Stage 5: Puente la Reina → Estella

A New Stage Day – Beginning & Atmosphere

Morning in Puente la Reina often begins with a glance back at the great bridge that gave the town its name. Whoever crosses it in the early sun feels the centuries of pilgrims who have walked this path before. Behind you lies the Alto del Perdón, ahead of you Navarra opens towards Rioja. Today awaits a stage full of ups and downs, through small villages, past vineyards, and along Roman paving – a day in which history and landscape intertwine with every step.

Route & Elevation Profile

• Distance: 22.6 km
• Elevation gain/loss: +530 m / –460 m
• Difficulty: easy–moderate
  

The route is marked by gentle hills, constant ascents and descents – a typical rompe-piernas. There are no extreme climbs, but the sum of the small hills challenges the legs. Particularly impressive: a section of original Roman paved road near Cirauqui.

Description of the Way – With All Senses

Beyond Puente la Reina, the Camino first leads out through fields and light ascents. Soon you reach Mañeru, a small village whose houses cluster closely together, inviting you to rest after the first kilometers.

From here the path winds further uphill, and soon, on a hilltop, Cirauqui rises – a village like from a picture book. Its name means “nest of snakes,” yet pilgrims here find a true nest of hospitality. Narrow streets, old stones, a place to pause – and immediately afterwards one of the special highlights: a stretch of Roman road, astonishingly well preserved, where the steps of the past carry you forward.

Beyond Cirauqui the way descends again and then climbs once more, through vineyards and fields, a constant alternation that shapes the Camino here. Soon you reach Lorca, a small village with bars and hostels, before the path continues across open fields toward Villatuerta.

Here the landscape gradually builds a bridge from Navarra toward Rioja: the fields become broader, the vineyards more numerous. Once more it rises uphill, then down again – until on the horizon the silhouette of Estella appears.

The town welcomes you with churches, palaces, and monasteries. Estella – “Lizarra” in Basque – was in the Middle Ages an important center for pilgrims and merchants. Still today it bears the name “Estella la Bella” – the Beautiful. And truly: narrow streets, Romanesque portals, the bridge over the Ega – it is an arrival in a town full of history.

Intermediate Places & Particularities

Food, Overnight Stay & Supplies

• Mañeru: small bars, one pilgrim hostel.
• Cirauqui: several hostels and bars, notable pilgrim stop.
• Lorca: two albergues and small gastronomy.
• Villatuerta: albergues such as La Casa Mágica, one of the better-known accommodations.
• Estella: wide range of accommodations – from the municipal pilgrim hostel to hotels and private hostels. Also here: the church of San Pedro de la Rúa and the Palace of the Kings of Navarra are worth seeing.

The Special Feature Today

This stage leads you right through history. From the queen’s bridge in Puente la Reina, across Roman paving in Cirauqui, to the medieval splendor of Estella. The landscape shows a Navarra in transition toward Rioja: fields, hills, vineyards, constant ups and downs. It is not a day of extremes – but a day of richness, full of impressions, full of traces of the past.

Reflection at the End of the Stage

Today you walked through small villages, over old roads, through vineyards and fields – and arrived in a town that has welcomed pilgrims for centuries. Estella is a place where history becomes visible: Romanesque churches, old bridges, squares that tell of the lives of pilgrims. It is a fitting close for a stage that shows how deeply the Camino is a way through time and space.

📊 Tabular Overview

🌌 Camino of the Stars – Stage 5

Puente la Reina → Mañeru → Cirauqui → Lorca → Villatuerta → Estella

Call to Action

Did you walk over the Roman paving in Cirauqui? Or did you experience Estella as “la Bella”? Share your impressions – every step continues to write the history of the Camino.

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