Bike tour from Lisbon to Santiago de Compostela

[Carioca]

Hello,

I am from Calgary, Alberta, Canada

My friend and I will arrive in Lisbon in the last week of April 2024. We are planning to bike from Lisbon to Santiago de Compostela. The duration of the bike tour will be around 15 to 18 days with approximately 45km/day biking. We are both over 70 years old.

Route: Caminho Portugues da Costa: Lisboa – Santiago de Compostela

Please find below three links from three different sources/Apps:

App called AllTraills:

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/por...gues-da-costa-lisboa-a-santiago-de-compostela

App called Komoot:

https://www.komoot.com/tour/1387071598

And the third link from EuroVelo:

https://euroveloportugal.com/pt/route/eurovelo-1

The starting day of our biking tour will be around April 27th, 2024 after having a tour to Lisbon. We initially sought of doing a bike tour in a self-guided tour. After some researches we decided that we would have more freedom to travel on our own. We could stay some additional days in some villages in case we decide to enjoy and relax instead of a rigid self-guided tour.

SUMMARY OF OUR BIKE TOUR:

Arrival in Lisbon with two bikes from Calgary, Alberta, Canada: April 25th, 2024

Duration of the biking tour: 15 to 18 days

Starting location and date: Lisbon, around April 27th, 2024

Destination and date: Santiago de Compostela, arrival date around May 14th, 2024

Return from Santiago de Compostela to Lisbon: Maybe by train with the bikes.

We are planning to stay in Airbnb’s or hostels for most of our trip.

We would like to bike in trails or roads that are very safe to ride, not too much traffic due to safety, include beautiful sceneries and historical places to visit.

I would like to have a bike route uploaded in my IPhone (GPS file) where I can see the distances and elevations.

I HAVE THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

• Can you please provide information on how to store our bikes in Lisbon?
• Do you have any suggestions or comments regarding the three options of routes describe above?
• In our return from Santiago de Compostela to Lisbon by train, can we travel in Portugal with the bikes without the bike bags? The bike bags will be stored in Lisbon during the bike tour
• Do you have any suggestions of places to stop for overnight sleep or maybe stay extra days exploring the areas?
• Do you have any suggestions of places where we can have sea food along the route?
• Any suggestions of Apps that are good for this type of bike tour besides Alltrails and Komoot?
• There is a ferry crossing along the way; do we need to book the ferry in advance?
• Should I bring a hybrid bike or a mountain bike? I have one TREK Multitrack 7700 hybrid bike and one GIANT AULUXX FLUIDFORM ANTHEM mountain bike.
• Your response is highly appreciated.
• Regards,
• Rogerio
• Calgary, Alberta, Canada

 

[C clearly]

Welcome to the forum!

Your thread has been moved to the Caminho PORTUGUES Central section of the forum. If you click on that route name at the top, you can find a lot of information about the route - places to stay and eat, etc. Also click on the tag "bicycling" added under the title, for more discussion of bicycling on the various routes.

I expect that others will come along soon and answer your specific questions.

 

[Gerard Griffin]

If you want to put a bike on a train in Spain, other than the short-distance MD routes, you need a bike bag. Decathlon sells them for 65 euro.

I'd use the coastal route from Porto. No need to book ferries. Hybrid bikes are best imo.

Get a pilgrim passport and use the albegues. Portugal has some fine privados and the new Galician municipals are very good.

Seafood is ubiquitous.

I use Outdoor Active, free and works offline.

It's a fabulous bike route, you'll have a great time.

 

[OCHAR]

Hello fellow Calgarian.
Why burden yourself with the bikes and equipment? Shipping, packing, train etc.
We have done several Caminos and have always rented bikes. It is such a relief to get rid of the bikes at the end and simply board the train in encumbered.

Just something to think about....

 

[SilentNight]

• Can you please provide information on how to store our bikes in Lisbon?

If you’re staying in an airbnb or hotel while exploring Lisbon, stash your bikes in the airbnb or hotel room. If you’re staying in a hostel, book a private room to keep your bike secure. I will stay in a hotel in Lisbon. When I’m touring Lisbon by foot, I will lock my IBIS Ripmo with both the Hiplock D1000 and Hiplock Gold chain locks in my room. The luggage transport service that I hired will bring both of my locks and luggage to each place of lodging along my mixed Central/Coastal route.

