Looking for a quiet place to stay after my Camino

[molly382001]

Hello, all. My son and I hope to complete our Camino in Santiago on March 31. He must fly back to the States but I plan to stay in Spain 2-3 weeks longer before traveling on to visit a son who lives in Dublin. I'd like to find a quiet, inexpensive place somewhere between Santiago and Bilbao, near the ocean where I can rest and reflect on my experience. I will so much appreciate any suggestions you can offer as web-site searches are proving challenging since I'm completely unfamiliar with the area. Thanking you so much in advance! Buen Camino, Linda

 

[JohnnieWalker]

Hola

You might find this recent thread helpful.

miscellaneous-topics/topic16793.html#p120453

John

 

[zammy]

My experience- the day after finishing the camino and I did it twice, there was s ort of an emptiness, suddenly you don't have to pack, walk for a day, meet people and it was just like a small void. If you are staying fo a couple of weeks in that part of the world why not walk part of the GR65 in France? you're going to be in top physical shape. Take the train or fly to Toulouse, take a train from there to the GR 65 like Moissaq and walk it, this way you have this walk to reflect on the walk beore that.
As long as you are in Europe make the most of it.

 

[waveprof]

Have you thought about the Basque coast between Bilbao and Donostia/San Sebastian? It is one of the world's prettiest coastlines, not too touristed (except for Donostia in July), the food is great, and euskatren connects most of those towns allowing you to go into Bilbao or Donostia for a day if you desire.

 

[Rebekah Scott]

Luarca. Comillas. Otur. Beautiful towns, great food, quiet beaches.
At Santillana del Mar you can enjoy the twee town and fabulous monastic church, and just south of there you can visit caves where proto-human artworks are painted on the walls. It´s a mind-blow.

If you still feel like walking, spend some time in San Vicente de Barquera, then follow the Liebana pilgrimage trail into the vast wall of mountains just south of you. (it is well-waymarked, takes about three days. There are albergues, and a guide in English, too!) The pilgrimage takes you to Potes, a lovely mountain town, and from there to the ancient monastery of Liebana, a mystical shrine in the mountain fastness. Waymarked trails take you up the valley to to Fuente De, where you can ride a cable car up to the top of the whole world... and later catch the bus back to Santander.

Tons of great things to do up north. You will pay tourist prices up there "in season."

 

[Tia Valeria]

I second Reb's ideas, plus:- Bus to Lugo to see the Roman walls. Bus to Ribadeo, then FEVE along the coast and down to Oviedo (cathedral and Camara Santa). FEVE again to the coast towards Santander (San Vicente etc). FEVE again to Torrelavega and then bus or walk to Santillana. The options on the coast are endless, plus walks just inland.
We have addresses for some accomodation between Santiago and Santander (some cheap - some more expensive) PM us if you want a list.
Buen Camino and after

 

[Rebekah Scott]

... and if you really just want to be still, rent a little bungalow at http://www.campingotur.com . Camping Playa Otur is a friendly, family-owned campground in the countryside overlooking one of the best-kept secret beaches on the north coast. Great food, friendly people, free internet, walking trails, and a FEVE station up the road. If you want to go wandering, just get on the train!

 

[Pieces]

who knows what one needs after finishing a Camino

bookmark this post, don't make plans untill... just go with the flow

 

[AJ]

I third Reb's post. The church at Santillana is one of my favourites. The church at Liebana is gorgeous AND you might get to kiss a fragment of the true cross.Potes is a nice place to hang for a couple of days. There are pleasant walks in the surrounding hills and you MIGHT see a bear. I only saw bear poo.

 

[Tincatinker]

FEVE is a rather wonderful network of narrow-guage Railways that can be followed all the way from Ferrol (an easy bus ride from Santiago) to Bilbao. There are some wonderful places to visit along the way. Please note, there is little opportunity to rush - with very careful timetabling it is just about possible to complete the journey from Ferrol to Bilbao in 2 days but the realistic trip takes 3.

Operational responsibility for FEVE was absorbed by RENFE, Spain's national rail company, in 2012. Their website will provide detailed information.

As well as the lovely places already mentioned by others I would add Llanes, a small but thriving fishing port, and the wonderfully named Poo - an estuarine cove with sheltered sands and a lovely bar/meson above the beach which also has inexpensive rooms.

