Leon to Paris transfers

[Susan finn]

Hello, my son and I have three weeks to walk part of the Camino. We are starting in SJPDP and plan to stop in Leon. I think this might be achievable? I would also greatly appreciate some advice on transfers back to paris from Leon. I have bought our plane tickets in and out of Paris. We should start walking about the 4th or 5th April.
Thanks in advance Susan

 

[SYates]

Three weeks would work out at around 25km/day, so it really depends on how fit you are and if you will need a rest day or run into any health problems. One option for the travel back could be to take the bus or train to Santiago and fly from there to Paris. Buen Camino, SY

 

[NualaOC]

Hi Susan,

Good advice from @SYates. You might also like to check out the flight options from Madrid to Paris.

There's a fast train from Leon to Madrid - it takes about 2 hours 20 mins (there are some slower ones too). The train website www.renfe.es can be a bit tricky to navigate, but if you search using dates for January or February 2016 you should get an idea of the typical timetable and how the train times tie in with the flight times. You can also get a bus from Leon to Madrid Airport T4, so this is worth checking too. The bus website is www.alsa.es

Even if you don't make it all the way to Leon, you'll be able to get a bus or a train there from your finishing point. There are trains from Sahagun and El Burgo Ranero (and maybe other places too) and there will be bus options as you get closer to Leon.

You could also do the whole journey by train - but it could work out as expensive as the flights. Have you seen the rome2rio website? It's quite useful for 'scoping out' the possible travel options. Here's a link that might be helpful: http://www.rome2rio.com/s/León-Spain/Paris

Good luck and Buen Camino to you both!

 

[Deleted member 3000]

I think 22 days of walking would be a standard pace with averages stages of 22km going from SJPdP to Leon. If you start in Pamplona, it would be easier. Note that the following itinerary starts with a demanding day from SJPdP to Roncesvalles:



A new airport terminal was built in Leon a few years ago, and the number of flights dropped from about eight to just two today! That means that flying to Paris means going through Barcelona.

A train to Paris would require going to the north coast of Spain with a rail gauge change at the border, or through Madrid and Perpignan around the Pyrenees via the Mediterranean Sea.

As they say, "you can't get there from here." Spain to Paris is not easy except from Madrid and Barcelona.

Good luck, and buen camino.

 

[Castilian]

In order to go back from León to Paris, you could look for flights out of Madrid (as you've already been suggested) but you could also look for flights out of Asturias airport (IATA code: OVD). Vueling has non-stop flights from Asturias airport to Paris although not daily (take a look at www.vueling.com for info about schedules and fares). To get to Asturias airport from León, take a look at the web of Alsa (www.alsa.es/en) for info about schedules and fares (the route means a change of buses).

By train, you have two main options:

1. To take the direct train from León to Hendaye, stay overnight in Hendaye and continue next day taking another train from Hendaye to Paris.
2. To take the overnight train from León to Barcelona and, once in Barcelona, take one of the direct trains to Paris (either the morning one if you want to make it as soon as possible or a later one if you want to wander a bit in Barcelona).

By bus, Alsa (www.alsa.es/en) offers direct bus service from León to Paris 3 times per week. It's more than 18 hours...

 

[Susan finn]

Thank you for the advice. I might look at stopping earlier at Sahagun and catching the train back to Paris as I have never seen the countryside. My dates are quite flexible. Is it better to book ahead or can you turn up to the train station on the day to get a ticket?

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Thank you for the advice. I might look at stopping earlier at Sahagun and catching the train back to Paris as I have never seen the countryside. My dates are quite flexible. Is it better to book ahead or can you turn up to the train station on the day to get a ticket?

As romantic as a train ride may seem the view from the train are rarely interesting.

 

[Castilian]

Is it better to book ahead or can you turn up to the train station on the day to get a ticket?

To book ahead and online has a big advantage: you may find discounted fares. Sometimes, they are heavily discounted fares. OTOH, some of those discounted fares doesn't allow changes and others allow them but at a price (i.e.: you don't lose all your money but just part of it) so if by whatever reason you can't travel on that date or you end needing to travel from a different starting point or you change your mind last minute or..., you would miss part of the money you spent to purchase of your tickets or, depending on the discounted fare, all the money you spent to purchase them. For more info about trains in Spain (how to book, fare types...) take a look at www.seat61.com/Spain-trains.htm and for more info about trains in France take a look at www.seat61.com/France-trains.htm

To turn up to the train station to get a ticket on your travel date gives you more flexibility in case things don't go as planned but you would miss the discounted fares what would make the trip more expensive. You may also find some trains full although you would likely find alternatives (even if they mean some extra change(s) of trains along the route); at least for the Spanish part of the route. I can't comment about how likely are them to get full on the French side of the route. Tip: if you want to make the route changing in Hendaye and the direct train to Hendaye is full on your travel date, ask for options changing trains not only to Hendaye (on the French side of the border) but also to Irún (on the Spanish side of the border). You can walk from Irún to Hendaye or take a taxi or take an Euskotren train (ask where's the closer Euskotren station in Irún because you would arrive to a different train station).