r/CaminoDeSantiago

I've never done the Camino before but I would like to do the Frances route this fall. I will only have 14-15 days of walking. I definitely want to start at the Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port and end at Santiago. I know there are likely strong opinions about not skipping portions of the Camino but I have to work with what I've got. To those of you who have experience, would it make most sense to spend 7 days walking from SJPDP, transport to 7 days out from Santiago? Or is there another more well-thought-out method?

Hi!

I’m starting the Camino from Porto at the beginning of September and I’d like to do the Spiritual Way. Do I need to book the boat in advance, and if so, how far ahead should I book it?

Thanks!

is coffee pretty abundant in the mornings on the Frances? Is getting coffee upon leaving a town out of the question because it's so early? what's the vibe? I am heavily dependent upon black coffee and walking in October....

Looking ahead to possibly walking the Invierno next year and I am desperate to get my shoes and socks properly sorted because nothing keeps me blister free as of yet.

Background about my anatomy: I have tibial torsion in both legs so I over pronate.

First Camino: I wore Altra Lone Peaks one size bigger. I heal locked my laces. I double socked with Cool Max toe socks and Darn Tough merino wool. I used foot glide before I put my socks on. I had blisters on the bottom of almost every toe including under my big toe callus on my fight foot. Blister in between big toe and second toe. I would tape blisters but didn't feel hot spots until a blister already had formed. Left foot thankfully unscathed.

Second Camino: I wore the same Lone Peaks. I added Sole brand insoles to help with the over pronation which caused foot and ankle pain on the Primitivo inclines. I still double socked but switched out the Cool Max liners for Injini merino toe socks. Everything else was the same. This time I had no over pronation pain but this time I got the most terrible blisters on both feet, under most of my toes and in between both big and second toes. With toe socks.I even lost a toenail because of a blister. As before I taped any blister with KT tape.

So wth?! I don't know what I can change up to save my feet next year. Do I have to pretape every toe? Is it as simple as the shoes? Were they too big? Was it too hot because both were summer Caminos.? That I can't change. Anyone have any ideas? It seems I'm doing everything right but I'm still destroying my feet.

Thanks all!

Packing for my Camino next week Portuguese coastal route and I am confused on how to pair down clothes

Currently I am going to pack two outfits for walking (top, shorts, long sleeve) and one pair of pants to throw over for cold moments

What do I pack for being back at hostel and for bed?
Should there be one casual outfit and one pajama outfit?

Or do people wear their walking fit to bed?
Do we need a “nicer” outfit for going out and going to dinner? This would probably be a lightweight flowy dress for me.

Hello, I fly to Biarritz on 17th September and on 18th I will go by bus to SJPdP. Because I didn’t find some early flight to Biarritz, I cannot go to SJPdP unfortunatelly during afternoon and start early morning. Could you share if you did it same as me or you go to SJPdP during afternoon and how? I found only expressbourricot.com but this is too expensive for one person 🥹

Hi all, i’ll start this by saying that i’ve read a few threads on different sleeping set ups already, and I’m specifically looking for advice from those who have walked the Camino Portugues in October (i’ll be blending the coastal and inland routes and plan to do a mix of private and public albuergues - whatever is available and convenient).

Which out of these options below seems like the best option for weight, pack space, and affordability? I already have the liner and am deciding whether to buy anything new. I hope to take a 26L pack, as my 40L seems quite large.

Option A) taking only a silk sleeping bag liner, and warm clothing layers to sleep in if necessary.

Option B) taking the silk sleeping bag liner plus purchasing an ultralight down quilt. (i have seen some used for $120 cad, would prefer not to spend $3-400 cad if possible)

Option C) purchasing this $99 light sleeping bag from MEC (aptly named the Camino) instead of the liner or the liner/quilt combo.

https://www.mec.ca/en/product/6036-653/mec-camino-traveller-1522c-sleeping-bag-unisex?colour=Forest+Haze%2FBalsam

I am willing to do 1-2 colder albergue nights if they do not provide a blanket, but would prefer to bring option B or C if people think I would have more than a night or two feeling chilly.

Thanks all for your feedback!

Holaaa! Me estoy planteando andar el camino por primera vez! Estaba pensando empezar sobre el 1 de octubre en Oporto. Estara bien el tiempo? Cuanto os soleis gastar en todo el camino? Me podeis dar algunos consejos? Tengo muchas ganas!!!

I have around a month to do the camino. I definitely want to do Porto-Santiago, but want to do longer. However, I have seen that people didn't necessarily like Lisbon-Porto?

What do you think? Is there a nice route from Lisbon through to Porto?

