Camino from Porto - October 2015 - Tips welcome

[kdbing]

Hi I'm one of 7 Canadians walking the Camino for the first time beginning next week. We are leaving Porto for Santiago and would welcome any suggestions on how to make the most of this site, how to make the most of the pilgrimage and what to expect. We have an albergue booked for the 1st night, and hotels in Porto and Santiago but are leaving the rest up to our feet. A new adventure for us all...

 

[PEI_Heather]

Drink lots and lots of café-com-leite (basically cafe au lait), eat lots and lots of pastel de nata (memorize that...you'll need it and will be glad you did!) and say Bom dia! (Good morning/day!)
There are a lot of very kind people in Portugal who speak English, but try Portuguese first.
It's too bad you aren't starting from Lisbon--you will miss a most amazing and beautiful part of Portugal. Next time!

In Porto, make sure you take a trip to the Lello & Irmão Bookstore. It's considered one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world and, apparently where JK Rowling got the inspiration for Hogwarts in Harry Potter. (No photos are allowed--strictly enforced.) If you are going to be in Porto a day or two before you start your Camino, get a ticket for one of the red buses--you can jump on and off at your leisure. This includes getting off at the beaches outside of downtown Porto and having lunch or a walk. I think this is the Foz do Douro--the Felgueiras Lighthouse would be here. (http://www.placestoseeinyourlifetime.com/top-10-lighthouses-11936/) (and if you look at this link, you'll see that PEI is #2 on the list!) The bus will also take you over to the Douro area where you can visit port vinhos (vintners of port)...

From Porto to Santiago there are official Camino albergues so you just need to know where they are. There is certainly a list here somewhere. @JohnnieWalker has a great up-to-date guide of the Camino Portuguese via The Confraternity of Saint James (UK) with all the information you need. (The guide is available with a donation.)

Oh, one really good and important piece of advice: take neon coloured vests--you can get them at MEC or other camping/cycling/hiking shops (or even at Canadian Tire). You will be walking on asphalt a lot and want to be completely visible.

Where are you seven coming from? All the same province/city or town? You will love love love Portugal!

Bom Caminho! (Which is Buen Camino or, 'Have a great walk', in Portuguese!)
PEI_Heather

 

[Camembert]

Drink lots and lots of café-com-leite (basically cafe au lait), eat lots and lots of pastel de nata (memorize that...you'll need it and will be glad you did!) and say Bom dia! (Good morning/day!)
There are a lot of very kind people in Portugal who speak English, but try Portuguese first.
It's too bad you aren't starting from Lisbon--you will miss a most amazing and beautiful part of Portugual. Next time!

In Porto, make sure you take a trip to the Lello & Irmão Bookstore. It's considered one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world and, apparently, where JK Rowlings got the inspiration for Hogwarts in Harry Potter. (No photos are allowed--strictly enforced.) If you are going to be in Porto a day or two before you start your Camino, get a ticket for one of the red buses--you can jump on and off at your leisure. This includes getting off at the beaches outside of Porto and having lunch or a walk. I think this is the Foz do Douro--the Felgueiras Lighthouse would be here. (http://www.placestoseeinyourlifetime.com/top-10-lighthouses-11936/) (and if you look at this link, you'll see that PEI is #2 on the list!) The bus will also take you over to the Douro area where you can visit port vinhos (vintners?)...

From Porto to Santiago there are official Camino albergues so you just need to know where they are. There is certainly a list here. @JohnnieWalker has a great up-to-date guide of the Camino Portuguese via The Confraternity of Saint James (UK) with all the information you need. (The guide is available with a donation.)

Oh, one really good and important piece of advice: take neon coloured vests--you can get them at MEC or another camping/cycling/hiking shops. You will be walking on asphalt a lot and want to be completely visible.

Where are you seven coming from? All the same province/city or town? You will love love love Portugal!

Bom Caminho! (Which is buen Camino or Have a great walk, in Portuguese!)
PEI_Heather

Good tips from Heather.
A short vid of the first part of our caminho (our third) which followed the way out of Porto and shows some highlites a.o .the Lello bookstore but also at the end casa da Fernanda, the best place to stay from Porto to Santiago.

