Pre-Camino nights in Pamplona and SJPP

[Firewood]

Hey, all,

We just booked our tickets for our late winter/early spring Camino and are more excited every day! We're flying into Pamplona from Texas and land around noon on Wednesday, February 28th. We'd like to take a little bit to recover from jet lag and are debating where and how long to stay. We'll spend the first night in Pamplona and explore the city some the next day, but are trying to decide what to do from there. My wife would like to stay another night in Pamplona and the following night in SJPP, but I'm thinking this might be a little too much rest time, especially since we're planning on only going as far as Valcarlos on our first day walking. What do you all think: Two nights in Pamplona and one in St Jean? One night Pamplona and one night in St Jean? Or two nights in Pamplona and half a day in St Jean before heading on to Valcarlos?

Thanks,

Jeff

 

[scott the farmer]

I would suggest one day in Pamplona
the bus ride to SJDP is only 2 hours so almost another day there
You can always have a rest day in Pamplona as you walk
I did the Valcarlos route and its an easy first day

 

[Deleted member 43985]

Hi Jeff - I loved Tapas Crawling in Logrono and would love to have an extra night or two there for that alone. There is a whole area of Logrono close to the Cathedral that is elbow-to-elbow restaurants serving incredible tapas and wine. You could quickly get there from Pamplona by bus and have a great night there and catch a bus back to Pamplona or on to SJPDP after that. As just an option in Pamplona, I had the best meal of my Camino at Cafe Irun. The Cordero was incredible and the history of the place was awe inspiring.

As far as a departure time from SJPDP to Valcarlos, the walk takes less than 3 hours but you'd want to keep an eye on the weather that time of the year for sure.

Have fun planning!

 

[Curtis]

I would suggest only one night in Pamplona for the simple reason that four days into your camino you'll arrive back in Pamplona by foot.

 

[Felipe]

The first days of March in the mountain pass after Valcarlos could be tough. Be cautious.
Buen camino!

 

[HedaP]

There’s an afternoon bus from Pamplona at 14:30 to SJPdP arriving 16:15 so perhaps not necessary to stay an extra night. I had time for a leisurely fabulous Spanish buffet breakfast at a reasonably priced hotel near the bus stop (pm me if you want the name). I left my backpack at the hotel then called into the vodaphone shop to buy a Spanish sim card. This left me with plenty of time to visit the cathedral and enjoy walking around the little museum that is part of the city walls. http://www.turismo.navarra.es/eng/organice-viaje/recurso/Patrimonio/3011/Murallas-de-Pamplona.htm
Loved the museum because it taught me a lot about Pamplona.
Can’t remember where I stopped for lunch but I can assure you I found time for that too though it was probably just a bocadillo.
Just be aware that it is a very steep and particularly bendy (how the heck do you spell windy?) road to SJPdP. I never get car or bus sick and was queasy by the end of the trip.
SJPdP is a beautiful place. If you have a day up your sleeve and want to stay a second night it would be better IMO to stay a second night in SJPdP rather than in Pamplona because you walk through Pamplona again as you walk the camino. But as previous posters have said there are many beautiful places along the camino that could merit an extra night and you walk through a lot of basque country. And Valcarlos is an easy walk.
The planning is so much fun. Have a very buen camino.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

There’s an afternoon bus from Pamplona at 14:30 to SJPdP arriving 16:15

In past years, there has not been any bus service to SJPdP in January and February. You can get a bus to Roncesvalles six days a week, but you may need to arrange a taxi in advance. It is pretty quiet that time of year!

 

[Wiebmer]

It's wonderful to hear from hearty walkers that the route to Valcarlos is an easy walk...

It's lovely - but there are a lot of hills that can seem daunting on Day One of your Camino. Also, it's fairly remote...you're in the woods on a path.

Sadly, there was one point my first day that I simply lay down. My poor husband feared he'd have to leave me behind like they do when climbing Mt. Everest!

Luckily I rallied and did the rest of the Camino with nary a hitch nor injury. Not even a blister.

You'll do great! Ning

 

[Wiebmer]

Hi Jeff - I loved Tapas Crawling in Logrono and would love to have an extra night or two there for that alone. There is a whole area of Logrono close to the Cathedral that is elbow-to-elbow restaurants serving incredible tapas and wine. You could quickly get there from Pamplona by bus and have a great night there and catch a bus back to Pamplona or on to SJPDP after that. As just an option in Pamplona, I had the best meal of my Camino at Cafe Irun. The Cordero was incredible and the history of the place was awe inspiring.

As far as a departure time from SJPDP to Valcarlos, the walk takes less than 3 hours but you'd want to keep an eye on the weather that time of the year for sure.

Have fun planning!

Thank you for the tip on Logrono! We're doing our second (sadly, somewhat abbreviated...) Camino and we missed the tapas square!

In fact, we seemed to miss MOST of the wonderful Spanish food on the Camino...endless pilgrim meals instead.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Thank you for the tip on Logrono!

Thar' be tapas in these waters, Matey. The center is Calle del Laurel.

 

[Firewood]

Thank you, everyone, for your replies and very useful information. We are really enjoying the planning stages, as things feel much more "real" now that we have the tickets purchased. We'll play things by ear to a certain extent, based on weather and accumulated snowfall in the Pyrenees, and we will start in Roncesvalles or lower elevations if need be.

