Bordeaux to St Jean Pied de Port

[mafoo]

Hello

I walked from St Jean Pied de Port to Finisterre in May/June this year and are wanting to walk from Bordeaux to Santiago in April 2006. Does anyone know of any books/websites about the Bordeaux to St Jean Pied de Port section?

Cheers. Matt

 

[Peter Robins]

see overview on my website http://www.peterrobins.co.uk/camino/routes/tours
There's also a blog of my walk along most of this http://peterrobins.co.uk/blog/category/walkposts/trips/
though I still haven't managed to get down there and finish it off.

 

[sillydoll]

Bordeaux to Santiago

Hola Matt,
A friend and I walked from Paris to Roncesvalles last year. We used the Confraternity of St James' Paris to the Pyrenees Guide as well as info from Philip Du Ngoc's site.

As we intended walking ± 28kms each day we pre-booked most of our accommodation. We booked five Youth Hostels that cost ± €9 each and did ‘Google.com’ searches for hotels. We used the LOGIS and Federal Hotels web sites to book online. The average cost of a double room in France was €40 - €50 and in Spain €30 - €40.

Much of our route was done on tarred roads, some frighteningly busy but we did try to take the petit rues suggested to us by locals.

From DAX we did a side train trip to Lourdes and spent a few hours there before returning to Peyrehorade to continue our walk. We didn't meet another pilgrim until we reached Ostabat. (Only 44 pilgrims walked the Via Turonensis in 2003 - an indication that it isn't the most popular route in France).

Useful websites:

http://www.philippe@doph.net Philippe Du Ngoc
http://www.federal-hotel.com Federal Hotel
http://www.logis-de-france.fr Logis Hotels

France: Société des Amis de Saint Jacques de Compostelle: http://www.compostelle.asso.fr/
Southern France: Association de Coopération Interrégionale les Chemins de Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle http://www.chemins-compostelle.com/
France - Saint Jean: Au coeur du chemin - les Amis de Chemin de St Jacques des Pyrénées Atlantiques

General: http://www.caminolinks.co.uk (Many diaries posted by pilgrims).

I am sending you a list of refuges in the south of France that was up-to-date in 2004 as well as my diary from Bordeaux to Roncesvalles.
If I can be of any further help, please don’t hesitate to mail me.
Abrazos dear peregrino,
Sil

 

[mafoo]

Well, we didn't make it in April 2006 but we are just about to book tickets for April 2007. Just wondering what people think of the route between Bordeaux and SJPP? I have read that it's not the nicest of routes. I'm going to have another look at all these links. Is there frequent accommodation along the way? Also, about how longs is it? From my research I have found a figure of just over 200km. Is it marked?

Want to book that ticket to either Bordeaux or Biarritz to make it all definate

Sorry about all the questions. I will read all these links again. Have got all excited and my head is spinning around.

 

[mafoo]

Have decided to start in SJPP. Tickets booked for the 7th of April. Starting 9th April Cannot wait.

 

[delilah]

Hello
This is a few years later.. but I was wondering if you ever walked from Bordeaux to St Jean Pied de Port?
Or if you have you heard of anyone else who's done it?
I plan on arriving in Bordeaux on March 13 2011 and start walking from there.

 

[vinotinto]

walked from Bordeaux to St Jean Pied de Port?

When I did the Camino back in the summer of 2007, my original plan was to begin in Bordeaux because I love wine and figured it would be a great place to step off. I stayed at the Ibis hotel near the train station for a couple of days and enjoyed the local sights and cuisine while buying some last-minute items.

The tourist office at the Train station had a Camino sticker in the window so I ended up buying my credencial there (along with my first stamp). I asked the helpful attendant about the route (he spoke decent English), and he actually drew it on a map for me. If I remember right, he warned me about the heat, the bugs, and the busy roadway.

However, I believe it was around 20K to the first stop, I had no other reasonably reliable resources to follow, and I knew there wouldn't be many (if any) other pilgrims on that route until I got to SJPP. Those issues disconcerted me, so I abandoned the idea and ended up beginning the Way in SJPP (after staying a day and a night in Bayonne, which was somewhat nicer than Bordeaux).

It worked out best for me to start at SJPP, but I still wonder what it would have been like to commence my pilgrimage in Bordeaux. The city has some Camino-related sites and I enjoyed spending time there. Maybe someday I'll return and try again...who can say? :arrow: