phildimashq
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- Time of past OR future Camino
- CP coastal then central then spiritual June 22
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Thanks Albertinho..Hike the central route and stay in the albergue from Vairão , o Mosteiro do Vairão and at Casa da Fernanda in Vitorino dos Piães between Barcelos and Ponte de Lima A must. The best albergue on the caminho Português
also do not stay in the noisy and smelly Municipal albergue in Redondela but walk 3 kms further to Cessantes where is the albergue o Refúxiode la Jérezana Super
There are pro’s and cons to walk both ,the coastal or the central.Thanks Albertinho..
I was planning to walk the coastal route because I think it would be more peaceful and also I understand there is less walking on busy roads.
Is there any reason you would recommend the central route?
This will be my first camino but I've done multi-day hikes in Nepal etc so the walking isn't a problem.
thanks again,
Phil
I agree with your point about historic places but that counts as far as Baiona because places like Pontevedra and those on the Variante Espiritual share the route with the central route.I haven't done the central but do recommend the coastal for its scenic views and relatively easy walking. Interesting historic towns along the way include Vila da Conde, Viana do Costello, Caminha, A Guarda, Oia, Baiona, Pontevedra and Padrón. If you include the Spiritual Variant, you've got Combarro, Armenteira and Vilanova de Arousa.
There are pro’s and cons to walk both ,the coastal or the central.
one loves pudding ,the other loves yoghurt. One loves the daughter, the other one loves the mother. There are others who love both.
I agree with your point about historic places but that counts as far as Baiona because places like Pontevedra and those on the Variante Espiritual share the route with the central route.
if you ask any Portuguese to mention the most interesting and historical places in the northern districts Viana do Costelo and Minho , first is Ponte de Lima , second is Barcelos and third is Valença do Minho. All are situated along the central route .
And if you take a day off in Barcelos within one our hour by bus or train you can visit the wonderfull and beautiful ancient Roman town Braga , with the world famous sanctuary Bom Jesus do Monte , mentioned in all lists of World Heritage sites .
we stayed two days in Barcels to enjoy that medieval town and as a bonus Braga.
Every year I come to Portugal I go to Braga . It makes me happy to be there.
And yes here and there you walk alongside roads, you share with traffic.
the busy roads are when you leave Porto .So most of the hikers walk from Porto along the Douro river and Atlantic coast to Vila do Conde with scenic sea views but if you are there during weekend you have to take care for recreative hikers and bikers on the long and very small boardwalks, approaching you from behind and towards .They claim their presence too so unfortunately you have to be very carefull For your own safety
and yes you share a short busy track with the traffic nearby Pedra Furada direction Barcelos but there are places ( e.g. from A Guarda to Baiona where you wallk on the hard shoulder of a national road for miles.
and if you walk the original coastal ( Senda Litoral or Beira Mar) you have to be lucky that the weather is good. We once faced heavy rains and strong winds during 4 or 5 days . Then it will be raining too more inland where the central is and you get wet too but it will be better to stand because of less seawind.
if you haven’t walked both routes you are not able to judge, I did both routes several times and I liked both and walked both in their original forms and also mixed both.
that is the charm of the Portuguese route in Portugal.
once in Spain these arguments do not count.
Baiona is a historical place but after that you walk into Vigo, one of the most horrible big cities to walk through In Spain. Chaotic, stinking exhaust damps of cars and heavy traffic , lots of roadworks and diversions ( I was there a month ago)
so my two cents are walk out of Porto along the river and the coast to Vila do Conde
and from there head inland to the Central (São Pedro de Rates ,Barcelos ( sidestep to Braga) Ponte de Lima and Valença into Spain where the first town you meet is the characteristic medieval town of Tui and join from Redondela with them who came from the Coastal route and share your experiences and get infected by the Caminho virus which means that you want to come back next year and then walk the route you haven’t seen yet,.
i do this since 2013 every year mixed all possibilities.
And my higlight every year again is to stay at the best albergue of the entire Portuguese caminho , casa da Fernanda . Don’t want to miss that. I must be there every time again I am in Portugal
Hike the central route and stay in the albergue from Vairão , o Mosteiro do Vairão and at Casa da Fernanda in Vitorino dos Piães between Barcelos and Ponte de Lima A must. The best albergue on the caminho Português
also do not stay in the noisy and smelly Municipal albergue in Redondela but walk 3 kms further to Cessantes where is the albergue o Refúxiode la Jérezana Super
Phil, that's one person's opinion... We did the Central in 2019 and the Coastal in 2022 (ending last Friday) and loved it... It was less touristy on the coast and great food, views, perfect weather and experiences... Especially when we were doing the Litoral sections... We also highly recommend the Variante Espiritual...Thanks Albertinho..
