connect with the following motorways; AP-2, AP-68 and AP-15, to finally join the NA-234 in Navarra. We continue along this to take the NA-1720 to our destination in Roncesvalles.


A woman traveling by car

From Valencia

About 5 and a half hours await us on the road. We leave Valencia on the A-23, to take the AP-68 and the AP-15. Thanks to the latter we will connect with the NA-234 in Navarre, through which we will continue until we reach the NA-1720 and later on to Roncesvalles.

From Malaga

If we have chosen to take the car and leave the south of Spain we will take into account that the journey will take about 10 hours or more. It depends on the pace and the stops we want to make during the journey. We start by taking the A-45 to continue along the A-92, linking up with the A-44 and A-2 towards CL-101, where we will take the A-15 at exit number 41. From there we will take the N-113 and AP-15 towards N-234 in Navarre, which we will follow until we reach our destination in Roncesvalles.

From Logroño

It will take about two hours. We will leave Logroño on the A-12 to Navarre and continue by road from France/Pamplona until we reach the N-135, which will take us directly to Roncesvalles.

If you have decided to do the Camino de Santiago from Roncesvalles, we hope this article has helped you. If you would like to hire us, we will be happy to organise it and answer any questions you may have.