 

[Camembert]

Drink lots and lots of café-com-leite (basically cafe au lait), eat lots and lots of pastel de nata (memorize that...you'll need it and will be glad you did!) and say Bom dia! (Good morning/day!)
There are a lot of very kind people in Portugal who speak English, but try Portuguese first.
It's too bad you aren't starting from Lisbon--you will miss a most amazing and beautiful part of Portugual. Next time!

In Porto, make sure you take a trip to the Lello & Irmão Bookstore. It's considered one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world and, apparently, where JK Rowlings got the inspiration for Hogwarts in Harry Potter. (No photos are allowed--strictly enforced.) If you are going to be in Porto a day or two before you start your Camino, get a ticket for one of the red buses--you can jump on and off at your leisure. This includes getting off at the beaches outside of Porto and having lunch or a walk. I think this is the Foz do Douro--the Felgueiras Lighthouse would be here. (http://www.placestoseeinyourlifetime.com/top-10-lighthouses-11936/) (and if you look at this link, you'll see that PEI is #2 on the list!) The bus will also take you over to the Douro area where you can visit port vinhos (vintners?)...

From Porto to Santiago there are official Camino albergues so you just need to know where they are. There is certainly a list here. @JohnnieWalker has a great up-to-date guide of the Camino Portuguese via The Confraternity of Saint James (UK) with all the information you need. (The guide is available with a donation.)

Oh, one really good and important piece of advice: take neon coloured vests--you can get them at MEC or another camping/cycling/hiking shops. You will be walking on asphalt a lot and want to be completely visible.

Where are you seven coming from? All the same province/city or town? You will love love love Portugal!

Bom Caminho! (Which is buen Camino or Have a great walk, in Portuguese!)
PEI_Heather

A good guide if you still have the time to get it is John Brierley's guide, camino Portugues. It leads you all away to Santiago .Ivar ,owner of this forum sells the book. See the forum's webshop. Maybe you can have it sent to your Porto hotel if you stay there more than one day ?

Heather's tip about the fluorescent safety vest is a good one. We never walk without.there is a lot of roadwalking where you share the road with traffic .allways walk towards the traffic keep in mind thr traffic drives at the right side of the road. .use your walkingpoles to pay attention to the drivers.
Keep your ears open for upcoming overtaking traffic from behind you.

Out of Porto. Two possibilities. One is the original route to Vilarinho and the alterative one is to Matosinhos and Vila do Conde along the coastline.
If you want to avoid the heavy traffic out of Porto, take the metro from the Trindade station in Porto to Fórum Maia and walk from there to Mosteiro de Vairão where is the first albergue. See my vid.
You are than in the rural area north of Porto and follow the yellow wAymarkers to Santiago.

Starting in Matosinhos, take the metro to the station Mercado Walk over the bridge over the Leixões harbour and follow the waymarkers to Vila do Conde.
In Vila do Conde is no albergue but a nice hostal Bellamar.
Arriving in Vila do Conde there is a bridge. If you want to follow the central Portugese route turn right and follow the river for about one km direction the metro stop. This is the way to São Pedro de Rates. Directly after you turned right at the same bridge after about 10 feet is another waymarker which leads of the coastal route .this path leads underneath the bridge you came from and once at the otherside of the road you see hostal Bellamar allmost in front of you.Do not forget to walk back the next morning to the other side of the bridge to continue the central route to São Pedro de Rates. I do not think you want the coastal route to Vigo but the central route as I decribe all the time. By the way the coastal route is a beautiful one too.I walked it this year.

The walk out of Porto center to Matosinhos is great following the Douro river and the Atlantic ocean . About 10 kms. Some people walk thispart one day, return back to their hotel in Porto by bus 500 or the metro from stop Mercado and return next day to Mercodo to start the caminho alongside the ocean .

