The good news is that I know that there is no wrong answer?

[Fearbocht]

I will do a bit of a preamble introduction but promise that I will get to a question by the time I finish!

I have managed to get myself to Gallicia for two separate glorious weeks on the Camino! In August last year I did the Santiago to Finisterre/Muxia piece and at Easter this year I did the Portugues route from Valencia into Santiago! I did both with a friend of mine but this time he can't travel. I am flying from Dublin to Zurich to meet some people on the weekend of the 19th of August and as a plan we had made to do the Kerry Camino(Tralee to St James's Church in Dingle had fallen through) I made the decision to change my return flight from Zurich from the 21st to instead take the Aer Lingus flight from Santiago on the 28th August. So the assumption is that I get to wake up in Zurich on the morning of the 21st of August, take my backpack with me and the next responsibility I have is to be at Santiago airport on the morning of the 28th August.

Currently I am leaning towards booking a flight to Bilbao from Zurich and walking as much of the North route as I feel like at whatever pace I feel like and figure out when I am there how to get to Santiago for the following Sunday.

The reason I have chosen this option is:

It is a direct flight from Zurich at noon.
Whatever point I land at after walking from Bilbao someone in the nice tourist offices will be able to tell me which of the various options for train/plane make most sense. I could research the various bus/train sites and can do that on the Thursday of the week that I am there anyway...it will be a little trek on the bus on the Saturday night but either way there will have to be some non-walking travel if travelling from Zurich--Some point on the Camino--Santiago--Dublin over a week.
I am not too pushed about the compostella..I have three at home in little tubes that I am delighted to have but haven't framed or hung them yet...and I can keep my passport and fill in the places I miss on the Nord on some later trip.
I was drawn towards doing the Ingles but after a few too many beers in Zurich getting multiple flights and trains on the Sunday don't do it.
I was also drawn towards going to Porto and walking the piece of the Portugues from there up to Valencia but this just feels better.
Myself and my friend have booked a week in October to start in StJPdP and start with a week on the Frances route so I may as well leave that possibly as a route we can do together either in pieces over the years or hopefully in one fell swoop!

So as I said at the top there is no wrong answer. I am just wondering if there is an alternative I haven't thought about that makes much more sense for a week and within the parameters I am working to?

 

[Deleted member 3000]

You know about walking in Spain. I have walked the last 100km of all the routes into Santiago, and longer on some of the routes. It is always a dilemma, one that I often solve by walking the Camino Frances for whatever time I have just because it has the best infrastructure, and I am getting old and lazy! Bilbao sounds great, as does the Camino Portugues. On the other hand, walking with friends on the Camino Frances sounds great as well. None of this helps with your decision! Good luck deciding.

 

[NualaOC]

You've lots of options, and I quite like your idea of just walking from Bilbao and seeing where you end up. Rome2Rio.com will help you to figure out how to get to Santiago from your end point.

Alternatively, you could begin your walk a little closer to Santiago. There are direct buses from Bilbao (bus station) to quite a few towns and cities on Camino routes. One option might be to take a bus from Bilbao to Oviedo and walk part of the Camino Primitivo - which would bring you closer to Santiago airport.

I'm sure that others will come up with much more imaginative suggestions. Buen Camino and happy planning!

 

[Castilian]

Hi, Fearbocht! Welcome to the forum!

I am just wondering if there is an alternative I haven't thought about that makes much more sense for a week and within the parameters I am working to?

I would consider the option of walking from Ávila to Zamora on the Camino de Levante in which case you would fly from Zürich to Madrid.

On the plus side:

• More flights from Zürich to Madrid than to Bilbao what means more chances of finding a cheaper fare.
• There's frequent bus and train service from Madrid to Ávila.
• Ávila to Zamora is 6 days walking.
• There are direct trains and buses from Zamora to Santiago de Compostela.
• The old town of Ávila is in the UNESCO World Heritage list.
• If you walk at a slow pace and don't go all the way to Zamora, there are direct trains from Medina del Campo to Santiago de Compostela too.
• If you walk at a slow pace but not as slow as to end in Medina del Campo, you could end in Toro from where there's frequent bus service to Zamora.
• Zamora is a nice town to visit so if you want to avoid the long day from Toro to Zamora, take a bus (i.e.: don't stay overnight in Toro but don't go out of Toro without taking a look at its sights) and play the tourist in Zamora.

 

[Fearbocht]

Thank you all for your replies.

Castilian that avila to zamora suggestions is one I'd never have come up with in a million years....but it definitely has the cogs turning!

 

[Fearbocht]

Again thanks for the suggestions. I did the research and gave it a couple of night's sleep and decided to land in Bilbao, make my way to Portugalete and walk from there on the Monday morning and see where I ended up by foot, train or bus! The lure of the sea, the lack of any significant difference in air fares and the simple KISS motto(keep it simple stupid!) won out in the end! But the Avila to Zamora idea will probably make a nice week for some time in 2017! I can't wait now...children anticipate Christmas with less excitement than I am experiencing! 8 sleeps to my next Camino mini adventure!

 

[Castilian]

But the Avila to Zamora idea will probably make a nice week for some time in 2017!

Be aware that Ávila to Zamora is all in the meseta. I warn you because there's people who loves the meseta but there's also people that don't like it... Meseta means it's basically flat although sometimes you may find rolling terrain. It also means a lot of treeless terrain (agricultural fields).