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Solo Walking Journey from Porto, September 2022

The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Starting a solo walk from Porto September 2022. Completed the French way from St Jean 2015
Hi, a fellow peregrino from USA
I took a Portugese Camino (central route) from Porto in the Spring of 2019 and enjoyed a lot. Weather was great in entire time and added a walking to Finistere after Santiago.
If you have not seen much Lisbon and Porto, i would suggest to arrive Lisbon first and take a few days off to see the capital and take a train to Porto for another a few days' sightseeing before takeoff for the camino trail. It was a first time in Portugal for me and I really enjoyed memorable sightseeings both cities.
I am planning to go CF for this Spring which I took the year of 2017. BUEN CAMINO !!!
 
Walked from Porto to Santiago in September 2021 via the Coastal Route. While the coast was absolutely beautiful, I was frustrated by the walk. Having done the Frances in both 2018 & 2019, the "feel" of the walk was not very Camino-ish until after Redonela when we joined the Central Route. My biggest "gripe" was that Ola controlled nearly all of the vendors along the coast. So, if it was raining, obviously the tourists would not be at the beach. Therefore, the Ola's were closed.
While visually beautiful, it was not my favorite walk.
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
Starting a solo walk from Porto September 2022. Completed the French way from St Jean 2015
I have just postponed my Portuguese Camino from May to September due to the obvious, and the airline constantly amending my flight. September was my original intention, but swapped to May out of frustration not being able to leave Australia, and now back to my original plan. I will be walking the coastal route until Baiona if the weather is good, then bus back down the coast to head inland to Valenca / Tui. If the weather is raining, then will just head inland from Caminha. I will be arriving in Porto on 14 September, and plan to take up to 5 weeks to complete the journey, maybe we will see each other along the way.
 
Starting a solo walk from Porto September 2022. Completed the French way from St Jean 2015
Me too brother, my Camino Frances was cancelled in Sept 2020 due to you-know-what, and I think this year is finally a year that I can make it! I will take the time off work but not book the flights until 2 weeks before - lucky to live in the UK so plenty of flexibility for me. The latest JB book arrived yesterday so I'm getting very excited. Not decided on an exact date yet, but intend to walk from Porto. Hope to see you along the way!!
 
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
Be aware the first 3 days due north out of Porto involves surfaces of concrete, cobblestones and bitumen. If I did it again I would take the coastal route for those first days, and then rejoin the central path. Everyone's different though.
My other observation is that the CP north from Porto is very pleasant, but noticeably more 'urban' than the CF.
 
I leave from Porto on August 30th going the Coastal route for my first time
 
The only advice I can really offer, as our CP was 2919, was do not, under any circumstances, allow your self to leave beautiful Porto without trying many many of the custard tarts, Pasteis de Nata! Too good to miss!
 
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Be aware the first 3 days due north out of Porto involves surfaces of concrete, cobblestones and bitumen. If I did it again I would take the coastal route for those first days, and then rejoin the central path. Everyone's different though.
My other observation is that the CP north from Porto is very pleasant, but noticeably more 'urban' than the CF.
Thank you for sharing this! Where would you recommend starting? We're planning to take a bus to avoid this and save time (we only got two weeks off work and we don't want to rush).
Super appreciated,
Ultreia!
 
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Thank you for sharing this! Where would you recommend starting? We're planning to take a bus to avoid this and save time (we only got two weeks off work and we don't want to rush).
Super appreciated,
Ultreia!
Matosinhos is a good place to start the Camino. It's about 13 km north of the Porto cathedral, the traditional starting point, and avoids all that urban landscape leaving Porto. The No. 500 bus takes you right to the Ponte Movel over the Leça River at Matosinhos. Once you cross that bridge and head north, you're basically in the countryside on the coastal boardwalk. Very pretty from that point on.
 
