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You can look here ,Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
Thanks!! It looks like I can just hop a train and it's about 6 hours.You can look here ,
www.Rome2rio.com
Ah! This is really helpful. Thank you for the tip!!You can take the TGV (fast train) from Paris to Bayonne and from Bayonne the local train to SJPdP. For this train you can buy tickets at the vending machine at Bayonne.
This is how we journeyed in May.You can take the TGV (fast train) from Paris to Bayonne and from Bayonne the local train to SJPdP. For this train you can buy tickets at the vending machine at Bayonne.
Yes it is really easy. Train from Montparnasse Station in Paris to Bayonne then change to local train to SJPDP.Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
Hi Elle532 from Canada,Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
Thanks for the info. and well wishes! I'm expecting some pretty harsh jet lag. Sleep is a big challenge for me at the best of times. I was thinking of getting a hotel in SJDP the first night. I'll look into the Bayonne option as well. I'm making a bit of an assumption that SJPD is a small town that will be easy to navigate with vacancy. Did you walk all the way to Roncesvalles your first day? (thanks again for the tips!)Congratulations and Buen Camino on your good fortune to be out walking The Way.
From personal experience, if you are flying overnight from Canada and then catching the TGV to Bayonne/Biarritz, you might consider staying in Bayonne overnight. Jet lag caught up with us late on the day we traveled (overnight from Seattle to CDG to Bayonne) so we stayed in Bayonne overnight and caught the first train to Saint Jean the next morning and started walking from the Pilgrim Office.
The TGV leaves right from the lower level of CDG Terminal 2, so it is as easy as you have discovered. As mentioned above, you have to purchase a separate ticket (or at least that is what we did) from Bayonne to SJPDP.
Bon Chemin
Buen Camino - I'm excited for you! Maybe I'll see you on the trail! I'm hoping to fly out on September 5 so if all goes well I can begin walking on the 7th. Thanks for the tips! I appreciate all advice I get as I tend to just wing things. I'm looking at the Rome2Rio app now after all the recommendations.Hi Elle532 from Canada,
I’m leaving from Toronto to SJPP Sept 4th-1 week today!! I opted to take a connecting flight to Biarritz to avoid a 7+ hr train ride to Bayonne.
I’m going to overnight in Bayonne to catch up on sleep and then go to SJPP first thing the next morning. The theory is I’ll arrive in SJPP less jet lagged / travel weary.
If you haven’t checked out the Rome2rio app already, I highly recommend taking a look. It will show you all the different ways you can get to SJPP with approximate costs and timing.
Thanks tlandry! It's very helpful to know about that shuttle service. That's a good option that will get me there faster. I thought about staying in Paris overnight too but I think it might be better to start moving towards the Camino quickly and not get distracted by the sights (and shops)! lolAfter Landing in CDG from Halifax Canada, we took an Easy Jet Flight to Biarritz from CDG and caught a shuttle operated by Express Bourricot. They are based out of St Jean Pied de Port. Only a 50 minute drive arrive in plenty of time to check into Pilgrims office and our albergue, started next morning refreshed.
Originally we had planned to take the train, but with the poor track record of planes landing on time, it was a risk to get to Montparnasse in time to catch our plane. Other option is to overnight in Paris, lovely city
After much research, I surmised that the easier way to get to SJPdP if it is where you start your camino is from Paris. You can pretty much catch a train ride after you get off your plane at Charles de Gaulle then straight to SJPdP. If use Madrid, and/or Pamplona as transfer point to get to SJPdP, you have to worry about bus schedules and expensive taxi ride, maybe even spend a night at Pamplona to use bus service the next day. This is my 2 cents. Hope it helps. Stay safe.Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
Thanks for this! This is pretty much what my research is telling me too. I think the fewer transfers the better as I find navigating bus schedules challenging at best and my foreign language skills are weak.After much research, I surmised that the easier way to get to SJPdP if it is where you start your camino is from Paris. You can pretty much catch a train ride after you get off your plane at Charles de Gaulle then straight to SJPdP. If use Madrid, and/or Pamplona as transfer point to get to SJPdP, you have to worry about bus schedules and expensive taxi ride, maybe even spend a night at Pamplona to use bus service the next day. This is my 2 cents. Hope it helps. Stay safe.