I was planning to walk the coastal route because I think it would be more peaceful and also I understand there is less walking on busy roads.
Is there any reason you would recommend the central route?
This will be my first camino but I've done multi-day hikes in Nepal etc so the walking isn't a problem.
thanks again,
Phil
Phil, that's one person's opinion... We did the Central in 2019 and the Coastal in 2022 (ending last Friday) and loved it... It was less touristy on the coast and great food, views, perfect weather and experiences... Especially when we were doing the Litoral sections... We also highly recommend the Variante Espiritual...
Watch Efren González on YouTube and make your decision...
Depending on your daily pace and your 12 days available I could make a suggestionFirst off, thank you Ken, Woody, and Albertinho for your replies and advice.
Albertinho, I really like the option you recommended of following the Coastal to Villa do Conde to avoid the urban areas of Porto and then switching over to the central route.
I'm also looking at Barcelos and Braga now on the computer and they do seem like places that should not be missed.
So I think I'm convinced
Coastal out of Porto for day one, then cross over to Central route at Rates and continue onward with a rest day in Barcelos to visit Braga and a night at Casa De Fernanda if possible.
I have about 12 days for walking so I think I should manage, but if anyone might have the time to suggest a decent route that allows me to do all of the above in that time I'd really appreciate it.
Thanks again all,
Phil
We stayed @ 3k hotel ( very reasonable price) by the airport, took a taxi, very near, next day took Metro to Porto then began our Camino (the "senda Litoral" meaning right on coast walk) In Porto, go to the Cathedral then right by it to the Porto Tourism office to get 1st stamp in your credentials, also they will give you a full map of your Camino route you decide & direct you, they are very helpful there & will answer any questions you may have. Bom Camino!Hi folks,
Planning the coastal walk at the moment and it's of kind of a last minute decision.
Are there any must see/can't miss places along the way?
I'm expecting to have about 12 - 13 full days (not including arrival and departure days)
Also, any recommendations for Porto accommodation?
My flight arrives near midnight so not sure about arriving to a hostel dorm that late.
Thanks a million,
Phil
I finish tomorrow and I started in Porto wales the coast and senda. My favorite:Hi folks,
Planning the coastal walk at the moment and it's of kind of a last minute decision.
Are there any must see/can't miss places along the way?
I'm expecting to have about 12 - 13 full days (not including arrival and departure days)
Also, any recommendations for Porto accommodation?
My flight arrives near midnight so not sure about arriving to a hostel dorm that late.
Thanks a million,
Phil
Just did part of the Portuguese coastal in Spain—Santa Maria de Oia is not to be missed—one of the most beautiful spots that I’ve been to in Spain. Buen Camino!Hi folks,
Planning the coastal walk at the moment and it's of kind of a last minute decision.
Are there any must see/can't miss places along the way?
I'm expecting to have about 12 - 13 full days (not including arrival and departure days)
Also, any recommendations for Porto accommodation?
My flight arrives near midnight so not sure about arriving to a hostel dorm that late.
Thanks a million,
Phil
Be careful about trying to visit Braga from Barcelos: there is no public transport at weekends.
The train goes. https://www.cp.pt/sites/passageiros/pt/consultar-horarios/horarios-resultadoThanks David, that's very good to know.
I took the train during the weekends several timesBe careful about trying to visit Braga from Barcelos: there is no public transport at weekends.