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What great tip! Thank you so much!
Obrigadísima,
Ultreia!
It is a good advice to start in Matosinhos . Next to bus 500 which follows the Douro river you also can take the metro to stop Mercado in Matosinhos .Mercado is next to the bridge (ponte movíl ) over the Leixões harbour where the caminho leads on the coastal path With the boardwalks ( beware of recreative bikers using these boardwalks with you. They are very narrow so one has to make place for the other 😏) If you use poles on the boardwalk , you definitively will loose the rubber tips and it will be hardly possible to find them back in the sand underneath .
Result will be an irritant ticking of the metal tips during the rest of your caminho over more than 200 kms . Not nice for yourself nor for others walking in the same direction with you.

But by taking the bus or metro you will miss the beautifull walk from the Sé cathedral ,down the steps to the Douro riverbank and further on to the mouth of the Douro and the Atlantic ocean . Not to be missed . Pleasant 13 or so kms to Matosinhos

the waymarked path in Matosinhos passes some delicious fish restaurants and you miss those when you take the bus or the metro.
 
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These are some really fantastic tips!

I definitely don't want to miss the beauty of Sé, OR THE FOOD!!!! (Food is the second reason why I'm going, and the first is history (since you said "mercado" all I can think of is breakfast there because I know from my trip to Spain that breakfasts are not "wholesome" in that part of the world (I'll need more than coffee and pastry if you know what I mean hehe))).

I expect to give back to the forum when I do my caminho ❤️❤️ what a wonderful community.

Obrigadísima Albertinho!

Ultreia!
 
These are some really fantastic tips!

I definitely don't want to miss the beauty of Sé, OR THE FOOD!!!! (Food is the second reason why I'm going, and the first is history (since you said "mercado" all I can think of is breakfast there because I know from my trip to Spain that breakfasts are not "wholesome" in that part of the world (I'll need more than coffee and pastry if you know what I mean hehe))).

I expect to give back to the forum when I do my caminho ❤️❤️ what a wonderful community.

Obrigadísima Albertinho!

Ultreia!
Por nada 🙋‍♂️
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
These are some really fantastic tips!

I definitely don't want to miss the beauty of Sé, OR THE FOOD!!!! (Food is the second reason why I'm going, and the first is history (since you said "mercado" all I can think of is breakfast there because I know from my trip to Spain that breakfasts are not "wholesome" in that part of the world (I'll need more than coffee and pastry if you know what I mean hehe))).

I expect to give back to the forum when I do my caminho ❤️❤️ what a wonderful community.

Obrigadísima Albertinho!

Ultreia!
At the Mercado stop is a Mercado under a roof as there are many on the Iberic penninsular. at the corner is a small restaurant / coffe bar just before the stairs up to the bridge but I can’t remember they offered bacon and cheese sandwiches or bacon and eggs . When I worked in Spain nobody I knew was having breakfast at home.
when I stayed at our office in Madrid, all collegues went to the a small restaurant downstairs , ordered a strong black coffee and some churros , some fried dough stuff , dipped in chocolate . Still have nightmares about it 😊
in Portugal the breakfast most of the time is a croissant with confitura and expresso coffee( a bica) or for me café Americano , black coffee with water.
And a pastel de nata. So maybe I disappoint you now um pouquinho

pancakes with maple syrope or sausages with Worchestersaus and white beans I have never seen in Spain or it must have been in an English bar at the costa Brava, in Benidorm , at the costa del Sol or the Portuguese Algarve . Anyway not along the caminho Português .
 
Moito obrigada!
I CAN'T WAIT to eat any Portuguese food for breakfast and all day (and night because I'll be jetlagged)!!!!

Bolinho de bacalhau, arroz caldoso, polvo, tripas, feijoada de mariscos, arroz de mariscos, FAVAS, legumes, caldeirada de pexe, arroz de tomate, arroz de feijão, peixinhos da horta, sopa de castanhas, açorda, comida de rua, de mercado, de tasca....