How can I spend a month?

Both as a curiosity and getting something memorable, I am considering buying and experiencing a my first Camino in Espadrilles sometime in the next few years.

1. Is this a bad idea?

2. Are they cheap as they say and where would one get one?

3. Will they survive a Camino?

4. Any special care needed?

Hello! I am thinking of switching socks for my second Camino - I didn’t get a lot of blisters the first time when walking with Falke, but the ones I did get were annoying… Outer side of my heel, due to rubbing because my ankles drop inwards. My physio now recommended me to try Wrightsocks! Who here has walked the Camino with them? and which model did you take? Coolmesh seems nice to prevent hot feet, but perhaps the slightly thicker material of the stride is better? :)

Hi everyone! My girlfriend and I are planning to walk the Camino Francés next year, starting in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port around mid-June and hoping to arrive in Santiago around July 23–24. We know June/July will be warm and busy, especially with 2027 being a Holy Year, so we’ve decided to book at least some of our accommodations ahead of time.
I’m about halfway through booking our route, but I’m starting to run into towns like Hornillos del Camino and Bercianos del Real Camino where Booking.com and other sites are showing little to no availability for our dates.
For those who have walked the Francés or booked this far in advance: is it likely that these places are actually already booked, or do many albergues simply not open their reservations until later?
I’m also wondering how much we really need to worry about pre-booking the smaller towns. Are there usually municipal/parochial albergues that keep beds for walk-ins, even when everything online looks sold out?
We’d prefer to have accommodations planned since we’re walking as a couple and have a fairly fixed schedule, but I also don’t want to panic and start changing stages if a lot of the availability simply hasn’t been released yet.
Any advice from people who have dealt with this would be greatly appreciated. Buen Camino!

Hello everyone,

Me and a friend are going to start the caminho next week but we are getting to Porto by bus at 4:30 and start walking to Póvoa de Varzim at that time but where can we find somewhere open to get a stamp so the people at the albergue know that we started there, does the Campanhã bus station has a stamp or somewhere else has it? And we are also hopping to leave the albergues at 5:30 should we stamp the place we are leaving the day before and stamp the rest in the way to the next town when the stores open?

Hi! I am a little overwhelmed by the number of app options! I am hoping to save some albergues that I am interested in staying at. Is there an app that allows you to do this, so I can see where I have saved in the area I will be heading the next day?

Hey everyone!
I’m landing in Porto in mid-September and planning to walk the Litoral Route combined with the Variante Espiritual.
My initial plan was to start right from Porto, but I read that takes 13–15 days. I’m looking to shorten it to around 10 days, with a daily limit of 25 km/day.

Where is the best city to skip ahead to and officially start walking so I don't miss the best scenic stages?

Are there any "must-see" coastal sections north of Porto that I definitely shouldn't skip?

I'm a bit nervous about missing out on good coastal stretches by skipping the beginning—is Viana do Castelo or somewhere else the ideal jump-off point?

Also, is there some hostel/albergue that you would reccomend along the way?

Thanks in advance for the advice!

I'm training to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain (500 miles total, light backpack, \~12 miles/day) in Spring 2027.
I'm a 60 year old woman, and I walked it with my family in 2022, then got long COVID. Literally thought I could never do this again, but then recovered late 2025. Still a bit concerned I might have setbacks, though.

l've been training to increase my stamina and mileage. Last weekend I went on my first 12 mile walk! I can't tell you how much this meant to me psychologically; evidence that I can perhaps do this again?! The trick, of course, is to walk these long days in sequence.

So, as a lead-in to the Camino, this Autumn I'll be walking the California Missions Trail, which starts in San Diego and ends in Sonoma. It has 21 missions to visit, sprinkled along its path. We will walk 230 miles only, at about 12 miles/day. So, I wanted to introduce myself here, and state my goals, to keep myself accountable! Right now I'm struggling with long training days b/c it's 105 degrees outside. I'm getting out at 5:00 AM to get them in.

Anyway, hello 👋 friends!

What’s the best multi-use soap you’d recommend? Tested a bar of dr bronner’s and it wore out very quickly. We’re doing a two week Camino, traveling from the US.

I heard that there are many proud zionists walking the Camino, spitting and yelling at “free Palestine” symbols or t-shirts… is it a general problem in these times?

I have question for the experienced guys here...
I'm about to walk part of Camino De Santiago starting from León and I'm really confused on what shoes to get!? I want to go for something like Hoka challenger but since I'm walking the route in mid to late October I'm worried there could be a lot of rain and pottentialy snow on the higher parts. Help me avoid an eventual mistake <3