La Pèlerine

What La Pèlerine does

La Pèlerine is a French SARL founded in 1988 by Claudie and René Izing, operating as a specialty travel agency focused on walking and pilgrimage tours. Its core proposition is bundled, self-guided hiking along the historic routes of the Way of Saint James (Camino de Santiago) and a curated set of complementary "legendary" European routes, supplemented by guided group departures, family-formula trips, cycling variants, and a Grand Confort premium tier. The agency is headquartered in Saugues, Haute-Loire, directly on the GR 65 stage after Le Puy-en-Velay, and sells through its website (lapelerine.com), telephone reservations, and in-person consultations, with package prices ranging from roughly €540 to €2,890 per person depending on duration, comfort level, and accompaniment.

The business runs on a traditional travel-agency stack: itinerary curation, accommodation contracts, baggage-transfer logistics, route documentation, and 24/7 in-trip phone support. There is no proprietary technology platform, mobile application, or public API; product differentiation rests on 35+ years of route-specific operational know-how, an established supplier network across France, Spain, Portugal, and roughly 20 other countries, and a human-sized service model centered on custom and group itinerary design (Séjours sur Mesure, Séjours Groupe). Marketing is multi-channel but modest in scale, combining a content-rich website, newsletter, an annual print brochure (2026 edition), and a referral partnership with Walksinfrance.com.

Commercially, revenue is generated from per-booking package sales plus bespoke itinerary design services, with no subscription, no B2B/enterprise channel, and no disclosed headcount or revenue figures. The company is founder-owned, independent, and operates as a sub-scale niche operator with a broadly diversified, low-concentration individual-customer base spread across European and select international hiking markets.

Name

La Pèlerine

Legal name

La Pélerine SARL

Website

https://lapelerine.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

La Pèlerine is a French SARL, founded in 1988 and based in Saugues, that sells self-guided and accompanied hiking packages, primarily along the Camino de Santiago and other historic pilgrimage routes, directly to individual pilgrims, families, and groups across Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Walking and Pilgrimage Travel Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (56152), Travel Agencies (561510)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Pilgrimage Packages (Land-Only) Tour Operators (THAKAHAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Group & Small-Group Custom Itinerary Planning (THAKAOAF)

Keywords

• Pilgrimage hiking tours
• Self-guided walking trips
• Camino de Santiago packages
• Custom travel itineraries
• Guided group hikes

Headquarters

HQ city

Saugues

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Package Tour Sales: Organized hiking/pilgrimage packages including accommodation booking, baggage transfers, and sometimes meals (demi-pension). Customers pay for complete travel packages along Camino de Santiago and other hiking routes in France and Europe.
2. Custom/Bespoke Trip Planning: Personalized itinerary design services where customers request custom routes adapted to their preferences, abilities, budget and schedule. Additional service revenue from tailored travel planning.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

La Pèlerine is a French travel agency that sells organised hiking and pilgrimage packages, primarily on the Way of Saint James (Camino de Santiago) and other historic walking routes across France and Europe. Each package bundles pre-booked accommodation, baggage transfer between stages, route documentation, and on-trip telephone assistance, and is offered in self-guided ("en liberté"), guided ("accompagné"), family, cycling, and premium-comfort formats, plus fully customised itineraries and group trips.

