Via de la Plata or Levante or Mózarabe

[Streetfood]

Since 2016 I've walked a number of the major Camino routes - Frances x 2, Via de la Plata, Portuguese (inland & coastal). Norte, Primitivo. My favourite is undoubtedly the VdlP because of its wide-open spaces, big sky (I'm Australian!) & the feeling of achievement & empowerment I gained travelling a route with less infrastructure & support.

In March 2025 I'll turn 70 & intend to celebrate my birthday whilst walking another 'longish', less-travelled Camino. Should I repeat the VdlP or try either the Camino Mózarabe starting in Almeria or the Levante from Valencia?
Many thanks for all inputs.

 

[peregrina2000]

In March 2025 I'll turn 70 & intend to celebrate my birthday whilst walking another 'longish', less-travelled Camino.

What a great way to celebrate that birthday. I had planned to walk the Lana from Alicante into Santiago for my 70th birthday, but that was going to be in April 2020. I have since been able to walk the Lana into Burgos, but have more home complications now so I can’t forsee another 6 or 7 week walk. You are luckky! Seize the opportunity. I think walking from Mediterranean (Valencia) to Atlantic (Finisterre/Muxia) would be a dramatic reaffirmation of life as you start your 8th decade!

Whether you walk the Vdlp or the Mozárabe, you will wind up back on the Plata/Sanabrés. The Mozárabe comes in in Mérida, and the Levante in Zamora. So part of the decision could be based on how much of a “new camino” do you want to do, knowing that in both cases you will be back on your beloved Vdlp/Sanabrés for the end.

I will throw out a few comparisons of the Mozárabe and Levante.

Both have lots of wide open spaces and lots of castles.

The Levante probably goes through more interesting towns with beautiful plazas, churches, etc, though the Mozárabe has its fair share.

The pilgrim infrastructure on the Mozárabe, at least till Granada, is by far the best of any camino I’ve walked. The Almería association takes care of all the albergues, they are well-spaced and well-maintained. And the warmth and kindness of the Association members is very special, they will follow you all the way to Santiago! On the Levante, there is surprisingly good pilgrim infrastructure, maybe as many as half of the stages up to Zamora can be done in albergues. The non-albergue accommodation is high quality and not too expensive.

The Levante has some really beautiful days in high terrain (mainly the days before Ávila), whereas the Mozárabe skirts but doesn’t always enter the mountains.

More olive groves on the Mozárabe; more big open fields of grain and grapes on the Levante.

I can’t believe I walked the Levante more than a decade ago, but that’s what my forum post indicates. For the Mozárabe, a little band of forum members met up in Almería in mid-April in 2018. We didn’t all walk together, but we had a good time meeting up and had some group posts. I was alone from Granada to Mérida, and enjoyed it tremendously, except for one very dangerous highway stretch after Medellín.

I’ve got links to my blogs below in my signature, but they are more for friends and family than a source of camino info. Would love to know what you decide and how you make the choice!

 

[Streetfood]

Hi peregrina2000 & thanks for the rapid & very helpful response. Soon after I commenced planning this adventure I realized that the selection of a route was going to be problematic. Here are my initial thoughts:
1. Although I really enjoyed the VdlP & repeating that journey (I walked it in 2018) should be relatively straight-forward & less stressful due to familiarity, my nature & intuition pushes me towards a route that I haven't walked previously.
2. I have great memories of Salamanca (I spent 5 days there recovering & studying the Spanish language after a soaking & hypothermia on the plain after Fuenterroble de Salvatierra) & want to return. So maybe the Mozarabe?
3. But the Levante starts in Valencia & passes through both Grenada & Toledo, all of which are awesome cities. So maybe the Levante?
If I did walk the Levante to Zamora I could always bus or train back to Salamanca (or perhaps there is a deviation from Avila to Salamanca?) & then continue on the VdlP.
Thoughts?

