Fairway is celebrating its 10th anniversary since its launch and wants to celebrate in style, with a historic sixth edition full of new features. The event will take place between 9 and 11 November at the Museum of the City of Culture of Galicia, notable for its international character and the expansion of its leisure activities.
The programme of activities was presented this morning at the Hotel Monumento San Francisco. The three co-directors of the event, Ana Trevisani, Tono Mugico and Manuel Oreiro, were accompanied at the event by the director of the Galician Tourism Agency, Xosé Manuel Merelles, and the representative for the Caminos de Santiago at the Provincial Council of A Coruña, Antonio Leira. Both representatives agreed in highlighting the event as a space for integrating different perspectives on the Caminos de Santiago and congratulated the organisers on the successful track record of an event that has continued to grow.
In his speech, Merelles referred to the ‘need to integrate sustainability into the growth model of the Camino de Santiago’, considered ‘a strategic resource in our community’, with ‘deseasonalisation as a core element of the Xunta de Galicia’s 2030 Strategy’. Not surprisingly, the director of the Galician Tourism Agency recalled that, so far this year, more than 515,000 pilgrims have collected the Compostela, 7% more than in 2024.
For his part, Antonio Leira highlighted the English Way as a symbol of the ‘spirit of unity and openness’, as well as a ‘benchmark for quality, sustainability and international cooperation’. In this regard, he positioned Fairway as a space of ‘opportunity to continue innovating, to strengthen the Jacobean destinations and to ensure that tourism continues to be an ally in the balanced development and protection of our natural and cultural heritage’.
More activities than ever
In line with this inclusive nature, Ana Trevisani recalled that Fairway is ‘an example of public-private collaboration’ in the development of a project that facilitates coordination between different administrations united by the same objective. This approach has been maintained since the event’s inception and seeks to ‘do its bit’ for the sector linked to the Camino.
Regarding the main new features of this sixth edition, Trevisani explained that around thirty initiatives are being organised, offering up to 1,500 places. Admission is free and, for events with limited places, registration is required at www.fairwaysantiago.com. ‘Those who want to secure their place can book by paying €5 per person/activity,’ she explained.
The day with the most events will be Open Day, on Sunday 9 November. Throughout the day, the Museo do Gaiás will be a hive of activity. The co-director of Fairway announced the addition of various gastronomic events. These include vermouth and cheese tastings by A paisaxe que sabe, and liqueurs and pastries from the Caminos de Santiago, which will be run by Jorge Guitián. In addition to these, there will be two workshops on Flavours of the Way with Galician Food Crafts and Galician products with PDO and PGI certification, led by chef José Manuel Mallón in collaboration with AGACAL.
Another major new feature will be the Vermúway session, which will set the pace for Open Day with a musical session by Señora DJ (from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.). This activity will be complemented by Gastroway – Vermut & Tapas A paisaxe que sabe, between 1:30 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. “Everyone who comes to Gaiás on Open Day will be able to enjoy a full tasting of tapas made with local products from A Coruña’s cuisine. A unique opportunity to discover their quality and flavour,” explained Trevisani. To this end, leading companies such as Chichalovers, Espazo Abella, La Empanada Viajera, A Conserveira, Cienporcel, Vermú Lodeiros & Patatas Bonilla and Xearte Brigitte will be present.
The Open Day will also feature established attractions such as iCamino and escape rooms. Another new feature will be added: origami workshops for young walkers (with sessions at 11.30am, 1pm and 5pm). ‘The highlight of this open day, as usual, will be the performance by Xabier DÃaz at 6pm,’ he concluded. The entertainment programme will also extend to Monday 10th and Tuesday 11th with escape rooms and MEGA tastings.
Fair with more than 70 stands
In addition, during the three days of the event, Fairway will host a large Tourism and Camino Fair with more than 70 stands. Here you will find everything from national and international tourist destinations to different service companies. Fairway offers the widest range of options in the sector and is the ideal place for anyone planning their next getaway,” said Ana Trevisani. Of particular note is the presence of Portugal, which finds the event an ideal venue for promotion each year, as well as other regions such as Murcia, Asturias, Seville, Badajoz, Ourense, Pontevedra, etc. Both the Galician Tourism Agency and the A Coruña Provincial Council Tourism Department will have prominent areas in the exhibition zone.
Fairway 10th anniversary grand prize draw
Another of the big new features of this edition will be the Fairway 10th anniversary grand prize draw, with gifts for those who complete their My Camino at the exhibition centre. To participate in the draw, you must collect your credential from the Fairway Secretariat and visit 10 stands at the fair. To prove this, you must have the ten corresponding stamps on the document. Once checked by the organisers, you must fill in your details to participate in the raffle.
Fairway will draw the winning tickets every day at 7 p.m. in the presentation area, and the winners must be present to collect their gifts. Prizes include the following: a trip to Ilha Terceira (Azores); stays and experiences in Murcia, the English Way and other parts of Galicia, as well as product bundles.
The most international edition
The sixth edition of Fairway will also have a marked international character, thanks to the Workshop, which will take place on Monday 10 and Tuesday 11 November. With a total of 43 tour operators from 18 countries, ‘we will hold more than 3,000 business meetings between companies and hosted buyers from countries such as Germany, Argentina, Australia, the United States, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, Portugal and South Africa,’ explained Manuel Oreiro.
This is therefore the largest Workshop in the history of Fairway, with the greatest number of nationalities. In addition, given the interest generated by the participation of these large tour operators, ‘we have seen a 32% increase in the number of companies registered as sellers,’ Oreiro said. Many of them are small companies participating for the first time, attracted by the favourable business figures from previous editions of the Workshop.
Tourism and Camino Forum
Another of Fairway’s highlights will be the Tourism and Camino Forum, which will offer round tables and training sessions with leading experts on 10 and 11 November. Regarding the latter, Tono Mugico indicated that, “for this edition, we will have a workshop on how to define and measure business objectives and another on the use of Chat GPT in tourism business management, respectively. We always seek to provide the sector with quality training from prestigious professionals,” he concluded. The session on Monday 10th will be led by Ignacio Fernández Zabala, director at Handmade Marketing, specialising in SEM and Google Ads, while the session on Tuesday 11th will be led by Juan Frejo GarcÃa, a leading expert in AI.
The round tables will focus on topics such as touristification, tourist tax, coexistence between residents and visitors, and changes to the Compostela pilgrimage certificate. As a new feature of this edition, and in response to the demands of an increasingly international audience, ‘we will offer a free AI simultaneous translation service into English, Portuguese, Spanish and Galician,’ explained Mugico. To follow the sessions live, those interested can access a specific application by scanning a QR code in the room, where they can listen to the debates through their headphones.
The Fairway organisers hope that this edition will once again break participation records. At the same time, the co-directors encouraged locals and visitors alike to come to the Cidade da Cultura to discover all the activities that the Camino de Santiago Forum has in store.