Product overview

La Pèlerine is a travel agency specializing in walking and hiking tours, with particular expertise in pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela. The company operates two main product lines: Randonnées en Liberté (self-guided tours) and Randonnées Accompagnées (guided group tours). The core offering centers on Chemins de Compostelle with multiple historic routes including Chemin du Puy en Velay, Camino Francès, Camino del Norte, Chemin d'Arles, Chemin Portugais, Chemin de Genève, Chemin de Lyon, Chemin de Vézelay, Via de Plata, and Chemin des Anglais. Additional themed itineraries are grouped under Itinéraires de Légende (legendary routes) and specialized experiences under Voyager Autrement (travel differently) including cycling, family tours, wellness, mountain treks, wine walks, and snowshoeing. The company offers customization options through Séjours sur Mesure (custom itineraries) and Séjours Groupe (group travel). Founded in 1988, La Pèlerine is headquartered in Saugues, Haute-Loire, France, and celebrated 35 years of operation in 2023.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Randonnées en Liberté Self-guided hiking tours where travelers walk independently while La Pèlerine pre-arranges accommodation and luggage transfers between stages along pilgrimage and other historic walking routes.
• Randonnées Accompagnées Guided group hiking tours with a professional guide who accompanies walkers throughout the journey on the chosen route.
• Chemins de Compostelle Pilgrimage walking tours along the various historic routes of the Way of Saint James to Santiago de Compostela, including Chemin du Puy en Velay, Camino Francès, Camino del Norte, Chemin d'Arles, Chemin Portugais, Chemin de Genève, Chemin de Lyon, Chemin de Vézelay, Chemin de Conques à Toulouse, Via de Plata, and Chemin des Anglais, with accommodation booking and baggage transfer.
• Itinéraires de Légende Thematic walking tours along legendary and historic routes in France and Europe, including Chemin de Stevenson, Chemin de Saint Guilhem, Chemin Urbain V, Chemin de la Régordane, Chemin des Huguenots, Tour de Bretagne, Tro Breizh, Via Francigena, Chemin d'Assise, and Chemin de Fatima.
• Voyager Autrement Specialised travel experiences including cycling tours, family-friendly hikes, wellness retreats, mountain treks, wine region walks, seaside destinations, star-shaped tours from a single base, snowshoe hikes, and New Year's Eve special trips.
• Séjours sur Mesure Customised itinerary planning service allowing travelers to modify routes, adjust daily distances, and tailor trips according to individual preferences, fitness levels, objectives and budget.
• Séjours Groupe Group travel organisation service for friends, families or associations wanting to hike together, with customised itineraries and coordinated logistics.
• Compostelle à Vélo Cycling tours along pilgrimage routes, allowing travelers to explore paths like the Camino Francès on bicycle.
• Grand Confort Premium comfort hiking tours featuring higher-quality accommodations and enhanced services along pilgrimage and other historic routes.
• En Famille Family-friendly hiking tours designed with children in mind, offering shorter daily distances and family-appropriate activities along selected historic routes.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Walksinfrance.comminorOthersCross-linking partnership with Walksinfrance.com for additional hiking content visibility and referral traffic. Listed as a linked partner on the La Pèlerine website footer.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Macs Adventure: Self-guided walking, cycling, and adventure holiday specialist in the UK serving European routes including Camino de Santiago. Directly comparable on business model, customer type, and product offering.
• Inntravel: UK-based specialist in self-guided walking holidays across Europe with similar luggage-transfer and pre-booked accommodation model. Comparable product structure and target audience make it the closest direct peer.
• Caminofacil: Spanish-based specialist tour operator exclusively focused on Camino de Santiago routes. Direct competitor for pilgrimage hiker bookings, particularly on Camino Francés and other Spanish routes.
• Headwater Holidays: UK-based tour operator specializing in self-guided walking, cycling, and family activity holidays across Europe. Matches La Pèlerine on self-guided model, multi-country coverage, and premium tier options.
• Pilgrim Paths: UK-based pilgrimage tour operator specializing in Camino de Santiago and other European pilgrimage routes. Direct competitor on religious-pilgrimage hiking products and self-guided format.
• Ramble Worldwide: UK operator offering guided and self-guided walking holidays across Europe and beyond. Overlaps directly with La Pèlerine on guided versus self-guided hiking formats and European pilgrimage routes.
• Sierra Travel: Spain-rooted operator of Camino de Santiago walking and cycling tours. Direct competitor in the same pilgrimage-tour sub-segment with comparable self-guided and guided product structure.
• Wayfarer Walking Holidays: UK-based walking holiday specialist offering self-guided and group walking tours across European destinations. Directly comparable on customer type, self-guided logistics model, and route catalog.

Broad incumbents

• Country Walkers: Established US-based walking tour operator with broader international portfolio including European itineraries. Larger scale and broader geographic focus than La Pèlerine but overlapping customer base.
• Explore Worldwide: UK-based adventure tour operator with small-group guided trips including walking and trekking itineraries across Europe. Comparable on guided walking tours and European coverage but with broader adventure portfolio.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lapelerine

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about La Pèlerine