Rent or Buy

[olearyb86]

Hi all, was wondering if you could offer advice on biking the camino? Ill be getting the train from Barcelona to Burgos at the end of April this year and am still undecied if I will buy a mountain bike in burgos or go with a rental company (starting in Burgos also). I plan to cycle to at least Leon and hopefully all the way to santiago. The reason for not knowing whether to rent or buy is solely down to the bike rack and panniers (if I buy a bike, its likely that id have to buy rack and pannier bags). Does anyone know if these are easy to come by in Burgos? any advice appreciated

 

[HeidiL]

Burgos has several large sporting goods shops (though the big ones are a bit out of town). There's also the big Corte Inglés in the centre. You can buy what you need there.

 

[Saint Mike II]

Hola - well if your Spanish is up to it you should be able to negotiate a package that includes at least the carry rack. The panniers you can keep, (if good quality they are quite useful). If you are only doing Burgos to Leon then renting is the way to go - and that should include a bike with a rack and panniers can also be rented. If you heart (and legs) are set on going all the way then buying might be better - as long as you can get a suitable bike for under E200. After Burgos you can pretty much follow the walkers road on a hybrid or even a road bike - as long as the tyres/tires are around 24-28mm/1inch wide. Front suspension would be a bonus (as long as you can lock it in or out) but not really necessary. From Rabanal I pretty much used the roads - the camino walking tracks ran close to the mainroad but were just to uncomfortable, particularly on the down-hill from the Crux and about half way down from O'Cebereiro towards Triacastela. If you are bike/road fit you can do Burgos to Santiago in around 14/15 days (including a rest day in Leon and maybe half a day in Astorga - at the chocolate shop and museum. Check out the bike rental places on line and then check the sports shops/bike shops to see what's on offer. You should be able to sell the bike in Santiago - a uni student might be a good option or one of the bike shops (provided its in good condition) but they are unlikely to offer more than E60-70 as they will on sell it for between E80-100 (and they have the luxury of time to wait until their buyer come along) Good luck.

 

[olearyb86]

Burgos has several large sporting goods shops (though the big ones are a bit out of town). There's also the big Corte Inglés in the centre. You can buy what you need there.

Thanks Heidi, very helpful!

Hola - well if your Spanish is up to it you should be able to negotiate a package that includes at least the carry rack. The panniers you can keep, (if good quality they are quite useful). If you are only doing Burgos to Leon then renting is the way to go - and that should include a bike with a rack and panniers can also be rented. If you heart (and legs) are set on going all the way then buying might be better - as long as you can get a suitable bike for under E200. After Burgos you can pretty much follow the walkers road on a hybrid or even a road bike - as long as the tyres/tires are around 24-28mm/1inch wide. Front suspension would be a bonus (as long as you can lock it in or out) but not really necessary. From Rabanal I pretty much used the roads - the camino walking tracks ran close to the mainroad but were just to uncomfortable, particularly on the down-hill from the Crux and about half way down from O'Cebereiro towards Triacastela. If you are bike/road fit you can do Burgos to Santiago in around 14/15 days (including a rest day in Leon and maybe half a day in Astorga - at the chocolate shop and museum. Check out the bike rental places on line and then check the sports shops/bike shops to see what's on offer. You should be able to sell the bike in Santiago - a uni student might be a good option or one of the bike shops (provided its in good condition) but they are unlikely to offer more than E60-70 as they will on sell it for between E80-100 (and they have the luxury of time to wait until their buyer come along) Good luck.

Thanks for the detailed info Mike, much appreciated. I can speak a bit of spanish but not sure if its on a bargaining level But ye I think your right that renting is the way to go for Burgos to Leon

 

[Natalie judson]

Hola - well if your Spanish is up to it you should be able to negotiate a package that includes at least the carry rack. The panniers you can keep, (if good quality they are quite useful). If you are only doing Burgos to Leon then renting is the way to go - and that should include a bike with a rack and panniers can also be rented. If you heart (and legs) are set on going all the way then buying might be better - as long as you can get a suitable bike for under E200. After Burgos you can pretty much follow the walkers road on a hybrid or even a road bike - as long as the tyres/tires are around 24-28mm/1inch wide. Front suspension would be a bonus (as long as you can lock it in or out) but not really necessary. From Rabanal I pretty much used the roads - the camino walking tracks ran close to the mainroad but were just to uncomfortable, particularly on the down-hill from the Crux and about half way down from O'Cebereiro towards Triacastela. If you are bike/road fit you can do Burgos to Santiago in around 14/15 days (including a rest day in Leon and maybe half a day in Astorga - at the chocolate shop and museum. Check out the bike rental places on line and then check the sports shops/bike shops to see what's on offer. You should be able to sell the bike in Santiago - a uni student might be a good option or one of the bike shops (provided its in good condition) but they are unlikely to offer more than E60-70 as they will on sell it for between E80-100 (and they have the luxury of time to wait until their buyer come along) Good luck.

Hey Mike,

Do you have any advice on stages from Roncesvalles/ Pamplona to Santiago in 14/15 days? I'm due to travel next week and I'm also in two minds between renting and buying (and also whether to start in Roncesvalles or Pamplona).

I would like to ride as much of the pilgrims route as possible (I've heard that the road can be quite boring) and I'm wondering what kind of bike to use. At home I ride a hybrid and have ridden up to 60 mîles a time on it, usually on roads and woodland tracks.

Thanks in advance.

Nat

 

[Saint Mike II]

Hola Natalie - as I did not ride from Roncesvalles I can't say how long it would take to complete this section, but probably 1 day. From what I was told by an English woman most of the rental companies aren't offering rentals in Roncesvalles, but you might want to walk this section anyway. Whether you can complete the Pamplona/Santiago Camino in 15 days depends upon you. If you are thinking about a rest/tourist day in Burgos and or Leon then you will need to ride more than 2 or 3 60 km days. But if you ride this schedule, I think you will miss a lot of the "spirit" of the Camino. This is the reason I am aiming to return in May next year to walk from St Jean. I may not walk all the way, but there are some places I want to revisit.
I found that you can ride around 500/560 km of the 700 km from Pamplona. But again this will depend upon the type of bike you have and how experienced you are. I think I have highlighted the really difficult sections above. I would also advise against following the walking trail down from the Cruz de Ferro, but this is up to you. Good luck and buen Camino.

 

[Natalie judson]

Thank you Mike.

I don't know if you have already answered this question, but do you have any itinerary ideas?

I leave in a matter of hours and I still don't have clear idea of my itinerary.

Ps I have decided to buy a bike.. I was finding it so difficult and expensive to organise hiring one for my needs/location..