Madrood
Active Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- Estrecho (2023)
Hi everyone
First of all, thanks for the body of knowledge you've build up over the years, it's been very helpful.
I'm planning my first camino, and the default recommendation (taste in geography aside) for a long camino seems to be the Frances (from Zaragoza with Finisterre). But I notice that many here are also exasperated with the ever increasing crowds on it (which I want to avoid mainly for the scramble for accommodation), and I think I gather that it's more expensive for accommodation than others.
I also noticed that quite a few people here like or would like to try the Madrid camino, which seems to have good infrastructure for the small numbers who currently walk it.
Since these two have ~30% of their lengths in common, my current thinking is to do the Madrid camino (using one of the itineraries from here) to get the more solitary reflective experience, then have the latter stage of the CF for the more communal experience, with the option of switching to the primitivo (weather permitting) if it's too crowded.
But is the Madrid camino appropriate? I'm a coeliac (strict gluten-free, but otherwise fit) and I'm concerned about not having the safety net of the infrastructure of the CF. Is the CF a lot or a little quieter in March?
Of course if you've got a better idea, let me know! I've also considered the Norte and VdlP but they seem expensive, please set me right on this if it isn't true. (Expensive meaning the costs of albergues and food). I get the impression that the Portuguese one has similar crowding issues and with fewer options between Lisbon and Porto.
Thanks for any and all help and ideas
First of all, thanks for the body of knowledge you've build up over the years, it's been very helpful.
I'm planning my first camino, and the default recommendation (taste in geography aside) for a long camino seems to be the Frances (from Zaragoza with Finisterre). But I notice that many here are also exasperated with the ever increasing crowds on it (which I want to avoid mainly for the scramble for accommodation), and I think I gather that it's more expensive for accommodation than others.
I also noticed that quite a few people here like or would like to try the Madrid camino, which seems to have good infrastructure for the small numbers who currently walk it.
Since these two have ~30% of their lengths in common, my current thinking is to do the Madrid camino (using one of the itineraries from here) to get the more solitary reflective experience, then have the latter stage of the CF for the more communal experience, with the option of switching to the primitivo (weather permitting) if it's too crowded.
But is the Madrid camino appropriate? I'm a coeliac (strict gluten-free, but otherwise fit) and I'm concerned about not having the safety net of the infrastructure of the CF. Is the CF a lot or a little quieter in March?
Of course if you've got a better idea, let me know! I've also considered the Norte and VdlP but they seem expensive, please set me right on this if it isn't true. (Expensive meaning the costs of albergues and food). I get the impression that the Portuguese one has similar crowding issues and with fewer options between Lisbon and Porto.
Thanks for any and all help and ideas