In our return from Santiago de Compostela to Lisbon by train, can we travel in Portugal with the bikes without the bike bags? The bike bags will be stored in Lisbon during the bike tour

Yes, of course you are free to travel sans your bike bags, since you’re storing them in Lisbon. Or are you asking about where to store the bike bags? I can give you that info, if you wish.

Should I bring a hybrid bike or a mountain bike? I have one TREK Multitrack 7700 hybrid bike and one GIANT AULUXX FLUIDFORM ANTHEM mountain bike.

That depends on your physical capability and aches and pains. Two in my group, both 70, are bringing hybrid bikes, though one is now considering bringing his Specialized eBike. I am bringing my IBIS Ripmo, with my aggressive mtb tires replaced with Maxxis tubeless smooth rolling hybrid 29x2.3 tires. For me, the dual suspension is imperative over the Camino’s varied terrain, from paved to dirt to cobblestone. The hybrid tires will allow me to keep up more easily with the others on touring bikes.

Ii’ve ridden on cobblestone and dirt roads with hybrid, cruiser and mountain bikes. The mountain bike invariably took the least toll on my body.

So do consider how your body will feel after a week of riding several hours per day on rough terrain on a touring bike with front fork suspension vs. your 29er with dual suspension.

BTW, I’ve owned Trek and Giant mountain bikes. I liked both, though I like both of my IBIS Ripmo I and II more. I sold my Trek. I keep my Giant bike to loan to visiting friends.

If it were me, I would bring the Giant, outfitted with hybrid tires.
——-
Hope this helps. Enjoy your Camino!

 

[SilentNight]

Hello fellow Calgarian.
Why burden yourself with the bikes and equipment? Shipping, packing, train etc.
We have done several Caminos and have always rented bikes. It is such a relief to get rid of the bikes at the end and simply board the train in encumbered.

Just something to think about....

That would be awesome to be able to do that. For some like me, riding a touring bike, with its front fork suspension is tolerable for a few hours. If I had to ride daily for several hours on a touring bike, the pain becomes overwhelming and fatiguing.

 

[JoEllen]

I have ridden to Santiago from Coimbra, and the next year from Porto....both trips were on the Senda Litoral/Camino Costa after Porto. First trip, I was 70, second I was 71. We are avid bikers and were very ambitious on the first trip from Coimbra and planned daily mileage a bit longer than you are. Coimbra to Porto is extremely hilly and sometimes you will need to carry your bike over very large rocks. What should have been 5-6 hour days, were. more like 10-12 hour days for us. If you are bringing your own bike, that's good, because the rental bikes just don't have the lower gear capability as a better quality bike would have. We ended up walking many hills, which adds a lot of time to your day. On our first trip, we had very little time to enjoy what we were doing as we felt pressed to be in the saddle and make some miles. Second trip, we planned better from what we learned the first time and it was much more enjoyable.

Most of the hotels we stayed at had secure storage for the bikes....you just need to call ahead. We did not stay in albergues, so I cannot speak to that. Also, we opted to have our luggage sent ahead to our hotel each day. We still used panniers, but more for rain gear, repair kit, and other things. We used Caminofacil and they were great.

We found the Portuguese drivers to be very courteous when it came to cyclists. They are probably much more used to people on bikes. Even the large truck drivers gave us a lot of leeway when we did have to get on the larger highways. We used an app called Gaia that uses GPX files. If you contact Go Cycling Portugal at https://gocyclingportugal.com/contact-us/ they have a very good booklet with map, GPX files and a plethora of information about places to stay, things to see, what to eat. You have to buy it and it's delivered electronically, but it was well worth it. I just transferred the GPS files to Gaia on my phone. Gaia works off line, so even in remote areas, we still had maps. There also may be a thread on the forum with others who have provided their own GPX files.....just do some searching.

Hope this helps.

 

[Saint Mike II]

Hola @Carioca I road my bike from Pamplona to Santiago and if tempted to cycle any camino again I would always use a rental bike. Bringing your own bike from "the other side of the world" is imho a real pain. In addition to storage, packing etc etc you bike will have to pack down to a max 1200mm (or about 4 feet) and about 200/250mm wide. When I investigated this subject a few years back I found two or three bike rental agencies and most allowed "one way rental". If you do go the rental route be sure to bring a very sturdy bike lock that can secure your bike when you have to leave it. Best wish, Buen Camion.