TGV train to Bayonne departs from Gare Montparnesse.Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
I did walk all the way to Roncesvalles, but that might not have been the best idea. I didn't arrive there until almost 5pm and the descent from the top of the pass was very steep and quite slick in some places (this was in Sept and was a bit foggy and raining intermittently. The Pilgrim Office will have a weather report about the pass when you get your credential and first stamp. SJPDP is quite small and easily navigated but I don't have any knowledge about the accommodations available there.Thanks for the info. and well wishes! I'm expecting some pretty harsh jet lag. Sleep is a big challenge for me at the best of times. I was thinking of getting a hotel in SJDP the first night. I'll look into the Bayonne option as well. I'm making a bit of an assumption that SJPD is a small town that will be easy to navigate with vacancy. Did you walk all the way to Roncesvalles your first day? (thanks again for the tips!)
There is room for a Paris visit on the way homeThanks tlandry! It's very helpful to know about that shuttle service. That's a good option that will get me there faster. I thought about staying in Paris overnight too but I think it might be better to start moving towards the Camino quickly and not get distracted by the sights (and shops)! lol
The Pilgrims Office usually recommends the more gentle route to the right for the descent into Roncesvalles. They always seem to have a story of someone who sprained their ankle or broke their arm the previous day while taking the steeper route.I did walk all the way to Roncesvalles, but that might not have been the best idea. I didn't arrive there until almost 5pm and the descent from the top of the pass was very steep and quite slick in some places (this was in Sept and was a bit foggy and raining intermittently. The Pilgrim Office will have a weather report about the pass when you get your credential and first stamp. SJPDP is quite small and easily navigated but I don't have any knowledge about the accommodations available there.
Is it fair to assume that the gentler route, via Ibaneta Pass, is sign posted ?The Pilgrims Office usually recommends the more gentle route to the right for the descent into Roncesvalles. They always seem to have a story of someone who sprained their ankle or broke their arm the previous day while taking the steeper route.
I believe it is. I also recommend Mapy.cz app. If you download the region all the main and alternative routes show up on the gps map and it even shows your orientation on the map. Using this it was practically impossible to get lost.Is it fair to assume that the gentler route, via Ibaneta Pass, is sign posted ?
Is it fair to assume that the gentler route, via Ibaneta Pass, is sign posted ?
Yes, it's marked.I believe it is. I also recommend Mapy.cz app. If you download the region all the main and alternative routes show up on the gps map and it even shows your orientation on the map. Using this it was practically impossible to get lost.
Funny you should mention the sprained ankle as that is exactly what happened to another pilgrim on that extremely steep downhill pitch just after the beginning of the descent. He slipped on wet leaves and sprained his ankle. When I encountered him he was up and walking very slowly with a big stick for support and cautioned me about my careening down the hill almost at a jog. After ensuring he was OK, I continued down the trail at a much more measured pace.The Pilgrims Office usually recommends the more gentle route to the right for the descent into Roncesvalles. They always seem to have a story of someone who sprained their ankle or broke their arm the previous day while taking the steeper route.
Hello Elle532!Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
Yes, this has been very worthwhile repeating.I don't want to add too many options to your travel planning, but Bilbao and Bordeaux are easy "gateway" cities for the Camino.
My cautions would be to heed the connection issues for transferring from CDG to the TGV at Montparnasse in Paris. Lots of the advice you are getting makes it sound like catching the train from Paris to Bayonne is sitting there at the station waiting for you on demand. It can take several hours to get across Paris depending on the time of day your flight arrives and the TGV south only runs every several hours, schedule your logisitcis carefully and give yourself lots of time to get from Point A to Point B.
Your comment about SJPdP being a small town is correct. That being said September is one of the busiest months there so reservations are definitely recommended.
Hi tlandry. Thank you for this information. I fly from Toronto to Halifax to Paris to Biarritz Saturday Sept 3. Was planning to grab a bus to Bayonne and then train to SJPDP. Good to know there is an option for a shuttle bus directly to SJPDP. I will check that out. Thanks again.After Landing in CDG from Halifax Canada, we took an Easy Jet Flight to Biarritz from CDG and caught a shuttle operated by Express Bourricot. They are based out of St Jean Pied de Port. Only a 50 minute drive arrive in plenty of time to check into Pilgrims office and our albergue, started next morning refreshed.
Originally we had planned to take the train, but with the poor track record of planes landing on time, it was a risk to get to Montparnasse in time to catch our train. Other option is to overnight in Paris, lovely city
Dax is a small town in the south west of France.My plane lands in Paris Sept 26 at 10:45 am. There are two train options for me:
12:11 depart, Paris > Bayonne > SJPDP
14:06 depart, Paris > DAX (not sure what that is) > Bayonne > SJPDP
I'm thinking I won't have enougn time to get from the airport to the train station and make the 12:11 train?