Now I'm so hungry! 🤩
 
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These are some really fantastic tips!

I definitely don't want to miss the beauty of Sé, OR THE FOOD!!!! (Food is the second reason why I'm going, and the first is history (since you said "mercado" all I can think of is breakfast there because I know from my trip to Spain that breakfasts are not "wholesome" in that part of the world (I'll need more than coffee and pastry if you know what I mean hehe))).

I expect to give back to the forum when I do my caminho ❤️❤️ what a wonderful community.

Obrigadísima Albertinho!

Ultreia!
Breakfast in Portugal or Spain can be a trial if you need something more substantive than coffee and pastry. I remember one hotel in A Guarda, Spain, where we had to make a special request for the kitchen staff to boil some eggs for us on the dinner shift and hold them for us in the fridge for the next morning because all they had no kitchen staff in the morning and served nothing but bread and pastry. The place Albertinho mentioned sounds like a real winner.
 
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Thank you so much for the tip Ken!
You gave me a great idea, I'll take a small tupperware and pack my evening leftovers!!
At home I'm used to oatmeal which keeps hunger at bay until noon, so definitely pastries won't do for me with the added camino exertion 😱
 
Moito obrigada!
I CAN'T WAIT to eat any Portuguese food for breakfast and all day (and night because I'll be jetlagged)!!!!

Bolinho de bacalhau, arroz caldoso, polvo, tripas, feijoada de mariscos, arroz de mariscos, FAVAS, legumes, caldeirada de pexe, arroz de tomate, arroz de feijão, peixinhos da horta, sopa de castanhas, açorda, comida de rua, de mercado, de tasca....

Now I'm so hungry! 🤩
Você sabe bem a cozinha Portuguêsa 👌 eu não gosto de tudo que você mentiona. Tripa , yaggg
Você não diz Frango com piri piri , ou Franceszinha ( a bomba de cholesteról) Ou churiço grelhado em aguardente ( typico de Porto ) sardinhas grelhadas. Todas as pratas com bacalhau ( cada dia do ano tem outra receita. ) Bacalhau a bras por eixamplo
E quando você está perto de Coimbra se servem leitão assado . Delicioso.👌😎
 

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Minha mãe que paraíso culinário. sopa de castanha também? a franzecinha parece uma bomba 😱

Você sabe bem a cozinha Portuguêsa 👌 eu não gosto de tudo que você mentiona. Tripa , yaggg
Você não diz Frango com piri piri , ou Franceszinha ( a bomba de cholesteról) Ou churiço grelhado em aguardente ( typico de Porto ) sardinhas grelhadas. Todas as pratas com bacalhau ( cada dia do ano tem outra receita. ) Bacalhau a bras por eixamplo
E quando você está perto de Coimbra se servem leitão assado . Delicioso.👌😎
Minha mãe que paraíso culinário. Sopa de castanha também? Miam miam. A franzecinha parece uma bomba 😱 Eu quero estar lá agora!!!
 
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...the waymarked path in Matosinhos passes some delicious fish restaurants and you miss those when you take the bus or the metro....
A special thanks to you @Albertinho for all your advice, especially this one.

We found a place in Matisinhos off the beaten path called "O Malcriado".... mamma mia.

It was soooooooo good I came back to eat here on the way back too. Thank you!

That soupy rice, the carapau, the potatoes, the sardines, the tuna pathe, and other seafood... I still dream of it!

Pilgrims on this path would commit a sin to miss it!
 

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Hi Pam, my wife and I did Porto to Santiago as our second Camino 2018.
We used the Brierley as our guide book on both, mostly because I do enjoy very in depth, over the top detail.
Porto was a great start, and you can get your compestela passport at the cathedral.
We enjoyed Porto so much that after we finished the Camino, we took a bus back to spend a few days exploring the world heritage sight and enjoy port tasting and the Portuguese custard tarts…which must NOT be missed!
 

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