In Sã Pedro de Rates is an albergue. See my vid.
In Barcelos are two albergues , one before the main bridges at the left side alongside the river and one at the other side of the river.many hostals and hotels
If you have time, take a day off , leave your backpacks there and take the bus to Braga.
A medieval town with the world heritage protected and world famous church , Bom Jesus do Monte. Fabulous.the bus stop is in front of the Barcelos hospital and takes about half an hour to reach the Braga busstation on the center.

18 kms after Barcelos is casa da Fernanda. Stop there ! For the night. Your best experience on the entire camino. Give Fernanda a call ahead to reserve because with a group maybe it can be full. It is very popular. Fernanda speaks english. Tel. +351 914 589 521
Prepare some songs from your country. Fernanda and her husband like to hear your songs and let you hear their songs. see my vid.

Next day is a short day. 14 kms to Ponte de Lima. Lots of places to sleep a.o. an albergue. Nice place to visit. Keep quiet that day. Next day will be a hard day, climbing the Labruja mountain to Rubiães where is an albergue and several hostals but maybe with your group do some research on beforehand for booking ahead.

Next stop is Valença do Minho or at the Spanish side of the river Minho the town of Tuí.We prefered to stay in Valença to keep the Portugese atmosphere one more night. It has a nice fortification overlooking the river, the famous Eiffel bridge and Tui and Spain. The disadvantage is that next day the pilgrims starting in Tuí are one hour ahead of you due to one hour time difference between Portugal and Spain . So they sooner reach the albergue while you still are walking. Lots of Spaniards walk from Tui. It is 106 kms to Santiago from there and enough to obtain the Compostella certificate. Very popular route thus.
Spain is one hour later.

Just before o Porriño locals are cheating you by changing the waymarkers all the time to be sure you walk along their bars and restaurants and on an endless bouring industrial estate instead of a green detour along a river . read back about it on this forum by typing detour O Porriño in the search box.
In O Porriño is an albergue and several hostals and hotels

Redondela is your next. Be prepared on some serious descendings on the road. Walkingpoles are adviced There is a big municipal albergue. Not my favourite one but the great alternative in Cessantes is closed during the autumn and wintertime.

Pontevedra is the next place. Here again an albergue and lots of other places to stay.

From there to Caldas de Reis. We had good experiences at the private albergue o Cruciero. Find it on the internet and call ahead if you come with 7 people is my advice.

Padrón is your next. Lots of places to sleep a.o.an albergue
Don't forget to have your beer or breakfast at bar dom Pepe II close by the albergue and opposite a church. Unforgetable experience.

From Padron to Santiago is 24 kms. We walked to Teo. There is an albergue
We stayed ad casa rural o Cruceiro but I do not know if they can lodge your 7 people group. You can try to give the owner a call. It is a great place to be.
Advantage is next day is short walk of about 8 kms to Santiago
Alternative is the hotel Pazo de Adrán. Not cheap but comfortable. And it is your last night before the end of the camino. We did it and did not regret it.

In Santiago you could go to the tourist info to find a place to stay. Many possibillities.

Bom caminho

 

[Margaret Butterworth]

The second best place to stay on the CP after Casa Fernanda is
Quinta Estrada Romana
Lodge
I believe the hosts are Canadian. Google it! It is a fantastic place to stay before Valenca.

 

[Introibo]

Hi Kdbing

Albertinho has some great information posted.

Having just got back I can say that the way by the river at O Porrino is clearly marked at the moment.
The best advice I got from the forum was to always keep the river on your right hand side and don't
cross it until you come to the large building at the end. It was a lovely walk.

If you feel the need to indulge yourself then as you finish your days walking at Caldas de Reis
take a short cab ride up to Torre do Rio and spend a night there. The location is fantastic. I would
advise a taxi back down in the morning as it's a fast road with little room for walking. It'll set you up
nicely for the final push.

As we walked over to the church in Pedron I recognised Pepe from Albertinho's video. I shouted his name
and he came over and greeted us as if we were old friends. Naturally we felt obliged to have a few drinks in
his bar later that evening.

We found the final few km into Santiago to be poorly marked. Best advice is to keep going up and up.
The cathedral will come into view eventually.

Bom Caminho

 

[Camembert]

Hi Kdbing

Albertinho has some great information posted.