 

[SilentNight]

... very large rocks.

Most of the hotels we stayed at had secure storage for the bikes

What approximate size were the rocks to traverse by bike on the Camino?

The hotel‘s secure storage … his bike is a Giant Anthem, which depending on his components, ranges in price from $7.5-10K. The Giant Anthem is Giant’s premiere model, and its components are expensive. The frame alone costs $3.3K. For anyone who owns an expensive bike, it is rarely a good idea to leave your bike in the hotel’s “secure storage”. Think of it akin to leaving your car in a 24 hour surveillance, secure airport parking. You return to find that your catalytic converter was stolen. Now the car won’t work, and the airport car park refuses to take responsibility. This is happening with increasing frequency at LAX.

 

[JoEllen]

What approximate size were the rocks to traverse by bike on the Camino?

The hotel‘s secure storage … his bike is a Giant Anthem, which depending on his components, ranges in price from $7.5-10K. The Giant Anthem is Giant’s premiere model, and its components are expensive. The frame alone costs $3.3K. For anyone who owns an expensive bike, it is rarely a good idea to leave your bike in the hotel’s “secure storage”. Think of it akin to leaving your car in a 24 hour surveillance, secure airport parking. You return to find that your catalytic converter was stolen. Now the car won’t work, and the airport car park refuses to take responsibility. This is happening with increasing frequency at LAX.

Rocks were BiG. We had to carry our bikes.

As far as secure storage….we were liable for our rented bikes so we’re very careful. In the “secure” area, we locked our bikes to anything stationary or to each others (there were 6 of us). Totally a personal decision, but hostels and albergues are not likely to have as secure an area as the hotels. You need to call ahead and check with your prospective lodging.

 

[JoEllen]

Rocks were BiG. We had to carry our bikes.

As far as secure storage….we were liable for our rented bikes so we’re very careful. In the “secure” area, we locked our bikes to anything stationary or to each others (there were 6 of us). Totally a personal decision, but hostels and albergues are not likely to have as secure an area as the hotels. You need to call ahead and check with your prospective lodging.

 

[JoEllen]

One of our group is an avid mountain biker in the PNW. He was even carrying his bike.

 

[Carioca]

Hola @Carioca I road my bike from Pamplona to Santiago and if tempted to cycle any camino again I would always use a rental bike. Bringing your own bike from "the other side of the world" is imho a real pain. In addition to storage, packing etc etc you bike will have to pack down to a max 1200mm (or about 4 feet) and about 200/250mm wide. When I investigated this subject a few years back I found two or three bike rental agencies and most allowed "one way rental". If you do go the rental route be sure to bring a very sturdy bike lock that can secure your bike when you have to leave it. Best wish, Buen Camion.

Thank you very much for your suggestion.

 

[Carioca]

Hello Saint Mike II, thank you for your feedback. According to Air Canada website:
Bicycles must not exceed the following limits:
Maximum weight: 32kg (70lb)
Maximum linear dimensions (length + width + height): 292cm (115 in), which is much higher than the limit you had. The cost is only CA$50.00. So, I think that it would be worthwhile to try to bring the bike. Cheers

 

[Carioca]

If you’re staying in an airbnb or hotel while exploring Lisbon, stash your bikes in the airbnb or hotel room. If you’re staying in a hostel, book a private room to keep your bike secure. I will stay in a hotel in Lisbon. When I’m touring Lisbon by foot, I will lock my IBIS Ripmo with both the Hiplock D1000 and Hiplock Gold chain locks in my room. The luggage transport service that I hired will bring both of my locks and luggage to each place of lodging along my mixed Central/Coastal route.


Yes, of course you are free to travel sans your bike bags, since you’re storing them in Lisbon. Or are you asking about where to store the bike bags? I can give you that info, if you wish.


That depends on your physical capability and aches and pains. Two in my group, both 70, are bringing hybrid bikes, though one is now considering bringing his Specialized eBike. I am bringing my IBIS Ripmo, with my aggressive mtb tires replaced with Maxxis tubeless smooth rolling hybrid 29x2.3 tires. For me, the dual suspension is imperative over the Camino’s varied terrain, from paved to dirt to cobblestone. The hybrid tires will allow me to keep up more easily with the others on touring bikes.

