Rest day

Jon · Oct 17, 2013

Just booked my flights to walk Porto-Santiago for next May. I am intending to walk it in 10 days. (Just started in training by walking 6-7 miles a day and will increase gradually). I would like a day off around the half way mark or thereabouts, so any suggestions as to where would be interesting will be much appreciated. Thanks

VascoH · Oct 17, 2013

Hi Jon,
I am planning on walking the Camino Portuguese for the second time next April/May. I plan on stoping along the way to take in some of the towns/villages. Barcelos, Ponte de Lima and Pontevedra is where I intend to stop for an extra day each as they are beautiful towns on the Camino. Time permitting I would like to have a look around Porrin0 as well each of these would be worth an extra look around.
Bon Camino
Vasco

naplesdon · Oct 17, 2013

If I was asked to pick between the 3 aforementioned towns, I would opt for Ponte de Lima. There are good restaurants, good hotel options v. the albergue which is an equally great place to stay and good atmosphere to savor before a long climb in the mountains the next day..

stevenjarvis · Oct 17, 2013

VascoH said:
Hi Jon,
I am planning on walking the Camino Portuguese for the second time next April/May. I plan on stoping along the way to take in some of the towns/villages. Barcelos, Ponte de Lima and Pontevedra is where I intend to stop for an extra day each as they are beautiful towns on the Camino. Time permitting I would like to have a look around Porrin0 as well each of these would be worth an extra look around.
Bon Camino
Vasco

Pontevedra has a lot to offer, but of course so does everywhere else once you turn left or right off the Camino !

Diogo92 · Oct 17, 2013

Ponte de Lima for sure! You will like it, the pilgrims say that it's one of the most marking cities from the Portuguese Caminho

Best Regards
Diogo

Jon · Oct 17, 2013

Thanks folks, looks like Ponte de Lima is going to be the rest day.
Oh, by the way, this will be my first pilgrimage to Santiago, really looking forward to it.

Diogo92 · Oct 17, 2013

I'm doing it also in May (again). And I'll start from Ponte de Lima.

So it could be possible for us to meet. I just don't know the dates yet, I still have to see my vacation period.

Best Regards
Diogo

Albertinho · Oct 17, 2013

Jon said:
Just booked my flights to walk Porto-Santiago for next May. I am intending to walk it in 10 days. (Just started in training by walking 6-7 miles a day and will increase gradually). I would like a day off around the half way mark or thereabouts, so any suggestions as to where would be interesting will be much appreciated. Thanks

What we did was follow the advice of John Brierley in his guide Camino Portuges.
If you stay in Barcelos, make a detour to the beautifull city of Braga, only 20 kilometers away and easy and cheap to access by public transport.
Visit the beautiful church Bom Jesus do Monte ! And drink a beverage in grand café a Brasileira in the town center. so we did without backpack and enjoyed it every minute.

dustylee · Oct 19, 2013

I am also planning a Camino from Porto in either May or June of next year, so it is helpful to hear these suggestions. I am not sure that we (myself and my friends) can do it in 10 days--thinking that 12 is more reasonable. But we also may want a rest day along the route.
Thanks-

Albertinho · Oct 19, 2013

dustylee said:
I am also planning a Camino from Porto in either May or June of next year, so it is helpful to hear these suggestions. I am not sure that we (myself and my friends) can do it in 10 days--thinking that 12 is more reasonable. But we also may want a rest day along the route.
Thanks-

We did it in 12 days. Approximately 20 kms a day.
The last track Padrón to Santiago in two days , staying overnight in Teo so the last day was the glorius day arriving in Santiago ; only 8 kms. No tyreness , no stress. Excelent !
Walk along the coast from Porto to Vila do Conde and than to Sao Pedro de Rates and so on to Barcelos. Try to stay and sleep at Casa da Fernanda in Vittorino de Piaës. Our best caminho experience. Between Barcelos and Ponte de Lima
The worst day for us anyway was the off road trail from Ponte de Lima to Rubiaes

But you can read about it in this forum
Bom caminho

vicrev · Oct 20, 2013

Well done Albertinho......just wondering what made it the worst day,betweenPonte de Lima & Rubiaes ?................Vicrev

Diogo92 · Oct 20, 2013

@vicrev between Ponte de Lima and Rubiães, you have the worst mountain section of the Caminho Português. You go over a 500m high mountain. The thing is that, instead doing a circular way up, you go all straight up ahead (with some natural steps, carved in rock and dirt).