Having just got back I can say that the way by the river at O Porrino is clearly marked at the moment.
The best advice I got from the forum was to always keep the river on your right hand side and don't
cross it until you come to the large building at the end. It was a lovely walk.

If you feel the need to indulge yourself then as you finish your days walking at Caldas de Reis
take a short cab ride up to Torre do Rio and spend a night there. The location is fantastic. I would
advise a taxi back down in the morning as it's a fast road with little room for walking. It'll set you up
nicely for the final push.

As we walked over to the church in Pedron I recognised Pepe from Albertinho's video. I shouted his name
and he came over and greeted us as if we were old friends. Naturally we felt obliged to have a few drinks in
his bar later that evening.

We found the final few km into Santiago to be poorly marked. Best advice is to keep going up and up.
The cathedral will come into view eventually.

Bom Caminho

Thanks Introibo

Pepe ! My good friend. Hope you liked it .
We had some good times in his bar.
Thanks for feeding this forum with the O Porriño waymarker situation.

Bom caminho

 

[Camembert]

The second best place to stay on the CP after Casa Fernanda is
Quinta Estrada Romana
Lodge
I believe the hosts are Canadian. Google it! It is a fantastic place to stay before Valenca.

Haven't been there yet but will have a look at coming Christmas time as we will be around in the area.
Thanks for mention this place on this forum

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

You may wish to walk some of the Coastal Way so here's a link to an article I wrote with links, video etc buen camino
http://www.mydestination.com/galici...portuguese-coastal-way-from-porto-to-santiago

 

[PEI_Heather]

Geof Richards and Lesley Southwick-Trask from Halifax, NS also own/run a Camino albergue called the Beautiful Boot or the Quinta Estrada Romana (Farm on the Roman Way)--located 6km before Valenca. It's lovely!

 

[kdbing]

Thanks everyone for all the great advice! I do have the Brierly guide and have emailed the Beautiful Boot lodge already as both were recommended to me. I am glad to have those recommendations confirmed and more for the other stops along the Way.

 

[kdbing]

Drink lots and lots of café-com-leite (basically cafe au lait), eat lots and lots of pastel de nata (memorize that...you'll need it and will be glad you did!) and say Bom dia! (Good morning/day!)
There are a lot of very kind people in Portugal who speak English, but try Portuguese first.
It's too bad you aren't starting from Lisbon--you will miss a most amazing and beautiful part of Portugal. Next time!

In Porto, make sure you take a trip to the Lello & Irmão Bookstore. It's considered one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world and, apparently, where JK Rowling got the inspiration for Hogwarts in Harry Potter. (No photos are allowed--strictly enforced.) If you are going to be in Porto a day or two before you start your Camino, get a ticket for one of the red buses--you can jump on and off at your leisure. This includes getting off at the beaches outside of Porto and having lunch or a walk. I think this is the Foz do Douro--the Felgueiras Lighthouse would be here. (http://www.placestoseeinyourlifetime.com/top-10-lighthouses-11936/) (and if you look at this link, you'll see that PEI is #2 on the list!) The bus will also take you over to the Douro area where you can visit port vinhos (vintners?)...

From Porto to Santiago there are official Camino albergues so you just need to know where they are. There is certainly a list here. @JohnnieWalker has a great up-to-date guide of the Camino Portuguese via The Confraternity of Saint James (UK) with all the information you need. (The guide is available with a donation.)

Oh, one really good and important piece of advice: take neon coloured vests--you can get them at MEC or other camping/cycling/hiking shops (or even at Canadian Tire). You will be walking on asphalt a lot and want to be completely visible.

Where are you seven coming from? All the same province/city or town? You will love love love Portugal!

Bom Caminho! (Which is Buen Camino or, 'Have a great walk', in Portuguese!)
PEI_Heather

Thanks Heather. We are from all over NB (Fredericton, Moncton, Sussex, St. Stephen and Caraquet). It is the 1st Camino for all 7 of us. 3 more sleeps...

