- Time of past OR future Camino
- Francés, Norte, Salvador, Primitivo, Portuguese
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My son and I stayed in Matosinhos in early May 2019 at the Fishtail Sea House. It was a newer, lovely proprrty. One of my favs on the Portuguese. Many pictures on booking.com to look at with an extremely high rating. We had a private room with twin beds and bathroom. Loved staying there.I'm helping a friend plan her Portuguese Camino. She is coming from the west coast of the US, and is on a pretty tight schedule with 11 days to walk. She'll be flying into Porto, and arriving in the morning. It looks like it might be a good idea to find a place to stay in Matosinhos, in order to make the next day's walk a little shorter. A private room somewhere, as she's never stayed in hostels, and will need a good rest after the long journey. But, I want her to be able to make connections with other pilgrims as soon as possible, so a private room in an albergue would be ideal.
Here's some info to keep in mind:
She's never been to Europe and is nervous about everything involved with that
I don't think that she's ever traveled solo
She is a fitness instructor, so in good shape, but hasn't done long distance walking before
Her plan is to start on the Coastal route, then switch to the Central from Vila do Conde
I am soooo wishing that I could go with her, but my budget doesn't make that possible, and I think that it will be very empowering for her to do this on her own.
This is planned for the beginning of September
This does not help you at all but it is Labruge, not LaBruge.Okay, I just was looking at Gronze, and I had an idea. It looks like there is an albergue and a guest house at the end of Gronze's first stage, in LaBruge, which looks like it's very close to the airport. Does that sound like a good option? I want her to be able to walk in as relaxed a manner as possible, without pushing herself to do a lot of kms per day.
Thanks. I do hate to miscapitalize things!This does not help you at all but it is Labruge, not LaBruge.
I was looking at this thread about the walk between Vila do Conde and Barcelos. Is the information out of date?Yes, the Fishtail Sea House is nice and they have private rooms. Since her time is short she should take a taxi from Vila do Conde to Sao Pedro de Rates and then walk to Barcelos. The walk from Vila do Conde to the central route is not recommended due to traffic. There used to be a nicer route along the viaduct, but from what I've read and the Brierley book this is no longer part of the route. This would be a good place to save some time.
I am not sure, although her post is over a year old and discusses a Camino she took the year before. I just know that most people I met thought the walk was treacherous. I also think that walking from Vila do Conde to Barcelos would be quite a long, and hard day. Walking on the cobblestones can be hard on the legs. I do love Barcelos and they have a mass/pilgrims blessing at 7:00 nightly. They are so happy to have pilgrims and pose for pictures and have some small gifts. Also, Barcelos has a huge market on Thursdays.I was looking at this thread about the walk between Vila do Conde and Barcelos. Is the information out of date?
Do you have a suggestion for connecting to the central route from the Coastal?I am not sure, although her post is over a year old and discusses a Camino she took the year before. I just know that most people I met thought the walk was treacherous. I also think that walking from Vila do Conde to Barcelos would be quite a long, and hard day. Walking on the cobblestones can be hard on the legs. I do love Barcelos and they have a mass/pilgrims blessing at 7:00 nightly. They are so happy to have pilgrims and pose for pictures and have some small gifts. Also, Barcelos has a huge market on Thursdays.
Was the walk from Bila do Conde to the central route not along a busy road? We had been told we needed safety vest. He seems, we took a cab over to the central route.Another possibility would be to spend a night in Porto and then take the #500 bus to Matosinhos in the morning and start walking from there. The bus travels along the river to the coast, basically following the camino route to the Senda Litoral, so she'd see pilgrims along that way, too. It's very easy walking from there to Angeiras the next day (and stay in that cool campground with the tiny houses.) Transferring from Vila do Conde to the central route is very easy. I know I was concerned about that before I left, but it was super easy with good markers.
We took the southern route from Vila do Conde to Arcos where we joined the central. Then the central to Rates. Here is a hyperlink to Google Maps. I am not sure how long they actually stay up there before they get purged. I can send you the kmz file if interested.Do you have a suggestion for connecting to the central route from the Coastal?
She's never been to Europe and is nervous about everything involved with that
Please tell her not to worry too much - we are generally civilized
Key word..."generally". That leaves room for uncivilized.Please tell her not to worry too much - we are generally civilized
Beautiful!I don't remember being terrified on the route between Vila do Conde and Rates. I also don't remember it being ugly. I do remember the beautiful countryside and villages after Rates, though. Here is one pic I took.View attachment 61889
I'm helping a friend plan her Portuguese Camino. She is coming from the west coast of the US, and is on a pretty tight schedule with 11 days to walk. She'll be flying into Porto, and arriving in the morning. It looks like it might be a good idea to find a place to stay in Matosinhos, in order to make the next day's walk a little shorter. A private room somewhere, as she's never stayed in hostels, and will need a good rest after the long journey. But, I want her to be able to make connections with other pilgrims as soon as possible, so a private room in an albergue would be ideal.