I can take the 14:06 train but it arrives at SJPDP at 19:41. It would be a bummer to arrive at that time of night and miss the sites.
As @Pafayac has pointed out, you need to get from Charles de Gaulle airport in Roissy to the Paris Montparnasse train station on the other side of Paris to catch the 14:06 train as it is not certain that you can make it for the 12:11 train. My guess is that you would need to get through passport control at the airport without delay and be already familiar with the Paris transport system to make it.14:06 depart, Paris > DAX (not sure what that is) > Bayonne > SJPDP
Well, on the day of your arrival, the sun sets in SJPP at 19:57 and civil twilight ends at 20:24 so it’s not pitch black when you arrive or during the train journey from Bayonne. SJPP is a pretty little town but most pilgrims, at least that is my impression, are content with walking up and down the short main street with some old houses and the pilgrim welcome office. Which sites do you have in mind? As you come from California, it is of course worth considering how you want to deal with jet lag and whether you want to walk to Roncesvalles already on the next day.I can take the 14:06 train but it arrives at SJPDP at 19:41. It would be a bummer to arrive at that time of night and miss the sites.
Hi everyone, after months of gathering gear on the off chance I could find a way to walk the Camino Frances this fall, things are falling into place and I have secured time away from work. Now I just need to book a plane from Canada and get there. I think I can fly into Paris and just catch a train to St Jean Pied de Port right from the airport. This oddly seems too easy. Does anyone have any tips or experience with this route? Is there something I'm missing? Any advice is appreciated. I'm looking to leave in the next 10 days or so. Yikes.
It might be OK - but then again, it mightn't... Given the uncertainties around air travel these days, who know?So if my flight lands at 6am, should I be okay making a 10:15am train? I'd rather take the train but I can also just fly to Biarritz
simplifies the calculations no end...no consequences.
Yes I can navigate
Yes I speak French
No bookings
Does that help lol
To avoid multiple transfers, I have booked a flight to CDG, with a connecting flight from there to Biarritz. I've booked a hotel for the night in Biarritz and will travel by train from there to SJPP.After much research, I surmised that the easier way to get to SJPdP if it is where you start your camino is from Paris. You can pretty much catch a train ride after you get off your plane at Charles de Gaulle then straight to SJPdP. If use Madrid, and/or Pamplona as transfer point to get to SJPdP, you have to worry about bus schedules and expensive taxi ride, maybe even spend night at Pamplona to use bus service the next day. This is my 2 cents. Hope it helps. Stay safe.
This is a good point! Travel planners need to make sure, if they are planning to fly from Paris to Biarritz, that they know which airport it leaves from in Paris. The majority of flights leave from Orly, but Air France (Hop!) also has flights leaving from CDG.Last time I checked you have to transfer from CDG to Orly for the flight to Biarritz. That was before pandemic changed a lot of procedures for entry to France at CDG (where I was twice last Summer). Orly train is easy to catch but took about 75-90 minutes to traverse from CDG to Orly. Just an FYI.
Air France flies from CDG.Last time I checked you have to transfer from CDG to Orly for the flight to Biarritz. That was before pandemic changed a lot of procedures for entry to France at CDG (where I was twice last Summer). Orly train is easy to catch but took about 75-90 minutes to traverse from CDG to Orly. Just an FYI.
I was just reviewing this actuallyI'm glad I found this thread. I'm about to book flights from Calgary. I think I will fly into Paris like I did in 2017 but I had a long way to get back to Paris after I finished my Camino. So I want to fly out of Madrid this time. Should be easy to get to Madrid from Santiago, I suppose?
Also consider flying home from Porto. It's an easy bus ride from Santiago, and the bus actually stops at the airport.I'm glad I found this thread. I'm about to book flights from Calgary. I think I will fly into Paris like I did in 2017 but I had a long way to get back to Paris after I finished my Camino. So I want to fly out of Madrid this time. Should be easy to get to Madrid from Santiago, I suppose?
Good idea. Thank you. I remember somebody actually mentioned about flying into or out of Porto as they tend to be cheaper than other airport? I don't know if it's true. Visiting Porto again would be great.Also consider flying home from Porto. It's an easy bus ride from Santiago, and the bus actually stops at the airport.
We did this in 2019 and workedAlso consider flying home from Porto. It's an easy bus ride from Santiago, and the bus actually stops at the airport.
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