Santiago to Lisbon.

[Derekbarff]

Hi. I would to like to walk from Santiago to Lisbon in May and June. How popular is this trek? Tips and advice gratefully received. Can I get a pilgrims passport from the pilgrims office in Santiago? Thanks.

 

[trecile]

Walking to Lisbon from Santiago is not very popular at all. If you want to meet other pilgrims you should walk from Lisbon to Santiago. You can get a pilgrim credential at the Se Cathedral in Lisbon.

 

[Bradypus]

Walking to Lisbon from Santiago is not very popular at all. If you want to meet other pilgrims you should walk from Lisbon to Santiago. You can get a pilgrim credential at the Se Cathedral in Lisbon.

Walking from Santiago to Lisbon you would probably meet many more pilgrims than doing it the other way round. But you won't get much time to get to know them!

 

[dougfitz]

Hi. I would to like to walk from Santiago to Lisbon in May and June. How popular is this trek? Tips and advice gratefully received. Can I get a pilgrims passport from the pilgrims office in Santiago? Thanks.

The sections of the route that align with one of the Caminhos de Fatima might be somewhat more popular than where the CP route and the Fatima routes deviate. So walking from Valença to just south of Coimbra would align with the Caminho do Norte, and then again from Santarem to Lisbon with the Caminho de Tejo, just in reverse.

I am not sure why one would want a credencial issued by the Cathedral in Santiago for the Camino de Santiago. You clearly won't be a pilgrim walking to the tomb of the apostle, and also not intending to receive a Compostela. If you were intending to walk to Fatima as a pilgrim, I would recommend getting the Caminhos de Fátima credential, noting that there is no equivalent to the Compostela issued at Fátima. I don't know that there is any equivalent credential for Lisbon, which is a departure point for the Caminho do Tejo, not the end point.

Nonetheless, it should be possible to get a credencial (for the Camino de Santiago) at the Pilgrim Office.

 

[David Tallan]

Hi. I would to like to walk from Santiago to Lisbon in May and June. How popular is this trek? Tips and advice gratefully received. Can I get a pilgrims passport from the pilgrims office in Santiago? Thanks.

As a trek, it isn't very popular, although some people do walk north to south towards Fatima.

I'm not sure what you would be doing with a pilgrim's passport, though. As you note, it is a trek not a pilgrimage. Lisbon is not known as a pilgrimage destination. Any pilgrim passport (credencial) that you get in Santiago would likely be one that identifies you as a pilgrim to Santiago, for use on future pilgrimages, and you will be walking  from Santiago.

People do use these credentials when walking home from Santiago, but they are generally people who have also walked to Santiago and the journey home is just the culmination of their pilgrimage  to Santiago.

 

[CAshworth]

Walking from Santiago to Lisbon you would probably meet many more pilgrims than doing it the other way round. But you won't get much time to get to know them!

It's not going to be very popular, but there will be people walking that direction on the Fatima trail, which does travel a good part of the trek on the same trails as the Camino. I'm sure you can get a pilgrims passport in Santiago and have it stamped as you travel to Lisbon.

 

[The Yukon]

Hi. I would to like to walk from Santiago to Lisbon in May and June. How popular is this trek? Tips and advice gratefully received. Can I get a pilgrims passport from the pilgrims office in Santiago? Thanks.

At least 15 years ago, a couple of us strolled south from Tui to Fatima, a significant part of your proposed walk. Although it was certainly not a popular route at that time, it was most engaging, even amusing. This was in the day before GPS use, so Brierley’s guide and arrows (blue arrows to Fatima) were critical. The blue arrows often only showed up once or twice a day, and I could ask if anyone has ever tried to walk a Camino backwards using the yellow arrows - not easy. We often encountered concerned locals who would stop us in order to point us in the right direction, but as soon as we said ‘Fatima’, the Portuguese people blessed us with ‘bom Caminho’. Nowadays the gps apps will guide you south. Back then getting lost, which happened daily, was a wonderful opportunity to engage the Portuguese people, and although they laughed at times about where we were, they were most helpful in gesturing us as best they could toward our esteemed destination.
You will meet many pilgrims before Porto, but notably fewer after that, I only recall one or two. Nonetheless, it’s a beautiful, quiet walk through amongst an unassuming, friendly people and a quaint and scenic countryside.

Enjoy!