Hi, Did you walk from Valenca to A Guarda? I am looking at following your schedule. ThanksI walked the CP in September 2021, starting along the coast, the central, again the coast and the Variante Esperitual and had the following schedule:
Start Porto (Matosinhos); stay at Mystay Matosinhos Centro
Porto (Matosinhos) - Vila do Condo; 21,8 km, stay at Prinsesa do Ave
Vila do Conde - Barcelos; 31 km, stay at Hostel “In Barcelos”
Barcelos - Vitorino dos Piaes; 20 km, stay at Casa Fernanda
Vitorino dos Piaes - Ponte de Lima; 14,7 km, stay at Graciosa Guest House
Ponte de Lima - Rubiaes; 18,6 km, stay at Parades de Coura
Rubiaes - Valencia; 16,9 km, stay at hotel Alojamento da Vila
Valencia - A Guerda; 31,4 km, stay at hotel Bruselas (walk along the river Minho)
A Guerda - Baiona; 30,6 km, stay at Estela do Mar
Baiona - Vigo; 26,6 km, stay at R4Hostel
Vigo - Redondela (detour Cesantes); 17,8 km, stay at hotel Antolin
Redondela (detour Cesantes) - Pontevedra; 16,5 km, stay at Casa Sara
Pontevedra - Barrantes (via Armenteira); 27,8 km, stay at Os Cantanos
Barrantes - Villanova de Arousa; 18,2 km, stay at Albergue A Salazon
Villanova de Arousa (early boat to Pontecesures) - Milladoiro; 19,7 km, stay at Albergue Milladoiro
Milladoiro - Santiago; 7 km, stay at Hostal Campo de Estrelas
If you skip the ‘detour’ Valencia to the coast along the river Minho (beautiful walk!) and walk via Valencia, Tui to Pontevedra followed by the Variante Espiritual (than you can manage this within the timeframe you mentioned.
I arrived by plane at Porto, went to the cathedral by train, got a stamp. After some hours next train from Porto to Matasinhos. Very easy.
As mentioned before, Casa Fernanda is one of the highlights of this camino!
Buen Camino
It is a bit of a strange detour going back from Valença to Caminha or a GuardaHi, Did you walk from Valenca to A Guarda? I am looking at following your schedule. Thanks
Hi Albertinho,It is a bit of a strange detour going back from Valença to Caminha or a Guarda
Imagine and check the map of Portugal or Spain for some perception .
From Valença it is a walk of about 30 kms to Vigo
if you walk from Valença to Caminha it is 35 kms
from Caminha you need the watertaxi to A Guarda (next to money it costs ) there is an other 3 kms to Aguarda
from there to Baiona it is 35 kms
From Baiona to Vigo it is 20 kms. So your detour is 93 kms what is at an average pace of 20 kms per day about 4 days walk .
I was about to start a new thread asking for route suggestions when I saw this. I might be wrong but it feels to me like the lower/southern parts starting from Porto seems more interesting at the central route and the northern coastal route seems more beautiful. Do correct me if I am wrong. Any other route suggestions are welcome for consideration.I walked the CP in September 2021, starting along the coast, the central, again the coast and the Variante Esperitual and had the following schedule:
Start Porto (Matosinhos); stay at Mystay Matosinhos Centro
Porto (Matosinhos) - Vila do Condo; 21,8 km, stay at Prinsesa do Ave
Vila do Conde - Barcelos; 31 km, stay at Hostel “In Barcelos”
Barcelos - Vitorino dos Piaes; 20 km, stay at Casa Fernanda
Vitorino dos Piaes - Ponte de Lima; 14,7 km, stay at Graciosa Guest House
Ponte de Lima - Rubiaes; 18,6 km, stay at Parades de Coura
Rubiaes - Valencia; 16,9 km, stay at hotel Alojamento da Vila
Valencia - A Guerda; 31,4 km, stay at hotel Bruselas (walk along the river Minho)
A Guerda - Baiona; 30,6 km, stay at Estela do Mar
Baiona - Vigo; 26,6 km, stay at R4Hostel
Vigo - Redondela (detour Cesantes); 17,8 km, stay at hotel Antolin
Redondela (detour Cesantes) - Pontevedra; 16,5 km, stay at Casa Sara
Pontevedra - Barrantes (via Armenteira); 27,8 km, stay at Os Cantanos
Barrantes - Villanova de Arousa; 18,2 km, stay at Albergue A Salazon
Villanova de Arousa (early boat to Pontecesures) - Milladoiro; 19,7 km, stay at Albergue Milladoiro
Milladoiro - Santiago; 7 km, stay at Hostal Campo de Estrelas
If you skip the ‘detour’ Valencia to the coast along the river Minho (beautiful walk!) and walk via Valencia, Tui to Pontevedra followed by the Variante Espiritual (than you can manage this within the timeframe you mentioned.
I arrived by plane at Porto, went to the cathedral by train, got a stamp. After some hours next train from Porto to Matasinhos. Very easy.
As mentioned before, Casa Fernanda is one of the highlights of this camino!
Buen Camino
I am also thinking of taking this route. Going from Valenca to A Guarda (via boat thru Caminha).I was about to start a new thread asking for route suggestions when I saw this. I might be wrong but it feels to me like the lower/southern parts starting from Porto seems more interesting at the central route and the northern coastal route seems more beautiful. Do correct me if I am wrong. Any other route suggestions are welcome for consideration.
