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You can make your own arrangements via Booking.com, and use the luggage transport companies along the wayHas anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
I used Iberian AdventuresHas anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
I see you really do want a tour company but my 2c worth. I haven't walked the Portugese, but when I walked the Frances, my expectations were set by the movie The Way and a documentary.Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
I also tear pages out so I have what I need for the day in my pocket. I’ve used a company before just for my peace of mind. Being late 60s and alone I wanted to know where I would be each day. I have a friend who used Portugal Green in 2017 when he hurt his knee after about Leon abd this year is doing the Norte and using them again. He was very happy with them. I’m starting in Porto in June and I’ve gone thru and booked ahead for my trip. It takes a lot of time to find a place just where you want it and in your price range but it was sort of fun. I’m using the Brierley book and the Wise Pilgrim book and app. I need that map in my hand. Either way you do it will be fun.Thanks for all your thoughtful comments! For my husband's peace of mind I think we will use a tour company. We have used Booking.com many times but usually for sightseeing car vacations. I will look into Caminoways and walkthecamino.com. I am happy to support a good tour company which also boosts local economy. I know that Portugal Green Walks is a local Portuguese business.
Now for another question: what guide books have you all used? I used Brierley for the Camino frances and tore out and discarded pages of completed stages each day. Several other peregrinos were horrified by this, one commenting that I was tearing up the "Bible". But John B. did suggest it in the beginning of his book to keep weight down... This time I won't have that restriction (because of luggage transfers) AND could even carry a couple of guides. So, what have you used and would you recommend it?
If weight isn't an option because your luggage is being shipped, I would take the Brierley. I would also take the Wise Pilgrim app for the Camino Portugues. It adds no extra weight and can help you navigate the day while your Brierley is waiting for you at your destination.Now for another question: what guide books have you all used? I used Brierley for the Camino frances and tore out and discarded pages of completed stages each day. Several other peregrinos were horrified by this, one commenting that I was tearing up the "Bible". But John B. did suggest it in the beginning of his book to keep weight down... This time I won't have that restriction (because of luggage transfers) AND could even carry a couple of guides. So, what have you used and would you recommend it?
Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
hiHas anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
thank you!I see you really do want a tour company but my 2c worth. I haven't walked the Portugese, but when I walked the Frances, my expectations were set by the movie The Way and a documentary.
Until I started walking, I had no idea that there was accommodation other than albergues, didn't realise booking ahead was an option, and didnt know about bag transport and how easy and cheap that was.
I had to use bag transport for a bit, it was so simple, as was Booking.com. Sometimes I asked the albergue for recommendations, and they usually phoned for me, no deposit.
Its not until you are walking that you realise you may need some flexibility in distance and maybe rest days.
It truly is very very simple to do yourself. and then you are in control. I was 59 my friend 70.
Thanks! I will look up Iberian adventuresI used Iberian Adventures
They are superb and based in Spain.
Just ask if they do that route.
thanks for all the resources!There are quite alot of specialist companies you can use from the cheapest to the more expensive depending on accommodation. Here's a few just to start : CaminoWays.com, Santiago Ways, Ultreya Tours, Mystic Tours, EATourSpecialist, Adventure Women etc.
My Galician mate Luis Freixo has an excellent Blog on all the Portuguese Ways see www.caminador.es. It's free and you can download maps in every format : Google Maps, Wikilock, pdf etc
A friend and I used Portugal Green Walks 2 years ago for the Portuguese central route from Porto and we had an excellent experience. Nothing was too much to ask, they were very responsive, the accommodations were fantastic, especially those in Portugal. It is a local company and in our opinion, much better than Mac's Adventures which we had used previously.Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
Thanks for that recommendation! I am leaning toward Portugal Green Walks.A friend and I used Portugal Green Walks 2 years ago for the Portuguese central route from Porto and we had an excellent experience. Nothing was too much to ask, they were very responsive, the accommodations were fantastic, especially those in Portugal. It is a local company and in our opinion, much better than Mac's Adventures which we had used previously.