Here's some info to keep in mind:
She's never been to Europe and is nervous about everything involved with that
I don't think that she's ever traveled solo
She is a fitness instructor, so in good shape, but hasn't done long distance walking before
Her plan is to start on the Coastal route, then switch to the Central from Vila do Conde
I am soooo wishing that I could go with her, but my budget doesn't make that possible, and I think that it will be very empowering for her to do this on her own.
This is planned for the beginning of September
Love it! Nick BWhat date does she start walking ?
I'm walking from Porto with two ladies starting Sept 8 if she's looking for walking companions to start with, we're Australian so sort of civilized to a degree......
My son and I stayed in Matosinhos in early May 2019 at the Fishtail Sea House. It was a newer, lovely proprrty. One of my favs on the Portuguese. Many pictures on booking.com to look at with an extremely high rating. We had a private room with twin beds and bathroom. Loved staying there.
I'm sure you will really enjoy your stay there, and the accompanying breakfast was quite good, too!glad to hear that, I and 3 friends have booked a 4 bed room with en suite 19th October, haven't seen a bad review anywhere, lookin forward to start after a good nights rest.
Are you sure that is after Rates? I took pretty much exactly the same photo last October and the information attached to the photo puts the location I took it at 42°22'23.9"N 8°42'48.7'W, on the way to Junqueira from Vila do Conde, well before Arcos. So if one were to skip the section between Vila do Conde and Rates, this would be part of what one skips. I also don't remember the walk between Vila do Conde and Rates being especially dangerous. I didn't remember it being especially attractive either, in the immediate aftermath of the Camino but when I later looked back at the photos, there were definitely some nice spots, like this one.I don't remember being terrified on the route between Vila do Conde and Rates. I also don't remember it being ugly. I do remember the beautiful countryside and villages after Rates, though. Here is one pic I took.View attachment 61889
Although I didn't think the stretch between Vila do Conde and Rates especially dangerous, I did not really care for it. Many cars zooming by were noisy on the cobblestone roads with their tires making loud noise and the few villages nondescript. That was my impression anyway.Are you sure that is after Rates? I took pretty much exactly the same photo last October and the information attached to the photo puts the location I took it at 42°22'23.9"N 8°42'48.7'W, on the way to Junqueira from Vila do Conde, well before Arcos. So if one were to skip the section between Vila do Conde and Rates, this would be part of what one skips. I also don't remember the walk between Vila do Conde and Rates being especially dangerous. I didn't remember it being especially attractive either, in the immediate aftermath of the Camino but when I later looked back at the photos, there were definitely some nice spots, like this one.
@trecile I can't speak to Labruge. I walked a few km more and slept at Vila Chã. The albergue there isn't far from the camino and includes a museum devoted to the local fishing industry.
Eleven days is certainly doable but I wasn't pushing myself and did it in thirteen. In this case, for a first time pilgrim, I might advise starting in Barcelos to give her plenty of time. She can make her leisurely way to Santiago and have an extra day there. On the other hand, this would deprive her of the walk along the coast at the beginning. I just always like to leave myself some wiggle room rather than planning things tight and in case of any unexpected mishaps, perhaps finding myself racing to Santiago.
The private rooms are nice, but the dorm is crowed and not limited to Pilgrims.My son and I stayed in Matosinhos in early May 2019 at the Fishtail Sea House. It was a newer, lovely proprrty. One of my favs on the Portuguese. Many pictures on booking.com to look at with an extremely high rating. We had a private room with twin beds and bathroom. Loved staying there.
Ha! Didn't even know they had dorms!The private rooms are nice, but the dorm is crowed and not limited to Pilgrims.
Yes, the Fishtail Sea House is nice and they have private rooms. Since her time is short she should take a taxi from Vila do Conde to Sao Pedro de Rates and then walk to Barcelos. The walk from Vila do Conde to the central route is not recommended due to traffic. There used to be a nicer route along the viaduct, but from what I've read and the Brierley book this is no longer part of the route. This would be a good place to save some time.
She's actually going to start from Labruge, but hopefully she will have some time in Porto before her flight home.You mention this is your friends first trip to Europe, I wouldn't want her to miss Porto ( or the famous wine) by going straight to Matasinhos from the airport.
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