One question I have @JWB is that when you take this 'non conventional' route.. are there good and sufficient waymarker to ensure I won't get lost along the way!?
I was going to settle for the coastal route then cutting inland from caminha.. and then I saw this post and it got me all thinking again! Choices choices choices!! I'll be flying to Lisbon from Malaysia this September then take a bus to Porto. I will start my camino walk earliest on a Friday or Saturday. Which day would you suggest for me to start the walk to avoid too much crowd/bed race? I will have about 3.5 weeks (including having to travel back to Lisbon before my flight home). Don't think I will have time to do Finisterre/Muxia if I want to not rush through my camino AND do some sightseeing in Porto/Lisbon.
This will be my first camino!
There is signage, especially in Portugal. In Portugal you walk all the time along the river Minho at cycle roads. In Spain first part you also walk along the river, later on via asphalt roads to A Guerda. It’s an easy walk, all the time flatOne question I have @JWB is that when you take this 'non conventional' route.. are there good and sufficient waymarker to ensure I won't get lost along the way!?
Sorry but do you have the link to download the camino routes for maps.me?Additional remark. If you use the free app Maps dot Me you will see all the walking and car roads including lots of additional information. A big bonus is that you can pre-download the maps at home and use the app in offline or airplane mode, saving you bundle costs. You can also download and include Camino tracks in Maps via KML files. This app is mentioned several times in this forum.
What you can do leaving Fernanda is ask if Jacinto takes you to the trainstation in Barosselas where he works 50 meters from the trainstation.Take the train to Viana do Castelo ( 20 minutes ride) and direct out of the station you are on the coastal caminho and walk all away from there to Santiago. Jacinto definitively will do that , during week daysHi Albertinho,
Thanks so much for your comment. The reason I am thinking of doing this is, I was going to walk the Coastal, however I decided to take the Central at Rates to be able to walk the route and mainly to stay at Casa da Fernanda (I keep seeing amazing comments). Since I have the time, I do not want to miss Oia/Baiona and that part of the Galician coast.
Is there another way to cross from Valenca to A Guarda that you can recommend? Taxi, Bus,Boat or Train
Do you know where you can get the tracks for the river/cycle route between Caminha and Valenca? I actually use the Wikiloc app and upload GPX tracks to it or find tracks that others have uploaded but I haven't found the river route yet. Currently planning for next year!Additional remark. If you use the free app Maps dot Me you will see all the walking and car roads including lots of additional information. A big bonus is that you can pre-download the maps at home and use the app in offline or airplane mode, saving you bundle costs. You can also download and include Camino tracks in Maps via KML files. This app is mentioned several times in this forum.
Thanks. I do have the Brierley guide and it does look quite detailed. We tend to use the GPX tracks as a back-up for when we're not sure. If we do that route, we'll use Wikiloc to track it and upload the track as we use it to record as well as follow tracks. It's very good.Unfortunatley no KML track is available (at least I’m not aware of it) between Caminha and Valenca. But the Brierly’s Guide Camino Portugues decribed the river route in detail.
Excellent. Thank you very much. I'll download that route. Yes I've used a converter as well to convert from GPX to KML and then import into Google My Maps to get an overview of our routes. Do you by any chance know of any good GPX editors? I'd quite like to adjust some of routes but it's probably overkill and too much planning!Did some research. Found in Wikiloc the river route. See https://nl.wikiloc.com/routes-trailer-bike/nigran-oia-a-guarda-tui-40733784.
Converted the downloaded GPX track to KML format by using a free converter tool and included the KML version into Maps.me. The route is exactly what I walked last September. Small note: you have to extend your walk a small part by your selves to A Guarda (just follow the main road from Salcidos to A Guarda).
Thx for the info!You can also walk from Valenca to Vila Nova de Cerveira (Portugal) and cross the river by bridge to Spain and walk to A Guerda. I did this last September. Be aware there almost no services along this track, especially out season
I like this idea of starting out on the coastal, since in doing the central I’ve read that it’s not a very interesting walk for a good part of the first day. Is it easy to find where to change routes when you get to Vila do Condo? ThanksThere are pro’s and cons to walk both ,the coastal or the central.
one loves pudding ,the other loves yoghurt. One loves the daughter, the other one loves the mother. There are others who love both.
I agree with your point about historic places but that counts as far as Baiona because places like Pontevedra and those on the Variante Espiritual share the route with the central route.
if you ask any Portuguese to mention the most interesting and historical places in the northern districts Viana do Costelo and Minho , first is Ponte de Lima , second is Barcelos and third is Valença do Minho. All are situated along the central route .