So, it's not so difficult hill has that, the problem it's the way that you have to go up

The problem with the stage that day, is that, if you dont' stay in Rubiães, you have to walk 40 and some km that day to reach either Valença do Minho or Tuy (this last one, at the other side of the border).

Best Regards
Diogo

Albertinho · Oct 20, 2013

vicrev said:
Well done Albertinho......just wondering what made it the worst day,betweenPonte de Lima & Rubiaes ?................Vicrev

Well My good Portugese friend Diogo explains what it is like.
It is a hard day. It took us a out 7 hours to get in a suburb of Rubiaes where a pensão was.
The trail is going up and up over small steep tracks with big stones ,dirt and mud.
We took the first possibility to sleep after the decending to Rubiaes (pensão São Roque) but found out arriving there that there was no restaurant around for diner. The restaurant was 3 kms further on in Rubiaes ,going downhill which meant that you had to come back another 3 kms uphill !
The restaurant had the solution .. They sent a car, took us and two other ladies to the restaurant , prepared our meal (10 € each) and after that they brought us back to our pensao. Great service !

Diogo92 · Oct 20, 2013

@Albertinho , the Albergue was already full?

When I walked that stage this year, we arrived to Bom Retiro restaurant, about 11:45, and the Albergue seemed to be already full. We left Ponte de Lima pretty early (it was still pitch black), the problem was the long stops that we made.

Best regards
Diogo

Albertinho · Oct 20, 2013

Diogo92 said:
@vicrev between Ponte de Lima and Rubiães, you have the worst mountain section of the Caminho Português. You go over a 500m high mountain. The thing is that, instead doing a circular way up, you go all straight up ahead (with some natural steps, carved in rock and dirt).

So, it's not so difficult hill has that, the problem it's the way that you have to go up

The problem with the stage that day, is that, if you dont' stay in Rubiães, you have to walk 40 and some km that day to reach either Valença do Minho or Tuy (this last one, at the other side of the border).

Best Regards
Diogo

After arriving in Rubiaes there is no need to go on another 20 kms to Valenca , anyway we hadn't the ntention my good friend Diogo !
So next day recovered from all suffering and sacrifying the day before, we started in good mood up to Valenca.
Because we loved to stay another day in your beautiful country, we did not go on to Tui but stayed in hotel Brasil and had a good look at the fortaleza of Valenca (kind of fortress overlooking the river Minha between Portugal and Spain.
Desadvantage is the next day that you loose one hour, crossing the river due to the time difference .In Spain it is one hour later.

Albertinho · Oct 20, 2013

Diogo92 said:
@Albertinho , the Albergue was already full?

Well we did not come so far. We were so tired and fed up that we took the first oportunity to find a bed and that was São Rogue. The next day after about 3 kms we found the albergue ,had a glimpse to find out what we had missed and went on up to Valenca.

Today we started our training -about 13 kms here in Rotterdam where we live, to prepare our next caminho. We are thinking to walk the camino Inglès from Ferrol to Santiago may 2014.
We are coming by car and our caravan ,park them both at a campingsite around Ferrol , walk to Santiago and turn back by public transport to Ferrol and continue our trip to your beautifull country , visiting once more the beautiful places we were this year during our caminho Portuges.

Abracoes disso margem do Rio Maas en Holanda

Diogo92 · Oct 20, 2013

@Albertinho , the problem is that the Albergue in Rubiães is too small. And we didn't knew about any Pensões in there! Only about the Albergue, which you pass by.

Those are more reasons for me to buy the Brierley guide! I expect to stay in Rubiães next year, but I've already talked with my friend and warned him that we can't do the 1 hour stops that we did we made two before Labruja, so we lost two hours in that day). I only started enjoying the Caminho already at the end, when the 20km stages started.

And you're right about the time Schedule in Spain (GMT +1), thats why next year I'll do Rubiães > Tuy.

Best Regards
Diogo

frdaz · Dec 13, 2013

Jon said:
Just booked my flights to walk Porto-Santiago for next May. I am intending to walk it in 10 days. (Just started in training by walking 6-7 miles a day and will increase gradually). I would like a day off around the half way mark or thereabouts, so any suggestions as to where would be interesting will be much appreciated. Thanks

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