Ii’ve ridden on cobblestone and dirt roads with hybrid, cruiser and mountain bikes. The mountain bike invariably took the least toll on my body.

So do consider how your body will feel after a week of riding several hours per day on rough terrain on a touring bike with front fork suspension vs. your 29er with dual suspension.

BTW, I’ve owned Trek and Giant mountain bikes. I liked both, though I like both of my IBIS Ripmo I and II more. I sold my Trek. I keep my Giant bike to loan to visiting friends.

If it were me, I would bring the Giant, outfitted with hybrid tires.
——-
Hope this helps. Enjoy your Camino!

Thank you, yes, after seen several Youtube videos regarding the route I am going to take, it looks like that the mountain bike is a better option.

 

[Carioca]

If you’re staying in an airbnb or hotel while exploring Lisbon, stash your bikes in the airbnb or hotel room. If you’re staying in a hostel, book a private room to keep your bike secure. I will stay in a hotel in Lisbon. When I’m touring Lisbon by foot, I will lock my IBIS Ripmo with both the Hiplock D1000 and Hiplock Gold chain locks in my room. The luggage transport service that I hired will bring both of my locks and luggage to each place of lodging along my mixed Central/Coastal route.


Yes, of course you are free to travel sans your bike bags, since you’re storing them in Lisbon. Or are you asking about where to store the bike bags? I can give you that info, if you wish.


That depends on your physical capability and aches and pains. Two in my group, both 70, are bringing hybrid bikes, though one is now considering bringing his Specialized eBike. I am bringing my IBIS Ripmo, with my aggressive mtb tires replaced with Maxxis tubeless smooth rolling hybrid 29x2.3 tires. For me, the dual suspension is imperative over the Camino’s varied terrain, from paved to dirt to cobblestone. The hybrid tires will allow me to keep up more easily with the others on touring bikes.

Ii’ve ridden on cobblestone and dirt roads with hybrid, cruiser and mountain bikes. The mountain bike invariably took the least toll on my body.

So do consider how your body will feel after a week of riding several hours per day on rough terrain on a touring bike with front fork suspension vs. your 29er with dual suspension.

BTW, I’ve owned Trek and Giant mountain bikes. I liked both, though I like both of my IBIS Ripmo I and II more. I sold my Trek. I keep my Giant bike to loan to visiting friends.

If it were me, I would bring the Giant, outfitted with hybrid tires.
——-
Hope this helps. Enjoy your Camino!

If you’re staying in an airbnb or hotel while exploring Lisbon, stash your bikes in the airbnb or hotel room. If you’re staying in a hostel, book a private room to keep your bike secure. I will stay in a hotel in Lisbon. When I’m touring Lisbon by foot, I will lock my IBIS Ripmo with both the Hiplock D1000 and Hiplock Gold chain locks in my room. The luggage transport service that I hired will bring both of my locks and luggage to each place of lodging along my mixed Central/Coastal route.


Yes, of course you are free to travel sans your bike bags, since you’re storing them in Lisbon. Or are you asking about where to store the bike bags? I can give you that info, if you wish.


That depends on your physical capability and aches and pains. Two in my group, both 70, are bringing hybrid bikes, though one is now considering bringing his Specialized eBike. I am bringing my IBIS Ripmo, with my aggressive mtb tires replaced with Maxxis tubeless smooth rolling hybrid 29x2.3 tires. For me, the dual suspension is imperative over the Camino’s varied terrain, from paved to dirt to cobblestone. The hybrid tires will allow me to keep up more easily with the others on touring bikes.

Ii’ve ridden on cobblestone and dirt roads with hybrid, cruiser and mountain bikes. The mountain bike invariably took the least toll on my body.

So do consider how your body will feel after a week of riding several hours per day on rough terrain on a touring bike with front fork suspension vs. your 29er with dual suspension.

BTW, I’ve owned Trek and Giant mountain bikes. I liked both, though I like both of my IBIS Ripmo I and II more. I sold my Trek. I keep my Giant bike to loan to visiting friends.

If it were me, I would bring the Giant, outfitted with hybrid tires.
——-
Hope this helps. Enjoy your Camino!