And if your legs need another walk... from Potes, in the heart of the Picos Europa, follow the waymarked paths to Espinama, Fuente De, Sotres, Tresviso, and the Senda Queserias (the path of the cheesemakers) to La Hermida. There was never any road to Tresviso until the late 1980s so the villagers built and maintained a path down the cliffs of the gorge so that they could take their produce to market. The postman still runs up and down the path every day.

From Hermida there is a waymarked route to Liebana.

Buen Camino(s)

 

[molly382001]

I am so appreciative for all your posts!!! You've provided me with excellent ideas. Using the FEVE system is most appealing as I love trains. And, you've given me some wonderful ideas for places to stop and visit. Heartfelt thank you's!!! Buen Camino, Linda

 

[reg2450]

FEVE is a rather wonderful network of narrow-guage Railways that can be followed all the way from Ferrol (an easy bus ride from Santiago) to Bilbao. There are some wonderful places to visit along the way. Please note, there is little opportunity to rush - with very careful timetabling it is just about possible to complete the journey from Ferrol to Bilbao in 2 days

Buen Camino(s)

Perfect! I've been looking for an answer about how to get to Bilbao (I was thinking hire car?), but a groovy train trip or three sounds much better.
At the same time, if you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans

 

[Thornley]

Hi Linda,

Too early for the beachside cities , even in May so i would head inland.
Last year we discovered FEVE / RENFE after 5 years of different camino's.

Not the short ones but Norte , Le Puy etc.
We had never been to Salamanca , Segovia , Valladolid and even A Coruna and our old favourite Pontevedra. We caught the train , we booked into a nice pension and we just enjoyed these cities.
There is a vast difference in these towns than being a pilgrim and seeing very little [ bed early] than really studying their history etc.
Find the little local restr. for lunch, the quiet cafe with the locals for after dinner and just enjoy the country.
Maybe its because we take over 30 hours to get to europe but we just love winding down after the 800km or whatever before we go home . No good thinking about """ should have "" once home

May the road be good to you Linda,
Have a great holiday/camino
David

 

[hueppi]

After my camino I will go visit friends in the Rias Baixas, the coastal around Santiago - Pontevedra - Vigo

I can recommend Cambados.
It is the most lovely small town. Great wine, great food, wonderful Gallego people.
Best beach of this planet nearby - A Lanzada - more busy touristic resort Sanxenxo nearby.

 

[Tia Valeria]

Further thoughts:-
The cave of Tito Bustillo has amazing cave paintings. You need to book a timed ticket, maybe a day in advance for a guided tour of the actual cave complex. The cave is about 0.5km from Ribadasella just across the river bridge. Also the church has a beautiful painted central ceiling.
In Llanes the old town is fascinating, including the old house with its detached kitchen - joined by a bridge walkway which centuries ago could have been knocked out in event of fire. Cliff walks and if the wind and tides are right you might even see the water spouts (bufones). Strong NW wind and high tide needed.

 

[natefaith]

Hi Linda,
If you're OK with being in a larger city, La Coruña is beautiful. We lived there for 4 years and found it the perfect mix of being surrounded by the ocean, reasonable prices, good public transportation (bus and train stations), things to do and see, and friendly people. I know you want to rest and reflect, and they have plenty of hostels/hotels/tourist apartments right by the ocean to choose from. There are also restaurants, grocery stores, and other shops - in all, it's a very accessible and easy city to navigate. I'm not sure if it will be as "quiet" as you want, that's the only thing - it's a city of about 300,000 people. But there's a beautiful Paseo Marítimo (ocean walk) that goes around the peninsula, and there are many quiet, reflective spots on it that you can just go and sit in for the day.

San Sebastian is also gorgeous, with lots of amenities for the traveler. But it's quite expensive.

If you're looking for something(s) smaller, I would also recommend Cambados (mentioned earlier), Viveiro, and Ribadeo.

 

[natefaith]

Oops, not to beat the La Coruña horse too much, but I forgot to mention that there's a quiet beach town right outside of Coruña that still has many amenities/cafes/hotels. It's called Santa Cristina.

 

[natefaith]

ALSO - sorry, totally scattered today with the kids all running around at home! - if you hope to plan ahead with your accommodations, here are two great websites that we use all the time to book lodging here in Europe:

http://www.booking.com

http://www.only-apartments.com/