Camino Ingles for a newbie

[mark8500]

Hi, i have felt a need for a while now to walk a part of the camino, i'm new to all of this and come from North Yorkshire, i'll probably endeavour to do this in june.
Any tips would be most welcome, i'm 53 and quite fit, run half marathons, love trail running too. Here are a few questions.
1) would it be possible to complete this stretch in 4-5 days (limited time off work)
2) As a bit of a happy introvert is it enjoyable alone? ive never done anything like this before,
3) Where would i fly to to begin my quest. nearest airport
4) I'd love a day or so at the end on a nice beach with a book reflecting, any recommendations
5) Accomodation and food along the way, im mostly vegetarian, is it easy to find food and water and accomodatio

many thanks

Mark

 

[henrythedog]

1. comfortably in five, quite possible in four
2. That’s a happy coincidence. Although the C. Ingles has been ‘discovered’ recently, at many times of year it’s still quiet. I walked in a February several years ago and had a fleeting glimpse of one other Peregrino.
3. Sadly Ryanair Edinburgh to Santiago has been discontinued. I was in no rush so went via Madrid and took the (also discontinued) overnight Trenhotel to Coruña
5. Whilst Spain is entirely suitable for veggies and increasingly for vegans; ‘mostly vegetarian’ will fit right in.

 

[Turga]

1: Yes, from Ferrol in 5 days. The stages would be

Ferrol – Pontedeume, 28 kms
Puntedeume – Betanzos, 20 kms
Betanzos – Hospital de Bruma, 24 kms
Hospital de Bruma – Sigüeiro, 24,5 kms
Sigüeiro – Santiago, 16 kms

2: I walked it alone and I really enjoyed it and it was not too crowded

3: I believe you can fly into A Coruña and get a train or bus from there. I flew into Madrid and took the direct fast train to Ferrol.

4: If you only have 5 days there will be no beach-time

5: I pre-booked accommodation, but I believe there are accommodation at the end of all stages, albergues/hostels or hotels.


GRONZE is a good source of information on the stages and accommodation options.


Buen Camino!

 

[woody66]

Hi! Direct flights from Gatwick to A Coruna in June every other day 3,5,7 and so on prices between £26 and up to £55 one way at the end of the month!
Manchester also but not direct!

Found the cheapest flights to A Coruña in 2024-06.

Skyscanner compares hundreds of airlines worldwide for free. It finds the cheapest flights fast: saves you time, saves you money.

www.skyscanner.net

Look at availability before you go i think its Bruma Hospital that is a bit lacking in beds dependant on the time of year!
Look at Gronze (google chrome browser translates to English)

Camino Inglés | Camino de Santiago | Gronze.com

El Camino Inglés corresponde a la ruta de peregrinación utilizada en la Edad Media por devotos ingleses, irlandeses y de otros países del norte de Europa, que llegaban en barco al puerto de A Coruña y, en menor medida, a otros situados en las rías de Ferrol, Ares y Betanzos. Hoy, tras la...

www.gronze.com

As others above has said your time frame is doable.
Buen Camino
Woody

 

[1man2dogs]

Hi, i have felt a need for a while now to walk a part of the camino, i'm new to all of this and come from North Yorkshire, i'll probably endeavour to do this in june.
Any tips would be most welcome, i'm 53 and quite fit, run half marathons, love trail running too. Here are a few questions.
1) would it be possible to complete this stretch in 4-5 days (limited time off work)
2) As a bit of a happy introvert is it enjoyable alone? ive never done anything like this before,
3) Where would i fly to to begin my quest. nearest airport
4) I'd love a day or so at the end on a nice beach with a book reflecting, any recommendations
5) Accomodation and food along the way, im mostly vegetarian, is it easy to find food and water and accomodatio

many thanks

Mark

Hi Mark
I did the Inglis back in September and flew from Manchester (i live in Leeds) to Coruna with Iberia via Madrid. There is a bus from the airport to Coruna from the bus station there you can get a bus into Ferrol.
I'm 60 years old and did the walk in 4.5 days.
I found it fairly quiet, though there were people to talk to if I wanted.
There are plenty of opportunities to grab water along the way.
I stayed a couple of nights in albergues and a couple of nights in small hostels.
I'm not vegetarian so I can't comment of that option. More experienced pilgrims maybe able to recommend places.
You can get the bus to Finisterra(dodgy spelling alert) from Santiago if you want to finish at the coast. Though you may have to catch it the following day.
Hope this helps
Buen Camino
Sean

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

Hi, @mark8500 , and welcome to the forum! The Inglés is an excellent first Camino. (I'm biased because it was my first camino last year).
You've got some great replies above, as they say the Inglès is easily doable in five days; it's not that hard to do it in four, if, as you say you're moderately fit. Although I would advise actually doing some walking especially with your pack between now and then.