We are starting the Camino Portugues in late April. We booked our accommodations Portugal Green Walks. They are reasonable and very responsive.Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
I am in my mid-sixties and wanted to do parts of the Camino, but am unable to carry my all my belongings on a daily basis. I live in the United States and know little of the either Spanish or Portuguese, just basics and little of the terrain and towns. Because I needed/wanted to just show up and put only my own needs/thoughts and daily meditations first, I did contract with a company in 2015 to walk Leon to Santiago. I went with a friend who has the personality I would have ended up making all the arrangements. Again, more planning and stress.... so, it was a true gift for me for the entire time to have my accommodations made, with a great breakfast daily, and my luggage transferred. Each day we took our own food, snacks and water and thoroughly took our time as knowing we would have a place each night. My husband and I are now using Portugal Green Walks to walk the Coastal/Sendra Litoral route starting in May. The first lesson I learned on the Camino is "everyone pilgrimages their own way". Having learned, that, I don't feel bad about doing what I needed to do make it truly a liberating experience for me.Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
We are in our taking our first walk going the Portuguese route, and are also looking at having luggage transported and carrying only a day pack; the choices of what to reserve/how to plan seem overwhelming to me, re: self-guided vs a tour company, but MY husband is the one that wants to maintain flexibility and do all the planning/reservations himself...yikes!Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
We are in the same spot you were in last year; doing walk from Porto in May this year...I think flexibilty IS the way to do it, as I, too, want to hang with other pilgrims; but my concern is that we only want to carry day packs and have our luggage transported to wherever the next stay will be...is that possible? Also, we are thinking we want to combine some of the central walk with the coastal one, time being our friend, in that we can take as much time as we need to...?I walked from Porto last sept all pre booked with luggage transfer. It was excellent for first camino but would not do it again.... i would prefer flexibility and book accom as I go. Also check where the accom they book is located. About half of mine were out of town so I couldn't hang out with other pilgrims in the evening which was disappointing. For me it is the connection with other pilgrims that made the camino special.
We are in our taking our first walk going the Portuguese route, and are also looking at having luggage transported and carrying only a day pack; the choices of what to reserve/how to plan seem overwhelming to me, re: self-guided vs a tour company, but MY husband is the one that wants to maintain flexibility and do all the planning/reservations himself...yikes!
Thanks for taking the time to write; you eased my mind, a lot!It is quick and easy to use Booking.com to arrange for accommodations. Outside of filling out a tag and letting your lodging's staff know you want your baggage transferred, there's not much more to getting transport accomplished. Being in your mid sixties shouldn't be an issue, since a lot of Camino walkers are of the same age range, and older, and make their own arrangements.
It just seems a shame to spend the funds to have someone else do those simple tasks.
Which did you prefer; coastal or central route? Any way to combine them on one trip?A friend and I did a self-guided trip on the Portuguese Coastal route in 2016 Porto to Santiago). We booked it through Caminoways. Everything went well and we thoroughly enjoyed the trip. (I have no connection to the company).
We will be going in May; originally thought coastal route (because I love the ocean); now thinking Central due to weather (rain/winds, AND there are things we'd like to see on it...we have the gift of time (we have 1 1/2 months) would love to know where you stayed!!The new Brierley for Portugal also covers the coastal route. We did the route last fall and did our own bookings through booking.com and luggage 5hroigh Caminofacil. The only tricky stretch was getting onto the corr3ct route from Baiona to Vigo, but a stop the day before at the Tourist info cleared it up. It was a lovely walk, if you do decide to book yourselves send me a pm and I can share where we stayed.
Dont worry you'll soon realise how really simple the pack transport and bookings are. Have a great CaminoWe are in our taking our first walk going the Portuguese route, and are also looking at having luggage transported and carrying only a day pack; the choices of what to reserve/how to plan seem overwhelming to me, re: self-guided vs a tour company, but MY husband is the one that wants to maintain flexibility and do all the planning/reservations himself...yikes!
Which did you prefer; coastal or central route? Any way to combine them on one trip?
Has anyone walked the Coastal route from Porto using a self-guided tour company such as Portugal Green Walks? Their website says they arrange accommodations and luggage transfers and provide a "road book". My husband and I took several long distance walks in Scotland using a self-guided tour company and were happy with it. I walked the Camino Frances back in 2012 without such "luxury" but my husband says he would prefer to use a tour company. (We are in our mid sixties.)
Here it is. These were almost all booked through Booking.com. We used Caminofacil for luggage, Scott was less than half of a company.We will be going in May; originally thought coastal route (because I love the ocean); now thinking Central due to weather (rain/winds, AND there are things we'd like to see on it...we have the gift of time (we have 1 1/2 months) would love to know where you stayed!!
John I am going to hike the Camino from Porto in April and would like to talk to you about your experience with them. I don't know if this is allowed in this group but if it is please email me (email address removed by moderator, please use private conversation function to contact other members)I've used walkthecamino.com for 3 Caminos worth of arrangements (including the Camino Portuguese from Lisbon to Santiago. I know I could go to booking.com and figure out what works and what doesn't work, but I'd rather have someone who knows the area book accomodations. That saves me hours of time and worry. And if for some reason the baggage transfer doesn't work, they set it right within an hour or so. Yes, you can do it yourself, but I'd rather concentrate on walking, talking to other pilgrims, and just reflecting - knowing that I have a great place to stay for the night. I know it takes some of the "fun" out of the experience but as I near 70 I find that finding my own rooms through booking.com or others has less and less of a return on investment for me. It is, indeed, a simple task to find a room but to find 30 or so nice rooms in good locations can be daunting (and for me, not worth the savings in money). It all depends on what you view as a fun challenge and what is just a pain in the ankles. Neither way is right or wrong.
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