diff --git a/physical/consul.go b/physical/consul.go
index 1defa21336..06099aa266 100644
--- a/physical/consul.go
+++ b/physical/consul.go
@@ -22,12 +22,17 @@ type ConsulBackend struct {
 func newConsulBackend(conf map[string]string) (Backend, error) {
 	// Get the path in Consul
 	path, ok := conf["path"]
-	if !ok || path == "" || path == "/" {
-		return nil, fmt.Errorf("'path' must be set")
+	if !ok {
+		path = "vault/"
 	}
+
+	// Ensure path is suffixed but not prefixed
 	if !strings.HasSuffix(path, "/") {
 		path += "/"
 	}
+	if strings.HasPrefix(path, "/") {
+		path = strings.TrimPrefix(path, "/")
+	}
 
 	// Configure the client
 	consulConf := api.DefaultConfig()