Ponferrada to Santiago de Compostela

[Forestbather]

Good morning all. Me and my partner have decided to do this part of the trail at the end of August 2019 and have a few questions. We really want to plan as little as possible as that will be a big part of our trip, so we can move away from the routine of our every day lives, move away from living via a diary.
We are thinking of flying into Santiago then getting public transport to Ponferrada, is this possible and what is available??
With the planning as little as possible we don't want to book where we stay every night, is this a good idea?? We will be carrying a tent so feel that we will be able to find somewhere to stay at the end of each day, is this realistic??
We do have an outline of the places on the way and the mileage in between them but want the flexibility of doing what we want each day, we want to get out of our comfort zone as we are planning the following year to move to a more simple lifestyle away from societies expectations of how we should live and this is part of our spiritual journey towards a lifestyle of simplicity.
Thank you for any answers and support this forum looks amazing for knowledge and experience.
Namaste

 

[Bradypus]

There are both long-distance buses (www.alsa.es) and trains (www.renfe.com) between Santiago and Ponferrada.

The question of taking a tent and camping is very controversial and usually generates a lot of heat here in the forum. It is usually as much an ideological dispute as a practical one. There are very few official campsites on the Camino Frances and camping on private land without the owner's permission is illegal in much of Spain. It is explicitly illegal in Galicia. Given the vast numbers walking the Frances landowners may not always be sympathetic to requests. Some people have reported camping in the grounds of albergues but that also depends on the consent of the hospitaleros. It is not a right. Some people take the wild-camping approach of finding an isolated spot, setting up late as it grows dark and leaving early and simply rely on not being spotted or questioned. Whether you feel it would be justified to ignore local law and landowners' wishes in this way is a question only you can judge for yourself.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Fifty feet back from the pathway is pretty much a 750 km latrine! Albergues will charge you about the same amount to pitch a tent as they will charge you for a bed.

Booking ahead is more about not wandering town looking for a bed than it is about the existence of a bed at your stopping point. For example, the are hundreds of beds in Villafranca del Bierzo, but they are spread along the route as you descend into town. You could visit them in order and take the first bed, but if you head for the popular last one (Piedra) and it is full, you will need to walk back up the hill hoping that there is a bed before you have completely retraced your steps to the municipal at the entrance to town. Phone calls can save you a lot of steps at the end of the day when one step is like ten were at the beginning of the day.

 

[Forestbather]

Thank you for these answers, my next question was going to be is there much difference cost wise between tenting it and finding a hostel?

Fifty feet back from the pathway is pretty much a 750 km latrine! Albergues will charge you about the same amount to pitch a tent as they will charge you for a bed.

Booking ahead is more about not wandering town looking for a bed than it is about the existence of a bed at your stopping point. For example, the are hundreds of beds in Villafranca del Bierzo, but they are spread along the route as you descend into town. You could visit them in order and take the first bed, but if you head for the popular last one (Piedra) and it is full, you will need to walk back up the hill hoping that there is a bed before you have completely retraced your steps to the municipal at the entrance to town. Phone calls can save you a lot of steps at the end of the day when one step is like ten were at the beginning of the day.

There are both long-distance buses (www.alsa.es) and trains (www.renfe.com) between Santiago and Ponferrada.

The question of taking a tent and camping is very controversial and usually generates a lot of heat here in the forum. It is usually as much an ideological dispute as a practical one. There are very few official campsites on the Camino Frances and camping on private land without the owner's permission is illegal in much of Spain. It is explicitly illegal in Galicia. Given the vast numbers walking the Frances landowners may not always be sympathetic to requests. Some people have reported camping in the grounds of albergues but that also depends on the consent of the hospitaleros. It is not a right. Some people take the wild-camping approach of finding an isolated spot, setting up late as it grows dark and leaving early and simply rely on not being spotted or questioned. Whether you feel it would be justified to ignore local law and landowners' wishes in this way is a question only you can judge for yourself.

Thanks for this, we aren't interested in playing with local laws, so this is good to know. Also the travel info is really helpful. Exciting times

 

[Adrienne2018]

I just finished walking the Camino Frances. Expect the cost of an abergue to be between €7 and €12 per person. The more expensive ones can be booked ahead of time, the cheaper ones are the municipals. Those are first come first serve.

 

[t2andreo]

This past April, I walked the Camino de Invierno from Ponferrada to Santiago as an alternative to the more crowded Camino Frances route. To start, I flew into Madrid, then took a bus directly from the airport terminal (T4) to Ponferrada.

At the Albergue San Nicholas in Ponferrada, if you turn right outside the door, your proceed on the Camino Frances. If you turn to the left then turn left again at the first stone cross, you can pick up the Invierno. It is well marked throughout. I never had a directional problem.

You can search here for information on the Invierno. Basically, it follows a river valley instead of mountain ridges, and runs more or less parallel to the Frances route, but about 25 km to the south. Both routes arrive at Santiago. Overall, it is about 40 km longer than the Frances and takes about 2 extra days. However, I planned on 10 days and should have planned for at least 12 days.

This route is very hilly. That is some of the awesome beauty found on this route. The scenery is the best I have seen on six Caminos over four routes.

If you are intent on camping, there is not much of anything between towns on the Invierno, so finding a place off the path of travel should not be too difficult. But do research this first. Start in this forum...

Hope this helps.