 

[Camembert]

You may wish to walk some of the Coastal Way so here's a link to an article I wrote with links, video etc buen camino
I agree with you. The coastal is a beautiful walk. Highly recommended. In fac al. Portuguese trails are great. Allthough I still have to explore the interior one from Viseu.
Hope to see a part of it coming December.

http://www.mydestination.com/galici...portuguese-coastal-way-from-porto-to-santiago

Bom caminho

 

[SabsP]

My absolute favourite was the Acogida in Pedra Furada , the albergue next to award winning restaurant of Antonio Martins. At least stop at the bar for food.The man himself has a wealth of information about the Camino Portugues. Two hundred metres up the road next morning is a lovely bakery for breakfast.

http://www.tripadvisor.es/Restauran...arcelos_Braga_District_Northern_Portugal.html

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

Bom caminho

Hi Albertinho,
Most pilgrims I encounter in Galicia greet me with a buen camino ! As the majority start in Tui but yes I accept your point so I wish you a bom caminho too !

 

[Mark Francis Auchincloss]

Bom caminho

Oopps I've previously congratulated you abut the video, I love the bit with Pepe form Padron and always tell him about your encounters...

 

[Camembert]

In addition to @SabineP. The road around Pedra Furada is fairly busy s

Oopps I've previously congratulated you abut the video, I love the bit with Pepe form Padron and always tell him about your encounters...

okay. ! Yes you did . No bother. It is allways good to talk about this Pepe

 

[Camembert]

Hi Albertinho,
Most pilgrims I encounter in Galicia greet me with a buen camino ! As the majority start in Tui but yes I accept your point so I wish you a bom caminho too !

I can great you with buen camino too if you like . I speak castillano but since last year learning português do Brasil so thinking more in português now.
Buen camino

 

[Camembert]

My absolute favourite was the Acogida in Pedra Furada , the albergue next to award winning restaurant of Antonio Martins. At least stop at the bar for food.The man himself has a wealth of information about the Camino Portugues. Two hundred metres up the road next morning is a lovely bakery for breakfast.

http://www.tripadvisor.es/Restauran...arcelos_Braga_District_Northern_Portugal.html

In addition to the post of SabineP : Acogida has 9 beds available but there is only one room with a double bed -as we slept in - and two rooms with 3 beds. Anyway if you like to stay there with your group , it is recommended to make a reservation on beforehand .
http://www.gronze.com/portugal/braga/pedra-furada/acogida-en-pedra-furada

Antonio ,the owner prepared a nice diner for us and in the morning a breakfast.
Be carefull entering Pedra Furada. You partly walk on a national road with busy traffic. The earlier mentioned safety vests will be very usefull.

 

[PEI_Heather]

Thanks Heather. We are from all over NB (Fredericton, Moncton, Sussex, St. Stephen and Caraquet). It is the 1st Camino for all 7 of us. 3 more sleeps...

Come on over to Charlottetown when you get back! We'll have coffee, PEI-style!

 

[Camembert]

Come on over to Charlottetown when you get back! We'll have coffee, PEI-style!

PEI style ? You make me curious Heather.

 

[PEI_Heather]

PEI style ? You make me curious Heather.

Hahaha! Albert, an old fashioned PEI coffee would be black coffee boiled on the stove-- so strong you could stand a spoon in it. I know, hey--ACH!) or, in good Canadian style: double double. That is a black coffee with two creams and two sugars.

 

[Camembert]

Hahaha! Albert, an old fashioned PEI coffee would be black coffee boiled on the stove-- so strong you could stand a spoon in it. I know, hey--ACH!) or, in good Canadian style: double double. That is a black coffee with two creams and two sugars.

So your ears droop down your head and your socks fall off your feet when you drink it

I love it why haven't I been to PEI yet ? Next destination oversea

 

[PEI_Heather]

So your ears droop down your head and your socks fall off your feet when you drink it

I love it why haven't I been to PEI yet ? Next destination oversea

Yes, It burns a hole in your mouth...so much so that people say, 'Wholly!'
And yes, come on over to the Canadian East Coast! We'll fill you up with a scoff of lobsters and potato salad!