For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here. (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation) |
---|
The whole route is from your doorstep, very few have done that! Walking from The Pyrenees is not the Camino as understood for 1000 years. Walking from Sarria is great, one of my favourite parts. Group bookings cost, they have their upsides tjough. You san probably go comfortable organising yourself, have a look around this site fir related topics. Jacotans organises cheap luggage transfers. Booking.com covers most hotels and hostels on the Camino. Most private albergues accept bookings, I would book in advance if indulging, and I LOVE to indulge on the CaminoHi everyone - slightly bashful when reading about all of you accomplished hikers doing the whole route, but I'm starting off with the French Way this May to ease myself in!Irish female (29) travelling alone, really open to the social side of things during the days/evenings over food and wine, but ideally I am keen to have a private room at night and **whispers...** maybe even luggage transfers?? I have looked at the group bookings with different companies and alas my solo status goes against me with the single supplements and quotes are around 750 euro before flights & airport transfers...but maybe this is just my punishment for doing the Camino like a princess?! :-/ That includes private room each night (7 nights), breakfast, dinner, and luggage transfers. Any ideas/suggestions/recommendations? Thanks a mill in advance!
Hi everyone - slightly bashful when reading about all of you accomplished hikers doing the whole route, but I'm starting off with the French Way this May to ease myself in!Irish female (29) travelling alone, really open to the social side of things during the days/evenings over food and wine, but ideally I am keen to have a private room at night and **whispers...** maybe even luggage transfers?? I have looked at the group bookings with different companies and alas my solo status goes against me with the single supplements and quotes are around 750 euro before flights & airport transfers...but maybe this is just my punishment for doing the Camino like a princess?! :-/ That includes private room each night (7 nights), breakfast, dinner, and luggage transfers. Any ideas/suggestions/recommendations? Thanks a mill in advance!
Hi Determined Lass! I would really like to hear about your experience on the camino a little more - i start my first trip next week really looking forward to the time out though still have a lot of planning to complete! I am going alone and carrying my bag , I intend to stay in the albergues and keep the cost as low as possible - would be very grateful to hear any of your tips / hintsFirst of all, best of luck! I started with Sarria to Santiago a few years ago when I was 28, solo and I'm female and irish too!
I think you'd regret going with a company, as it is so much cheaper organising it yourself and part of the joy of the camino is the freedom to stop when you want.
I am open to different opinions on this but if you're into the social side (as most of us are!), it might be an idea to stay in private/ public albergues, as this gives you more of a chance to interact with other pilgrims, instead of private rooms where fewer people stay.
I'm not sporty, but Sarria to Santiago is not tough if you have any sort of base fitness and a decent part of shoes.
You never never know - you might end up, like me, doing the rest of the French camino and then the northern camino as well!
Buen Camino!
Hi BG what date in May are you starting your walk? i will be doing a similar route with the above so will update you on my return!Hi everyone - slightly bashful when reading about all of you accomplished hikers doing the whole route, but I'm starting off with the French Way this May to ease myself in!Irish female (29) travelling alone, really open to the social side of things during the days/evenings over food and wine, but ideally I am keen to have a private room at night and **whispers...** maybe even luggage transfers?? I have looked at the group bookings with different companies and alas my solo status goes against me with the single supplements and quotes are around 750 euro before flights & airport transfers...but maybe this is just my punishment for doing the Camino like a princess?! :-/ That includes private room each night (7 nights), breakfast, dinner, and luggage transfers. Any ideas/suggestions/recommendations? Thanks a mill in advance!
Hi DL , Thank you for the above this is really useful information! to be honest i think i was prepared a few weeks ago - not so much now though :/ i cant fit all of my items into my bag!!! I best get looking for my dress for the evening time ( I hadn't considered that though good idea!) I will pick up some of the liquid wash also ( I am a terrible horrder so really trying to keep my bag as minimal as possible!)Hi Karen!
I'd a look at your other messages; just to get an idea of how long you were going for etc.! You are a lot more organised than I ever was!
You'll have a great time-don't over think it as I tended to do-it's just walking and occasional talking!
PACKING: I've always brought a casual-easy to wash/dry dress for evenings-also for when I reached Santiago. I brought a pair of sandals as well, that doubled as walking sandals and evening sandals if my shoes began to hurt. Definitely bring a sleeping bag-I've only walked during the summer and there were times when I would have preferred a sleeping bag to a sleeping bag liner. Your list seems pretty much perfect-I've only ever brought a 35 too. Maybe bring an extra pair of socks and liquid clothes wash-available in any outdoor shop-made washing so much easier as it suds up much easier in cold water. Then again, you could be adding extras forever and end up with a house on your back!
WALKING: I've yet to walk to Finesterre, so I cannot advise you there. I've walked from Ponferrada to Santiago via Samos-which is very doable in 10 days. I'm not sure how easy it is, to get to, from Santiago, as I took an overnight train from Barcelona (city hols with friends beforehand). Sarria to Santiago is also a very doable 5 days and to Finesterre another 3. There are so many ways to do the camino, but whatever you decide to do, I know you'll be happy with it.
Bring a light bag-which it looks like you're already doing. There is plenty of accommodation on the camino frances. It is the one thing I worry about before I go, as people say the camino is overcrowded and gets busier every year. However, I love the freedom of not booking and walking until I've had enough for that day. It always turned out fine.
EXPENDITURE: Daily spending roughly averaged out at 30e a day-coffee, medication, accommodation, food ( mixture of supermarket, cafe, communal meals, occasional menu de peregrino)
SAFETY: I've never felt really unsafe on the camino. There was just one time where I felt uncomfortable with a male pilgrim, so I hopped on a bus for 5km-met another female pilgrim on the bus who'd met him and had a similar story to me about him. There are usually so many people walking -you are never really alone!
Sorry for the long rambling reply. I'm probably repeating what many others have said before, but I hope it helps!
Pdf of stages:
http://www.aucoeurduchemin.org/userfiles/file/PDF/DOCUMENTS/PROFILS/profil_d_etapes_voir.pdf
arrrrwww this sounds lovely..I'm really looking forward to the experience now and finding it hard to believe that i will hopefully be waking up ready to start my camino this day next week!!!Sorry-I also meant to say that the camino was/is a lovely experience. I met lovely people( vast, vast majority were lovely). However there were days when I wondered what I was doing walking day after day. Then something or someone would happen that made everything worthwhile-a few examples being a local person paying for my breakfast in Sarria, being brought to a local wine cellar to taste local wines, local man bringing us ( did not go on my own!) for tapas and wine in Pamplona and Burgos and insisting on paying for us And the simple every day pleasures of sitting around in the afternoon with a coffee/ glass of wine etc. and chatting-along with time to walk alone.
You are more prepared than I BG.. I only have my first evening reserved so far and i fly out on Thursday.. starting to panic a little now thinking i should really research the route a little more! i'm going to see about booking a few more places for accommodation just in case it's very busy, could anyone recommend a place to stay in Portomarin?Hi Karen - sorry, I hadn't checked back in here in a while! I'm leaving on May 9th - tried booking accommodation ahead but lots of places were booked out. I'm recreating the route my sister did in 2009 from Sarria to Santiago so am limited to her stop-offs which also happen to be the most popular! Soooo I ended up booking through a group in DublinHadn't thought about the occasionally walking in sandals option - just have my trusty runners ready so far and flimsy Penneys sandals for the evenings! Must also get a light dress to throw in. Enjoy your Camino Karen - hope you have a ball!
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?
We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:
Do you accept cookies and these technologies?