ADVERTISEMENTAs we round a clump of pine trees, my guide Inma points to the horizon. On a rocky mound above the town of Caravaca de la Cruz is a colossal, honey-hued sanctuary. It is our arrival point, and the end of the Camino de Levante, a 118km pilgrimage and hiking trail in the south of Spain.
As the famed Camino de Santiago continues to be crowded with walkers, the Camino de Levante offers a quieter alternative with Vatican-sanctified cultural and religious attractions and mouth watering Mediterranean cuisine.
2024 is a Jubilee year for Caravaca de la Cruz - which only comes around every seven years - so there are additional events and attractions to boot.
Camino de Levante: A quieter alternative to the Camino de Santiago
The Camino de Levante begins in Orihuela and wriggles its way through the craggy desert-like landscape of the Alicante and Murcia regions to the town of Caravaca de la Cruz.
The trail is mainly off-road using a Via Verde (disused railway lines transformed into greenways for hiking and cycling) with the occasional trafficked road to cross.
There is an endless variety of landscapes along the multi-day (normally five for relatively fit walkers and three days using e-bikes) route.
There are lemon orchards groaning with fruit, spikey almond trees, gnarled olives and fragrant pine woods. You cross disused railway bridges over wooded valleys with vistas over to purplish mountain ranges and skirt past hilltop towns crowned by monumental churches.
Like the Camino de Santiago, walking and cycling pilgrims receive stamps and a certificate upon arrival at the Caravaca de la Cruz sanctuary.
Unlike the popular route that ends in Santiago de Compostela, however, I meet only a handful of other hikers and cyclists on the Levante trail.
Murcia: What to see along the Camino de Levante
Each stage of the trail finishes in a city or town where you can find accommodation and myriad attractions.
In Murcia, the regional capital, the narrow streets and dozens of squares are packed with terrace seating of bars and restaurants. "In Murcia, people live in the streets, they don't like being trapped in their houses," Inma explains.
On a Monday lunchtime, the outdoor seating in Plaza de las Flores is busy with Murcians drinking cañas (small beers) and eating the city's typical tapa ‘marinera’ - a u-shaped breadstick with a dollop of potato, tuna and mayonnaise salad topped with a salty anchovy.
At El Secreto, we also eat creamy croquetas and toast with melted cheese and grilled mushrooms.
After the shaded, maze-like streets, it is a surprise to step out into the sun-drenched Plaza del Cardenal Belluga dominated by the cathedral on one side and the bishop's palace painted in faded frescoes adjacent.
The warm yellow sandstone cathedral has elements from across the centuries - a highly detailed Gothic portal, a Renaissance chapel with a giant carved chain around the exterior to show it belongs to the church despite being outside its boundaries and an extravagant Baroque facade.
ADVERTISEMENTAfter sightseeing, Inma introduces me to Murcia's pick me up - café Asiático - at Drexco bar on the main street. This misnomer 'Asian' coffee apparently came to the city via a Russian visitor and is a potent mix of espresso, Licor 43 from nearby Cartagena, port, condensed milk, lemon rind and cinnamon.
At La Diligente, we taste wines from the Murcia region like the full-bodied, fruity Gémina. It is made from Monastrell grapes that, unusually for European vines, are over 40 years old and predate the invasion of the insect phylloxera that decimated vineyards.
Bullas: What to see along the Camino de Levante
In Bullas, where you stop after day four of walking, you can visit some of the wineries producing Monastrell and other indigenous varieties. Bodega Balcona is run by the passionate and convention-breaking Pepa.
In her rustic tasting room, she introduces us to her punchy peachy Merlot rosé and aromatic violet-scented Monastrell - some vines are also pre-phylloxera and up to 66 years old - with unabashed pride.
ADVERTISEMENTBullas town may be unassuming but it has an elegant dining scene. At Entretempos, I eat a typical appetiser of dried fish roe and caramelised almonds and the summery Murcian salad of tomatoes, olives, tuna, egg and copious olive oil.
What to do in Caravaca de la Cruz
Caravaca de la Cruz is the camino's final destination and what's likely to bring nearly one million tourists to the region this jubilee year.
Its religious fame is found in the Santuario de la Fuensanta, once a fortified castle then transformed into a basilica. Here, remnants of the true cross are enclosed in a bejewelled case in the form of the Caravaca cross, identified by its two horizontal arms.
Every day during the jubilee year, a mass is held in the sanctuary and attendees are blessed with the cross fragments - at weekends it is held on the wide terrace outside to accommodate the crowds.
ADVERTISEMENTDown in the town centre are dozens of religious souvenir shops selling highly decorated gold and silver replicas of the Caravaca cross.
On 3 May each year, Caravaca celebrates the Baño de la Cruz, commemorating the day in 1384 when the cross was plunged into the town’s water supply to rid the area of a plague of locusts.
Leading up to this sacred day is Los Caballos del Vino (Wine Horses), a UNESCO-recognised event involving horse races and competitions for the most fabulous horse decorations.
At the Wine Horses Museum, I admire the dazzling embroidered and beaded horse outfits that take months to produce painstakingly by hand. “The weavers include portraits of well-known people in town so everyone can judge their skill by how good the likeness is,” says Imna.
ADVERTISEMENTAs I had found in Murcia and Bullas, hungry hikers in Caravaca will have no culinary woes. At El Horno, I actually have to call time on the procession of plates after feasting on mushroom and black truffle croquetas, tuna tartar and prawn salad with mango and avocado.
I end my pilgrimage with a Jubilee Year stargazing session with Astroversia, learning to look at the skies as the early Homo sapiens would have. It is a fitting end to a week spent immersed in nature, away from the cacophony of big cities and traffic.