Starting over

[Edward1]

Hi ALl,
I need to get to Leon from Ireland any suggestions as to the best way to get there around Eastertime,, You have all been a great help in the past getting me this far. Tks in advance

 

[MeganG22]

I think piecing together a few flights would be pretty easy.... Dublin to London Gatwick is around $55 USD (Aer Lingus), Gatwick to Barcelona for 44-80euros (easyjet.com), and Barcelona to Leon for $102 USD (Iberia). Those flights are all on April 11th, I just searched a random date.
You could also take a train once you're in Spain, just depends how fast you want to get there

 

[Thengel1]

I had a look, using March 29th (Good Friday), as a test date:

Getting to Madrid is easy, Iberia (113 Euros) and Aer Lingus (92 Euros) both will get you there direct.

The last stage from Madrid to Leon on the other hand... Iberia lists no spaces available on Good Friday, also none on the Saturday or the prior Wednesday or Thursday before it. There are spaces available on Easter Sunday and Monday, but they are not cheap (Sunday (304 Euros), Monday (185 Euros).

Train seems to be an option, however there is a catch to that too. As far I can tell from RENFE's website, there is only one train per day to Leon, running at 11:10 AM, which there is no chance you can make, so you would probably have to stay overnight in Madrid.

 

[Edward1]

Sorry for not getting back sooner thanks for replies.
Did a little research this side myself, Thinking of flying into Bilboa and getting a train down to Leon then walking to Santiago and flying home from there.

 

[peregrina2000]

Though the recession/crisis may have lessened demand somewhat, plan for trains and buses to be filled well in advance during Holy Week. It may be worth it to book the ticket ahead of time. If you are one of the lucky few who can figure out how to book directly with RENFE, http://www.renfe.es, good for you. But if you're like many of us mere mortals who usually give up in frustration, you can get train tickets on http://www.petrobax.com or raileurope.com. You'll pay a pretty penny as a brokerage fee, but I wouldn't chance it during Holy Week.

Buen camino, Laurie

 

[scruffy1]

Once again, Laurie is absolutely correct, Good Friday in Spain starts about 1630 on Thursday when everything shuts down except for the bars! Holy Week is a great time to be on the Camino walking, celebrations, processions, special masses all the time but can be a nightmare if one is traveling by any means other than one's feet. Consider starting several days earlier or later and avoid the headache.
S