A Fermat-like principle of minimum time is formulated for nonlinear steady paths of fluid flow in inhomogeneous isotropic porous media where fluid streamlines are curved by a location dependent hydraulic conductivity. The principle describes an optimal nature of nonlinear paths in steady Darcy’s flows of fluids. An expression for the total path resistance leads to a basic analytical formula for an optimal shape of a steady trajectory. In the physical space an optimal curved path ensures the maximum flux or shortest transition time of the fluid through the porous medium. A sort of “law of bending” holds for the frictional fluid flux in Lagrange coordinates. This law shows that—by minimizing the total resistance—a ray spanned between two given points takes the shape assuring that a relatively large part of it resides in the region of lower flow resistance (a ‘rarer’ region of the medium).