 

[kiwi-couple]

or perhaps there is a deviation from Avila to Salamanca?

The Caminos Teresianos runs from Ávila to Alba de Tormes then on to Salamanca. The first day of the Teresianos, from Ávila to Gotarrendura, is shared by the Camino Levante.

 

[peregrina2000]

3. But the Levante starts in Valencia & passes through both Grenada & Toledo, all of which are awesome cities. So maybe the Levante?

It’s the Mozárabe that passes through Granada, not the Levante. The Levante passes through Toledo and Ávila. Both of those are pretty amazing. And its starting point, Valencia, is another five-star city, IMHO.

The Caminos Teresianos runs from Ávila to Alba de Tormes then on to Salamanca. The first day of the Teresianos, from Ávila to Gotarrendura, is shared by the Camino Levante.

This would be a great way to configure the route so that you got from the Levante to Salamanca and then continued on the Vdlp/Sanabrés. I haven’t walked it, but the official website looks very informative.

One big difference between the Levante and the Mozárabe, which I forgot to mention, is the number of pilgrims. I would be surprised if you met anyone else on the Levante, whereas the Association is doing such a great job of extending hospitality that this past November there were 43 pilgrims who started in Almería. That’s not exacty a mob either, but it does mean that your chances of running into someone are a bit greater, if that’s important to you.

 

[Sue127]

Since 2016 I've walked a number of the major Camino routes - Frances x 2, Via de la Plata, Portuguese (inland & coastal). Norte, Primitivo. My favourite is undoubtedly the VdlP because of its wide-open spaces, big sky (I'm Australian!) & the feeling of achievement & empowerment I gained travelling a route with less infrastructure & support.

In March 2025 I'll turn 70 & intend to celebrate my birthday whilst walking another 'longish', less-travelled Camino. Should I repeat the VdlP or try either the Camino Mózarabe starting in Almeria or the Levante from Valencia?
Many thanks for all inputs.

I'll be following this thread with interest as my two choices at the moment are the Mozarabe or the the Levante. I won't be able to complete either all the way to SdC in one go, because of time constraints but am very excited to be facing a new challenge, sometime in early spring,

 

[dagomez]

I highly recommend the Mozarabe for all the reasons others have mentioned. I did it in early spring and the views of the snow capped Sierra Nevada mountains were stunning. The legacy left by the Moors from a cultural, architectural etc standpoint is incredible. Nely and the association do the best job of any Camino organization.

 

[Sue127]

I highly recommend the Mozarabe for all the reasons others have mentioned. I did it in early spring and the views of the snow capped Sierra Nevada mountains were stunning. The legacy left by the Moors from a cultural, architectural etc standpoint is incredible. Nely and the association do the best job of any Camino organization.

Did you start from Almería or Malaga ?

 

[Greg Petropoulos]

In Spring 2022 I walked the Levante to Zamora. Then to Granja de M. where the VdlP splits, then carried on Sañabre varient to DdC. It was a great hike, though saw very few Pilgrims until Zamora. I prefer the VdlP, yet the Levante is a close second. They both shared the variation of region & geography that was very enjoyable.

 

[Van2023]

I did the Sanabres (Salamanca to SdC) in May 2023. It was lovely ... open space, no rushes for albergues, different landscapes, even craving for coffee con leche in the morning was forgiving ^_^ I like it so much that i am planning a slow walk Mozarabe (Almeria to Merida) in April. Definitely will check with Nely before I go. Thanks guys for the inf.

 

[kiwi-couple]

I haven’t walked it, but the official website looks very informative.

About the Caminos Teresianos - we walked it late October and posted about it here. We used the guide written by @Elle Bieling, which is fantastic. There is a link to Elle's site in post #6. We loved this short route in St Teresa's footsteps. It is a very quiet route and we loved the solitude it gave us - we didn't see any other pilgrims.

