Cape Town to SJPdP

[miki@1]

What is the most convenient way from Cape Town to SJPdP? I would like to spend more time on the Camino and not on the journey to France/Spain. It does not have to be the cheapest way.
Is it better to buy all bus/plane/train tickets beforehand?
Do you need a rest day/jetlag day before starting the Camino from SJPdP?
I plan to start in September 2013 and spend about 2.5 weeks walking. It is all the time I have.
Thank you for any help, fellow South Africans!

 

[Thengel1]

Not really an expert, but I did a little poking around. There are direct flights from Cape Town to London and Amstersdam (and Munich, for the record). London would appear to be your best option for a direct flight, but the direct flights are substantially more expensive than options with one or more stops.

If it were me, I think I would fly to Paris, and then book a separate flight from Paris to Biarritz (Air France flies there at least four times a day, and Easyjet has a couple of flights (which are probably better, since they are out of Charles de Gaulle, which is almost certainly where your flight from Capetown will be landing).

Going back is harder for me, since I don't know where you will stop walking at.


Technically, you shouldn't have jetlag, since it is only a 1 hour time difference, however you will have had a long travel day, so I would think about either spending a day resting or maybe just walking to Orisson.

 

[Nicprinsloo]

Hi, I did my 2nd Camino last year and I used Swissair via Zurich to Madrid. By doing that I saved 48 hours going there and 48 hours coming back which I would have had to spend in Dubai if flying Emirates. Take the airport bus to the Renfe station in Madrid and get your ticket to Pamplona, That is also very convenient and easy. Don't buy or book all your bus/train or domestic flights beforehand, you might want to change plans or itenarary whilst walking. Getting tickets for travel in Spain is easy obtainable. In Spain - especially on the Camino - the Infrastructure is great!
You won't need a rest day as you won't have Jetlag because you are traveling in the same Timezone.Buen Camino! Nic in Clarens

 

[deeblum]

Hi - we leaving on the 22nd April from OR Tambo and decided to fly to Paris rather than London because of the visa situation. This way we only get a Schengen visa and not have to fork out for British visa even though you just in transit. We get back on 1 June. Very excited but nervous at the same time.

 

[jennysa]

What is the most convenient way from Cape Town to SJPdP? I would like to spend more time on the Camino and not on the journey to France/Spain. It does not have to be the cheapest way.
Is it better to buy all bus/plane/train tickets beforehand?

Do you need a rest day/jetlag day before starting the Camino from SJPdP?
I plan to start in September 2013 and spend about 2.5 weeks walking. It is all the time I have.
Thank you for any help, fellow South Africans!

You have 2 options - fly to Paris or fly to Madrid. It is too complicated to fly to London and you will need a visa, etc. The cheapest way is to take an Emirates flight to Madrid, then a bus to Pamplona and from there you can get a bus to St Jean. If you fly to Paris, you would take a train to Bayonne. I think they are both much of a muchness, so it depends on costs and also the time of arrival in Madrid/Paris and whether there are trains at that time. I have always gone the Madrid route from Durban and I have never suffered from jetlag, and have been able to start walking the next day. I would not buy bus tickets before hand, but you can buy all your train tickets on a South African website http://www.raileurope.co.za. I have used them many times and they are good.

 

[danier]

We are flying Lufthansa to Barcelona, arrive Barcelona 09:00 and then next day Veuling (Euro 102 for both) to San Sebastian, arrive 11:50 and the train from Bayonne to SJPD, we have to overnight Barcelona since Veuling does not fly daily but to us, it seems a lot smoother thhan the day long bus trip from Barcelona or Madrid to Pamplona and the another bus/taxi to SJPD. Best of luck

 

[camino-david]

I can only answer one of your questions about jetlag. Since there is only one hour time difference (if in Capetown it is noon, it is 11 am in Spain), you would suffer no jetlag, but naturally you will be tired from a long flight. David