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Growth on Caminho Portugues

peregrina2000

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Since I'm sitting at O'Hare with a long delay, I have been looking at the numbers Johnnie just posted. One thing that caught my eye were the Portuguese statistics. If you compare these numbers with the same report for the same months of 2013, it looks like the departures from Lisboa are up almost 50%- from 885 in 2013 to 1206 this year. Growth from other Portugal starting points is also evident but not as dramatic. For instance, Porto departures increased from 7897 to 9329, which is,I think , about a 20% increase. Thanks, ViaLusitana!
 
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Camino Preparation Guide
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Good work, to all of us too
 
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We notice the increase of pilgrims departing from Lisbon. Every weekend we spot pilgrims on their way to Santarem. Some years ago spoting one was an event But it's still a road less travelled compared to the stretch Porto-Santiago
 
A. Narciso said:
We notice the increase of pilgrims departing from Lisbon. Every weekend we spot pilgrims on their way to Santarem. Some years ago spoting one was an event But it's still a road less travelled compared to the stretch Porto-Santiago
Click to expand...
This does not surprise me !
It is because of the efforts of a group of devoted people who made it possible to make the distances shorter between the different places by creating a better network of albergues .
Among others Laurie Reynolds aka Peregrina2000, Diogo Martins aka Diogo92 and Mario, owner of the Santarèm albergue.
The information on this forum ,given by people who walked this part , is an important motivation to others to do so as well.
The track Lisbon to Porto deserves this attention.
 
It surely deserves and they are doing a great job. The only thing that is missing now is more public albergues between Lisbon and Porto.
 
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Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
You cannot have everything . We must be grateful that Mario of the Santarèm albergue and his cooperatives created a network so the places are closer to each other to stay. When we were there last year we had to use public transport sometimes because we did not want to walk more than 20 kms a day. Now you can walk within 20 kms from one (sleeping) place to another.
 
Having a place to sleep every 20km is already a great achievement. No doubts about that. But the opening of some more public albergues along the route Lisbon-Porto would still help this stretch to growth further. In our opinion that's why most pilgrims choose to depart from Porto: there is better infrastructure from Porto onwards. But we totally agree that things are improving, thanks to the efforts of Mario and partners.
 
Interesting thread and your posts.
We still fighting(we-the group of initiators a.o. Mario and Laurie ,Diogo and the Portugese Vialusitana pilgrims organisation) against the somekind negative image of the trail. Long distances per day, dangerous roads, landscapely dull etc.. I think by the efforts of those wonderful people they took away all those prejudices by as being said creating a better network of albergues and detours for there where it should be unsafe. And you and I and many others can confirm that the trail isn't dull at all.you walk through a beautiful countrysite.

I read a lot of posts of people who have" heard "that the Portugese camino is bouring and they want to choose for another camino.
Come on and see and convince yourself and experience that this is not true at all.

In my opinion and I got this confirmed by talking to other pilgrims personally and writing and reading on this great forum and blogs that most pilgrims walk from Porto or Tuí because of lack of time.
Except for the pensionados among us, who have the time to walk four or five weeks !

okay we do not find the 6€ priced Galician albergues on this trail.anyway not in Portugal butI personally prefer the warmth and kindness of Mario's cosy albergue , Hilarios in Mealhada with their common pilgrims dinner and the private rooms above a public albergue with many pilgrims snorring in bunkbeds . But that is my opinion. My wife and I loved the caminho Portuges. This year we walked the camino Ingles ,great walk too but after 4 albergues we had enough of it and chose for more comfortable hostals and hotels.
Bom caminho e um abraço disso lado de Europa

Albertinho
 
Last edited:
Camino Preparation Guide
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
My husband and I walked the Camino Portugués from Lisboa in 2013. It is a long stretch to Porto--there are few hostels and fewer pilgrims. (Until Porto, we only met 5 or 6 pilgrims.) The way is well-marked, but there are long sections of industrial walking and few hostels. The good news is that the inns are relatively inexpensive and for only a few Euros more than what we spent on albergues in Spain we had private accommodations. The food is delicious in Portugal.

Though the Camino infrastructure is sketchy compared to Spain's, I know that several organizations are working on improving it. As the number of pilgrims increases, towns and businesses will see the need and respond.

It is a lovely Camino, and I am glad to have made it. Though I missed the camaraderie of the Camino Francés, the Camino Portugués had other offerings and lessons for me to learn.
 

A group of ambitious people did a lot of good work to improve the network of albergues and hostals between Lisbon and Porto, making detours around dangerous roads and industrial sites.
So since 2013 when my wife and I walked from Lisbon too,there changed a lot.
Now you can find a place to sleep within every 20 kms or so along the caminho.
 
Camino Way markers in Bronze
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Albertinho, Nice to learn about the added accommodations....the stages in the 2013 guidebook were much further apart. Not having to walk in the industrial sites is a boon.
 
k-fun said:
Albertinho, Nice to learn about the added accommodations....the stages in the 2013 guidebook were much further apart. Not having to walk in the industrial sites is a boon.
Click to expand...
Yes if you get a bit back on this forum you will find posts of Santarèm hostal and Peregrina2000. They did a great job to built a closer network and cooperate with other and new albergues. Together with some other helpfull forummembers like Diogo92 and AMSimoes and the help of many others now the Portugese caminho from Lisbon is far more interesting to walk and so say the marks of the pilgrimsoffice .
Best regards from this side of the world
Albertinho
 
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