And if you take a day off in Barcelos within one our hour by bus or train you can visit the wonderfull and beautiful ancient Roman town Braga , with the world famous sanctuary Bom Jesus do Monte , mentioned in all lists of World Heritage sites .
we stayed two days in Barcelos to enjoy that medieval town and as a bonus went to Braga.
Every year I come to Portugal I go to Braga . It makes me happy to be there.
And yes here and there you walk alongside roads, you share with traffic.
the busiests roads are when you leave Porto .So most of the hikers walk from Porto along the Douro river and Atlantic coast to Vila do Conde with scenic sea views but if you are there during weekend you have to take care for recreative hikers and bikers on the long and very small boardwalks, approaching you from behind and towards .They claim their presence too so unfortunately you have to be very carefull for your own safety
and yes you share a short busy track with the traffic nearby Pedra Furada direction Barcelos for about one kilometer but there are places ( e.g. from A Guarda to Baiona on the coastal where you wallk on the hard shoulder of a national road for miles.
and if you walk the original coastal ( Senda Litoral or Beira Mar) you have to be lucky that the weather is good. We once faced heavy rains and strong winds during 4 or 5 days . Then it will be raining too more inland where the central is and you get wet too but it will be better to stand because of less seawind.
Once we stayed around Viana do Castelo with our caravan and had 10 days of heavy rain so left the caravan there on a campingsite in Vila Praia de Âncora and waited for better times and made daytrips all around the north of Portugal.
I hiked both routes several times and I liked both and walked both in their original forms and also mixed both.
that is the charm of the Portuguese route in Portugal.you won’t find this on other caminos to Santiago.
once in Spain the arguments do not count.
Baiona is a historical place but after that you walk into Vigo, one of the big cities to walk through In Spain. Chaotic, stinking exhaust damps of cars and heavy traffic , lots of roadworks and diversions ( I was there a month ago)
so my two cents are walk out of Porto along the river and the coast to Vila do Conde
and from there head inland to the Central (São Pedro de Rates ,Barcelos ( sidestep to Braga) Ponte de Lima and Valença into Spain where the first town you meet is the characteristic medieval town of Tui and join from Redondela with them who came from the Coastal route and share your experiences and get infected by the Caminho virus which means that you want to come back next year and then walk the route you haven’t seen yet,.
i do this since 2013 every year and mixed all possibilities.And there are lots of it.
And my higlight every year again is to stay at the best albergue of the entire Portuguese caminho , casa da Fernanda . Don’t want to miss that. I must be there every time again when I am in Portugal
Hi,I like this idea of starting out on the coastal, since in doing the central I’ve read that it’s not a very interesting walk for a good part of the first day. Is it easy to find where to change routes when you get to Vila do Condo? Thanks
Thanks so much, Phil. We want to keep our daily walks under 25k or so as we aren’t young anymore (69 and 72). One day walking the route from Le Puy we did 30k and realized that was too much for us. Hoping to be immersed in nature as much as possible walking in Portugal.Hi,
Based on the recommendations I got to my original post I walked to Vila do Conde last month and changed to central from there.
If you look at my other posts you should find a link to the GPS directions that I found from another pellegrino.
I used these directions to follow the acqueduct route to Rates.
It was an ok walk, mostly on quiet roads. There was a crappy part through fields but this was because of wet weather Only a short section but to be avoided if wet. Should be ok if weather has been good but I've notes on it in another post which explain how to avoid it.
Some suggest going as far as Barcelos, but if this is your second day and you're travelling "off route" with no route markings it might be better to aim for Rates as a destination.
And if you find you get to Rates quick, then look at continuing to Barcelos.
Bon Camino
Phil
You're welcome. Vila do Conde to Rates is about 14 km and it's maybe another16 km from Rates to Barcelos.Thanks so much, Phil. We want to keep our daily walks under 25k or so as we aren’t young anymore (69 and 72). One day walking the route from Le Puy we did 30k and realized that was too much for us. Hoping to be immersed in nature as much as possible walking in Portugal.
Hi @JWB ... can you kindly elaborate and explain how this works ? also with the MAP.Me app esp. in offline mode ? Kind of an ignoramus here but trying to learn ... I need to for upcoming CP....Thanks much"You can also download and include Camino tracks in Maps via KML files."
The Dutch Fraternity of St James tracks for all Portuguese Camino's KML for maps me and Google tracks.
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