Amount of pilgrims on the CP in October?

[Katie Brown]

I am having a tough time deciding whether or not to do the CF again or CP.

I will be going in October most likely with a friend, and it will be her first Camino. If we do the CP, we would start in Lisbon. If we do the CF, I will probably start in Pamplona, and she can decide if she wants to start at the Pyrenees, and meet up somewhere. (I did the Pyrenees once, I don't need to do it again lol). I'm having a hard time deciding because one of the main reasons why I fell in love with the Camino was because of the people I met. I met so many people who I still talk to, and I'm afraid that if we're doing the CP, especially in October, we won't meet a lot of people.

There are other factors that go along with this decision as well. Of course, her needs come into play, as well as the cost. Basically, I'm just wondering approximately how many other people there are in October.

Any advice would be appreciated

 

[Jan_D]

Hi Katie, you can find more info on numbers at this site: https://oficinadelperegrino.com/en/statistics/

Just checked and 4971 pilgrims finished the CP in October 2016, with most of these starting in Porto and Tui. This figure goes down to 972 finishing in November. So this averages out at about 100 people walking the CP per stage over this period, spread out mostly between Porto and Santiago. The stretch from Lisbon is bound to be very quiet at this time of year.

 

[Kent Davis]

Last October the weather was amazing; 1-2 days of rain but very minimal and not to warm during the day or uncomfortably cold at night. This I understand is unusual especially in Galicia., but it was really delightful

 

[KerryW]

Hi Katie, you can find more info on numbers at this site: https://oficinadelperegrino.com/en/statistics/

Just checked and 4971 pilgrims finished the CP in October 2016, with most of these starting in Porto and Tui. This figure goes down to 972 finishing in November. So this averages out at about 100 people walking the CP per day over this period, spread out mostly between Porto and Santiago. The stretch from Lisbon is bound to be very quiet at this time of year.

HI Jan We are struggling to decide which camino to do, now that we have done the CF and LOVED it ... would you suggest CP (noting you're going that this year and have covered a few others!!)

 

[Jan_D]

HI Jan We are struggling to decide which camino to do, now that we have done the CF and LOVED it ... would you suggest CP (noting you're going that this year and have covered a few others!!)

Hi Kerry, to be honest I'm not sure about the CP after reading a lot of conflicting opinions on this forum... some seem to love it, others seem thoroughly underwhelmed! It's actually more my mom's idea as she's joining me for a couple of weeks and has never been to Portugal, and it indeed might exceed expectations - but if it were up to me I'd do the Norte every time!

 

[timr]

@Katie Brown @KerryW @Jan_D This is a very recurrent thread - there was one last week! The CP seems really to divide people! I loved it from Porto.
From Porto in November was really quite quiet, though I wasn't alone. I am interested so see the big drop off mentioned by Jan_D between October and November. Katie, I think that whenever you go it is going to be fairly quiet from Lisbon to Porto, although I haven't walked that part. But it is never going to be like the CF.
FWIW I found Portugal to be significantly cheaper, day by day, than Spain.
November weather in Portugal was amazing - though they did tell me it was unusually warm and it is then called a "St Martin's Summer" - November 11 is St Martin's Day.

 

[Katie Brown]

Hi Katie, you can find more info on numbers at this site: https://oficinadelperegrino.com/en/statistics/

Just checked and 4971 pilgrims finished the CP in October 2016, with most of these starting in Porto and Tui. This figure goes down to 972 finishing in November. So this averages out at about 100 people walking the CP per day over this period, spread out mostly between Porto and Santiago. The stretch from Lisbon is bound to be very quiet at this time of year.

very helpful! Thanks Jan

 

[Katie Brown]

@Katie Brown @KerryW @Jan_D This is a very recurrent thread - there was one last week! The CP seems really to divide people! I loved it from Porto.
From Porto in November was really quite quiet, though I wasn't alone. I am interested so see the big drop off mentioned by Jan_D between October and November. Katie, I think that whenever you go it is going to be fairly quiet from Lisbon to Porto, although I haven't walked that part. But it is never going to be like the CF.
FWIW I found Portugal to be significantly cheaper, day by day, than Spain.
November weather in Portugal was amazing - though they did tell me it was unusually warm and it is then called a "St Martin's Summer" - November 11 is St Martin's Day.

I do expect it to be quite from Lisbon to Porto, though I am hoping to meet just a few people at least lol. On the CF, I found there was sometimes too many people when walking. In the albergues, I didn't mind them being full of other pilgrims, but I remember staying in spots along the trail for 30 minutes at a time, letting large crowds go ahead of me so I could walk quietly. I don't think I'll have this problem along the CP lol.
By the looks of the guides I have, it does seem to be cheaper. Except of course, once getting into Galicia.
Thanks for your response @timr

 

[KerryW]

Hi all We are tossing up CP (interior route) or Primitivo (and then on to Finisterre/Muxia) as this year we don't have the time to do either Le Puy-SJPP or Norte ... but those are on our list! I'm just wondering now whether we do Primitivo ....? Love to hear any responses! Kerry

 

[Jan_D]

Hi all We are tossing up CP (interior route) or Primitivo (and then on to Finisterre/Muxia) as this year we don't have the time to do either Le Puy-SJPP or Norte ... but those are on our list! I'm just wondering now whether we do Primitivo ....? Love to hear any responses! Kerry

I've only done a couple of days on the Primitivo; from what I saw it's exquisite, would love to go back! A tough walk, up and down through the mountains, quite remote, and the weather can be inclement, but the views are spectacular.

For me part of the attraction of the CP was the opportunity to walk in Portugal; I've spent some time there as a tourist and the hospitality of the Portuguese, the beautiful language, the amazing food, the prices, was definitely something to write home about! However it seems there's quite a lot of hard and cobbled surfaces on the CP, and if it's scenic vistas you're after there aren't that many on the central CP. Here's a recent thread concerning someone's 'hesitation' to walk the CP (mentioned by timr above): some interesting comments by both supporters and detractors: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/camino-portugues-hesitation.47486/

By the way, are you thinking of the Central route (starting Porto), or the Interior route (starting Viseu)?