There have been other threads where people who have done marathons and were super fit have seriously struggled because they're simply not used to walking a half marathon every single day.... . Let alone with a 7kg pack.

The Inglés is generally heavily walked during any period around long weekends or holidays, something to be aware of. Even (or perhaps especially) if the public holiday is on a Wednesday. Research/ plan accordingly.

You say June so the numbers are significantly higher than other times of the year. Last year around 3,000 walked in June, 3,500 in July. That's around 90 - 100 people per day!

The Inglés has excellent infrastructure, including cafe's. It can be as social or quiet as you want it. It's very easy to meet people even when it's quieter because you tend to congregate at the cafes and albergues at the end of the day, just like everywhere else. Because so much of the infrastructure (except albergues) exists for the 'civilian' population, it is relatively easy to walk either shorter or longer distances, i.e. off stage.

The only pinch point accommodation wise is Bruma. Partly because the leg from A Corona joins the leg from Ferrol there, more because accommodation is very limited. The private Albergue (which you can book) is often full around long weekends, public holidays etc, leaving just the small public one (22 beds). At Easter that had a que outside the door by 11:00 a.m. longer than capacity.
There is a hotel and a pension about 1 1/2 km away, during busy periods they can also be full. 3 x last year to my certain knowledge ( whilst either I or Friends were on the trail) people had to either taxi or walk an additional 10 kilometers to the next accommodation. Booking is something to consider if you are a slower walker or a later riser. But you shouldn't have any issues everywhere else.

Access. I flew both in and out of Santiago. There is a bus directly from the Santiago central bus station to Ferrol several times a day. 1 1/2 hours and about €9 I think it was. The Santiago bus station can be reached from the airport using a standard city bus or, easier, a taxi for 23 euros.

I loved the Inglès, enjoy!

 

[Peterexpatkiwi]

Oops forgot about the vegetarian food. I'm not vegetarian, so ate a heck of a lot of fish on the Inglés because it's so near the coast. And it was GOOD !

So if by 'mostly vegetarian' you mean you eat fish, that opens more options for you.
Tortilla is probably the most common 'snack' food on the Camino. Sometimes available even in bars, let alone cafes. A really nice nutritious snack and/or meal, made from potatoes, eggs and sometimes onion. I was also once served it with paprika - unfortunate, because I can't eat it!

Arroz con huevo. Think rice with beans. Also really nice /nutritious.

Salads. Beware that the Spanish often put tuna with salad, (even if it doesn't say so on the menu), learn the simple phrase 'Sin carne , sin atún, por favor.' (no meat, no tuna please). Oh 'sin jamon' is useful too. Why? Because for some reason apparently some Spanish do not think that ham or tuna counts as 'carne' /meat. Or so my vegetarian friend told me, having twice been served salad with ham chunks.

One companion at dinner was successful in getting a vegetarian Paella. Sorry, don't know how, and don't remember where.

Patatas bravas. Often served as a Tapas. Basically fried potatoes with sauce, often spicy.

Escalivida. Eggplant, capsicum and sometimes onions and tomatoes, typically grilled whole over hot embers, peeled and served warm.

Pisto. Tomatoes, onions, capsicum and courgettes. Think ratatouille. Some also include potatoes, even pumpkin.
BEWARE! Occasionally they put ham in it. 'Sin jamon por favor'!


I'm sure there's more but these were just some of the ones I or a companion came across last year, either as a side dish or a main. A couple on the Inglés, some were probably on the Primitivo or in Santiago.

Incidentally I recall seeing at least one vegetarian restaurant in Santiago and was told it was extremely good. Worth a Google search.

Remember that whilst they may not have vegetarian mains, many of the Tapas or starter dishes are often vegetarian and you can order two or three as your main. Delicious!

 

[Jflampert]

Hi, i have felt a need for a while now to walk a part of the camino, i'm new to all of this and come from North Yorkshire, i'll probably endeavour to do this in june.
Any tips would be most welcome, i'm 53 and quite fit, run half marathons, love trail running too. Here are a few questions.
1) would it be possible to complete this stretch in 4-5 days (limited time off work)
2) As a bit of a happy introvert is it enjoyable alone? ive never done anything like this before,
3) Where would i fly to to begin my quest. nearest airport
4) I'd love a day or so at the end on a nice beach with a book reflecting, any recommendations
5) Accomodation and food along the way, im mostly vegetarian, is it easy to find food and water and accomodatio

many thanks

Mark

Easy to do in your time frame. I had a few days available after walking the CF from SJPDPin October 2019. Had no plan on days but actually finished in 3 days (68 at that time). Walked long stretches without seeing another pilgrim and then other times with large school groups that filled limited restaurants and groceries. During late October, accommodations were limited but adequate. The stretch near Hospital de Bruma had a single albergue that can easily fill up with groups. Quite enjoyable route but more challenging hills than expected.