 

[WisTom]

I walked the Mozárabe this past March from Granada to Mérida. I enjoyed the many acres of olive orchards and the small towns with Moorish influence along the way. However, the depopulation of rural areas continues and accommodations can be limited. For example, leaving Córdoba, Gronze suggests two stages from there to VIllaharta. The intermediate stop in Cerro Muriano has only one place to stay and it was filled with highway workers (not an uncommon theme - very limited accommodations booked by road or utility crews). The result was a 40km stage to Villaharta, followed the next day by a rather difficult (but beautiful) 34km stage through the Sierra Morena with no services until Alcaracejos. I encountered few -almost no other - pilgrims along the way, particularly after Córdoba. Part of this is due to few annual pilgrims on the the route and part, I'm sure, is due to the time of the year. I'll be better able to compare the two routes after this coming February when I plan on walking the Levante from Valencia to Santiago.

 

[peregrina2000]

The intermediate stop in Cerro Muriano has only one place to stay and it was filled with highway workers (not an uncommon theme - very limited accommodations booked by road or utility crews).

That’s a good point. This year on the Lana, @C clearly and I arrived in Cifuentes only to find that all of the private places (two or three according to memory) were filled with workers who come twice a year to do a cleaning/inspection of the nuclear power plants near Trillo. Luckily there was an albergue there, which we were finally able to enter, but only after the mayor came out to help us find the hidden key!

This is also an issue on the Salvador, where decommissioning. some electrical plants and shutting down coal mines has resulted in some squeezing. So it’s good to check ahead.

 

[cindyjo]

Hi Streetfood, My sister and I have just returned from Spain after walking the Levante from Valencia to Zamora. I would suggest that you consider the time of year if you choose the Levante. Our walk included a lot of walking through, around, and past fields being plowed or vacant. In spring I suspect there’s sunflower fields bright with flowers and the various fruit and nut trees are in bloom.

We met a total of 5 pilgrims and none along the way while we were walking. All but one of the pilgrims left the Camino early. If company while walking and eating meals together, are what you enjoy, this Camino may not be the best choice at least in October/November. The infrastructure is not as hardy as other caminos I’ve walked, although we were able to find accommodations. Some alberques were closed and people kept asking us “why are you walking in November?”

The castles and windmills along the Camino are wonderful and interesting to explore. Avila and Toledo stand out in my mind, but there are other interesting places along the way as well. Valencia is an amazing place and worth exploring as is Zamora.

My sister and I got lost a few times and even needed to bushwhack once or twice because of fallen trees and flooded streams, but we enjoyed every minute of our adventure. At 75 (we’re twins) we continue to look for challenges and at times this Camino certainly fit the bill.

 

[peregrina2000]

My sister and I have just returned from Spain after walking the Levante from Valencia to Zamora. I would suggest that you consider the time of year if you choose the Levante.

I agree that the Levante is likely to be a bit barren and brown outside of springtime. One of my most enduring memories of my May Levante was the emerald green fields surrounded by bright red poppies. Lots of beautiful wildflowers too!

I met two Frenchmen on Day 3 or 4 and we walked into Santiago together. They were the only pilgrims I saw between Valencia and Zamora, where the Levante merged with the VDLP/Sanabrés.

 

[Macker]

I did the Via de la Plata in 2018 (part 1: 516 km and part 2: 485 km) and the Camino de Levante (1212 km) in 2019. My preferred hiking time in Spain is February to April or October to November because of the expected temperatures. February/March is the rainy season in Spain. You should be prepared for that.

There are detailed travel reports on the 3 hiking tours in my hiking blog. However, my blog is in German. If you want, you can have the blog translated into the language you want.

 

[Macker]

In March 2025 I'll turn 70 & intend to celebrate my birthday whilst walking another 'longish', less-travelled Camino. Should I repeat the VdlP or try either the Camino Mózarabe starting in Almeria or the Levante from Valencia?
Many thanks for all inputs.

Ruta de la Lana? See the map in my blog.