Hi, thank you for all your tips. Yes, can you please let me know where I can store my bike in Lisbon? After the bike tour I will join my son and his family in Lisbon and I will travel with them without the bike. So, I need to find a place to store my bike in Lisbon. Do you know any company that provide the service of transport our luggages between each village along the way, so we do no need to carry all the load in the bikes. Cheers

 

[SilentNight]

@Richard, so helpful, thank you! While I’m aware that the camera’s perspective makes the terrain look more flat, those rocks look rideable and fun(!) on my mountain bike, even with the hybrid tires. My concern is when the rocks are slick with rain and it’s on a hairpin turn. Looks like I better practice riding my MTB with my new hybrid tires on my local trails.

 

[SilentNight]

Yes, can you please let me know where I can store my bike in Lisbon?

UPDATED December 21
Storage, longterm: (I belatedly recalled the name of the vendor, binaclinica.)
lm: 927 207 738 (Chamada para rede móvel nacional)
info@binaclinica.com
na.clinica@gmail.com
facebook.com/binaclinica (http://facebook.com/binaclinica)
binaclinica.pt (http://binaclinica.pt/)
(The vendor replied to my query using bina.clinica@gmail.com)

Do you know any company that provide the service of transport our luggages between each village

Luggage transfer:
Luggagedriver.com
(Their website is undergoing maintenance and will be finished by January 1st. They have answered my queries timely, usually by the next morning.)
Info@luggagedriver.com
Service@luggagedriver.com
( was told that each lodging must have an open reception desk from 8:30 AM - 7 PM. I paid in advance for the service, and I have had several communications with LuggageDriver via service@luggagedriver.com, as recently as today.
info@luggagedriver.com.
Good luck!

 

[Carioca]

I have ridden to Santiago from Coimbra, and the next year from Porto....both trips were on the Senda Litoral/Camino Costa after Porto. First trip, I was 70, second I was 71. We are avid bikers and were very ambitious on the first trip from Coimbra and planned daily mileage a bit longer than you are. Coimbra to Porto is extremely hilly and sometimes you will need to carry your bike over very large rocks. What should have been 5-6 hour days, were. more like 10-12 hour days for us. If you are bringing your own bike, that's good, because the rental bikes just don't have the lower gear capability as a better quality bike would have. We ended up walking many hills, which adds a lot of time to your day. On our first trip, we had very little time to enjoy what we were doing as we felt pressed to be in the saddle and make some miles. Second trip, we planned better from what we learned the first time and it was much more enjoyable.

Most of the hotels we stayed at had secure storage for the bikes....you just need to call ahead. We did not stay in albergues, so I cannot speak to that. Also, we opted to have our luggage sent ahead to our hotel each day. We still used panniers, but more for rain gear, repair kit, and other things. We used Caminofacil and they were great.

We found the Portuguese drivers to be very courteous when it came to cyclists. They are probably much more used to people on bikes. Even the large truck drivers gave us a lot of leeway when we did have to get on the larger highways. We used an app called Gaia that uses GPX files. If you contact Go Cycling Portugal at https://gocyclingportugal.com/contact-us/ they have a very good booklet with map, GPX files and a plethora of information about places to stay, things to see, what to eat. You have to buy it and it's delivered electronically, but it was well worth it. I just transferred the GPS files to Gaia on my phone. Gaia works off line, so even in remote areas, we still had maps. There also may be a thread on the forum with others who have provided their own GPX files.....just do some searching.

Hope this helps.

Hi JoEllen, thank you for your feedback. As I mentioned in my previous message we are going to follow the EuroVelo route: https://euroveloportugal.com/pt/route/eurovelo-1

Is this route reliable? As per your recommendation, I have contacted the gocyclingportugal.com and so far no answers. Would be possible to share the names of the hotels you stayed? Is there a list of hotels available along the EuroVelo route? Did you do the bike tour on your own or did you hire a tour company? In our case we are going to do the bike tour from Lisbon to Santiago de Compostela on our own. Do I need to book the hotels ahead of time or it is easy to find accommodations along the way? We would like to enjoy the bike tour and if during the tour we decide that we like some places or villages we could stay extra days in these villages. As we are doing around 45-60km/day, we plan to arrive in the villages around 2:00pm every day, in order to have time to find accommodations (Airbnb or hotels). Do you think my plan is doable? We are going to start the bike tour in Lisbon on April 28th, 2024 and planning to go back to Lisbon by train around May 14th. Is there a train route from Santiago de Compostela to Lisbon? By the way, I live in Canada, but I am originally from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, I speak Portuguese.