Virtual Journeys: Walk the Camino & Inca Trail

Pick a legendary route, from the Camino de Santiago to the Inca Trail, Everest Base Camp and Route 66, and walk it virtually with your daily steps. Watch your marker move along the trail, unlock postcards from real places and build a streak that keeps you moving.

How Virtual Journeys works

Choose a route and log what you did each day as steps, distance or minutes of walking, running or cycling. Your total moves a marker along a stylised version of the real trail. When you pass a real stop, its postcard unlocks with a short fact about the place, and you get a share card you can download or send to friends.

• Steps to distance: we estimate your step length as 41.4% of your height (a common pedometer rule of thumb, about 72 cm or 28.5 in if you have not entered a height). For a better number, walk 20 normal steps, measure the distance and divide by 20, then enter it in Settings.
• Minutes to distance: by default we assume 5 km/h (3.1 mph) for walking, 10 km/h (6.2 mph) for running and 16 km/h (10 mph) for easy cycling. Change them in Settings to match your own pace, or log the distance from your watch directly.
• ETA: your finish date uses your average distance per day over the last 7 days (or since you started, if that is shorter).
• Your data stays on your device. Progress is saved in this browser only. Use the progress code in Settings to move it to another phone or computer.

The routes

Days assume a 72 cm step (an average 175 cm adult). Distances follow official trail bodies or established operators, listed in the sources below. Published figures differ a little between guides: the Camino Francés is often quoted at 764 to 800 km, Everest Base Camp at 60 to 65 km one way, and Route 66 at 2,448 miles. On the Inca Trail, guides publish only daily distances, so the positions of the ruins between the camps are our estimates and are marked “approx.”. On London to Paris, the Newhaven to Dieppe ferry is not counted.

Why daily steps matter: the evidence

A 2022 meta-analysis in The Lancet Public Health pooled 15 cohorts with 47,471 adults. Compared with the lowest quarter (a median of about 3,550 steps a day), people in the higher quarters had a 40% to 53% lower risk of death during follow-up. The benefit levelled off at about 6,000 to 8,000 steps a day for adults aged 60 and over and 8,000 to 10,000 for adults under 60.

In a US study of 4,840 adults aged 40 and over published in JAMA in 2020, taking 8,000 steps a day was linked with a 51% lower risk of death from any cause than taking 4,000, and 12,000 steps with a 65% lower risk. Once total steps were accounted for, walking faster added no clear extra benefit, so every step counts.

These are observational studies, so they show strong links rather than proof of cause. They fit the World Health Organization’s 2020 guidelines: adults should get 150 to 300 minutes of moderate activity a week (or 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous activity), plus muscle-strengthening work on two or more days. A brisk walk of about 100 steps a minute counts as moderate intensity, so 30 minutes is roughly 3,000 steps on top of your normal day.

Make it stick

• Pick a route you can finish. A short trek like the Inca Trail or Everest Base Camp gives a quick win, then go for an epic.
• Build up gradually if you are currently doing very little. Add a short walk after meals before chasing big daily numbers.
• Protect the streak, not the record. A 15-minute walk on a busy day keeps it alive.
• Add two strength sessions a week. Walking is great for your heart, but muscle needs resistance work.

Sources

1. Paluch et al. (2022), The Lancet Public Health: Daily steps and all-cause mortality, a meta-analysis of 15 international cohorts
2. Saint-Maurice et al. (2020), JAMA: Association of daily step count and step intensity with mortality among US adults
3. Bull et al. (2020), British Journal of Sports Medicine: World Health Organization 2020 guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour
4. Tudor-Locke et al. (2011), International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity: How many steps/day are enough? For adults
5. Pilgrim.es: Camino Francés stages and distances
6. PeruNorth: Classic Inca Trail daily distances
7. Ace the Himalaya: Everest Base Camp trek distances and altitudes
8. Avenue Verte London–Paris: official route and stage distances
9. Route66RoadTrip: Route 66 miles by state
10. National Trails: Hadrian’s Wall Path and English Heritage: Hadrian’s Wall
11. National Trails: Cotswold Way route sections

Virtual Journeys is for motivation and general education, not medical advice. If you have a heart or lung condition, joint problems or have been inactive for a long time, check with your doctor before increasing your activity. Stop and seek urgent medical help if you get chest pain, severe breathlessness, fainting or dizziness while exercising.

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