I think you all have confirmed my suspicions that two and a half days in Pamplona is just too much, especially since we'll be walking through within the week. I think we'd be all Pamplona'ed out at that point. I do like the idea of exploring places near Pamplona, though I think we'll avoid anyplace directly on the Camino for the same reasons. Has anyone been to Olite? One of my (non-Camino) guidebooks says the town's restored castle is a nice place to explore.

Jozero & Falcon- Thanks for the recommendations on restaurants and Calle del Laurel. We're considering spending some extra time there to explore and to enjoy the tapas scene.

Thanks again to everyone!

-Jeff

 

[Marbe2]

If you are making a direct flight (Obviously with at least one stop) and no overnights anywhere else by the time you get to the hotel you will have been underway for a significant amount of time and have jet lag. IF you live in a lower altitude you need to take that into consideration as well! I would play it by ear as well, but do not rush to get started. THe first few days are challenging enough and you may find difficult wearther as well. Make sure you are rested before you begin walking as the altitude, jet lag and weather will likely all impact you physically for a while. ONe of the biggest mistakes that pilgrims make IMO is rushing to get underway and being too ambitious during the first few segments.

 

[Deleted member 3000]

Valcarlos is about 1,100 feet altitude. Roncesvalles is about 3,100 feet. An airplane cabin is about 8,000. Altitude sickness won't be a problem!

 

[Marbe2]

Technically, Altitude "sickness" is not an issue nor was it mentioned. However,if you live close to sea level in Texas then you will notice the thinner air. One sits on a plane...you will be climbing. I am just suggesting to consider the elevation, jet lag and possible climate differences in February and start rested before departing from St jean. If fatigued, why not take an extra day?

 

[HedaP]

In past years, there has not been any bus service to SJPdP in January and February. You can get a bus to Roncesvalles six days a week, but you may need to arrange a taxi in advance. It is pretty quiet that time of year!

You are absolutely correct but I think it should be OK for their dates. They are arriving in Pamplona on last day of Feb so would be travelling in March. The Alsa bus runs

• 10:00 AM (1st June - 30th September)
• 12:00 PM (20th June - 5th September)
• 14:30 PM (1st March - 2nd November)
• 17:30 PM (1st April - 2nd November)

This info comes from https://www.caminoteca.com/en/content/39-how-to-get-to-saint-jean-pied-de-port-from-pamplona

I caught it in late March this year.

 

[HedaP]

It's wonderful to hear from hearty walkers that the route to Valcarlos is an easy walk...

It's lovely - but there are a lot of hills that can seem daunting on Day One of your Camino. Also, it's fairly remote...you're in the woods on a path.

Sadly, there was one point my first day that I simply lay down. My poor husband feared he'd have to leave me behind like they do when climbing Mt. Everest!

Luckily I rallied and did the rest of the Camino with nary a hitch nor injury. Not even a blister.

You'll do great! Ning

Are you sure it was between SJPdP and Valcarlos? I would happily have laid down several times going from Valcarlos to Roncesvalles in fact I may have done so at least once. Here’s my favourite elevation map which from memory is from @sillydoll .

 

[janicemf]

I think it is important to get over the jet lag before you start your camino. How much time you need will depend on your age and conditioning, and how much time you take can depend on time available and budget. My husband and I have walked the Francis twice, the last time we took at least 2 days off in each of the cities. There is lots to see, and lots to enjoy and we were not in a rush, we wanted to explore and experience what Spain had to offer.

 

[Sunbun]

Hey, all,

We just booked our tickets for our late winter/early spring Camino and are more excited every day! We're flying into Pamplona from Texas and land around noon on Wednesday, February 28th. We'd like to take a little bit to recover from jet lag and are debating where and how long to stay. We'll spend the first night in Pamplona and explore the city some the next day, but are trying to decide what to do from there. My wife would like to stay another night in Pamplona and the following night in SJPP, but I'm thinking this might be a little too much rest time, especially since we're planning on only going as far as Valcarlos on our first day walking. What do you all think: Two nights in Pamplona and one in St Jean? One night Pamplona and one night in St Jean? Or two nights in Pamplona and half a day in St Jean before heading on to Valcarlos?

Thanks,

Jeff

I jet-lagged from the US in Madrid this September for 2 days and regret that. Flew to BIQ from Madrid, then took Bourricot Express to SJPdP. Wish I'd spent more than a half day in SJPdP. But if you are in an albergue in SJ, I'd guess it would be VERY difficult to get a midday nap while jetlagging. Might want to consider a private room the first 2 nights/days, then reserve a fun albergue like Bellari in SJ the night before you start your hike. People also said great things about spending the first hiking night in Orisson, which is a steep but fairly short hike from SJ. That would help immensely if you are from low altitude.

 

[offtrail1]

I would say 1 day in Pamplona, 1 in SJ, if you need a rest after the trip down the mountains, take another rest day in Pamplona then. If you're doing fine, I'd save the day for a little extra time in either Burgos or Leon, or any other city you'd like to explore. Buen Camino

 

[Firewood]

Thanks, everyone. So much to consider. We'll likely take a taxi into St Jean, as bus service may or may not be running. We've allotted plenty of time (hopefully) and are planning on taking a rest day once every week or so. We've booked a hotel in St Jean for the night, and will only walk to Valcarlos our first day. Beyond that, I think we'll just have to see how we're feeling once we've "boots on the ground".

I appreciate all the advice.

Bueno Camino,

Jeff