The Camino Walks Into Vogue Magazine

[Grousedoctor]

A short but pleasant article about a pilgrim’s experience on a guided Camino trip. Some nice pics.

A Journey Along the Camino de Santiago, Spain’s Most Famous Pilgrimage Route — Vogue

“Tu mochila es tan pesada como tus miedos,” says Leonardo San Sebastián, as he lifts the bottom of my backpack to check its weight. We’re standing before the Santuario de Santa María a Real do Cebreiro, an oval-shaped, thatched-roof church located in a mountaintop town that feels more likely to...

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[henrythedog]

Vogue? Well that’s the private rooms and bag transport sector booked solid then.

Well- written, I thought. The author has a decent understanding and doesn’t pretend to be doing anything other than a guided ‘highlights’ tour.

 

[Walkalong]

How many of those $7,000 packages they have to sell to cover the cost of the marketing placement?

 

[Annw]

I was skeptical but actually enjoyed the tone of this article.

 

[lt56ny]

A guided tour yes, pilgrimage no. $7,299 for 11 days wow

 

[gloria lowe]

I thought it was a nice article. What they paid is their business not ours.

 

[Bob Howard]

While reading National Geographic online, I came across their Camino tour ad. For the bargain price of $9,195, one can enjoy 10 days on the Camino Frances.

And it includes all gratuities, except for the expedition leader!

 

[lt56ny]

I thought it was a nice article. What they paid is their business not ours.

I am 99.99999% sure the author did not spend a penny on this tour. Vogue picked up the tab, or the tour company had an agreement with Vogue. So I personally could care less who paid or what people do with their money. The problem is the vast amount of wealth and how it is wasted, on or off the camino.

 

[henrythedog]

I am 99.99999% sure the author did not spend a penny on this tour. Vogue picked up the tab, or the tour company had an agreement with Vogue. So I personally could care less who paid or what people do with their money. The problem is the vast amount of wealth and how it is wasted, on or off the camino.

I see it slightly differently - although I don’t disagree with you; it’s a bit ‘robin hood’ - distributing wealth from the indisputably rich to the arguably more deserving.

The very wealthy have always existed, have been ‘on Camino ’ since its inception, and they certainly didn’t carry their own bags. In many cases someone had to pay for the relics we walk to.

 

[lt56ny]

I see it slightly differently - although I don’t disagree with you; it’s a bit ‘robin hood’ - distributing wealth from the indisputably rich to the arguably more deserving.

The very wealthy have always existed, have been ‘on Camino ’ since its inception, and they certainly didn’t carry their own bags. In many cases someone had to pay for the relics we walk to.

Thanks for your reply. I should have been more general about my comments. We all see it on the Camino but we see it even more as soon as we get out of bed in the morning. The gap between different economic classes grows wider and more profound each day. When I think of spending over $7,000 for a 10 day "camino" I personally find it offensive. What that money could do for others or to help those working for a better world for all of us. I know I can't say a word about how others choose to live or spend. It is my personal feeling about this.
I walk caminos of about 1000 kilometers every year. With that money I could do 2 including my air fare from Mexico and have money left over, walking between 45-50 days.
Oh yea I was almost born feeling this way. My dad was a union organizer, socialist, (accused of being a communist but he hated communism), fought in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade against Franco, etc etc. So I too am a socialist and a member of the Working Families Party and work for them and I worked for Bernie on the telephone even though I live in Mexico! haha so you see I can't help myself.

 

[TravellingMan22]

Thanks for your reply. I should have been more general about my comments. We all see it on the Camino but we see it even more as soon as we get out of bed in the morning. The gap between different economic classes grows wider and more profound each day. When I think of spending over $7,000 for a 10 day "camino" I personally find it offensive. What that money could do for others or to help those working for a better world for all of us. I know I can't say a word about how others choose to live or spend. It is my personal feeling about this.
I walk caminos of about 1000 kilometers every year. With that money I could do 2 including my air fare from Mexico and have money left over, walking between 45-50 days.
Oh yea I was almost born feeling this way. My dad was a union organizer, socialist, (accused of being a communist but he hated communism), fought in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade against Franco, etc etc. So I too am a socialist and a member of the Working Families Party and work for them and I worked for Bernie on the telephone even though I live in Mexico! haha so you see I can't help myself.

Isn’t it just a hierarchy though. We look at folks spending 7k, and think that’s crazy, but there are millions of folks out there who can’t afford to eat and clothe themselves who would see ‘us’ being ‘happy’ that we can do a camino (effectively a hobby) for say $2k and would feel that life is very unfair.

 

[lt56ny]

Isn’t it just a hierarchy though. We look at folks spending 7k, and think that’s crazy, but there are millions of folks out there who can’t afford to eat and clothe themselves who would see ‘us’ being ‘happy’ that we can do a camino (effectively a hobby) for say $2k and would feel that life is very unfair.

Yes of course there are always people less fortunate than me or you. That goes without saying. I have to save and deny myself other things throughout the year to walk each year. It is very important to me to walk and of course I am fortunate to be able to do this. But we end up going around and around in circles with a but, or what about, etc etc. My overall sentiment is not just about the camino and the disposable income of so many. For me tours like this are just an symptom of the disease. Just my opinion and we all have our own.

 

[trecile]

When I think of spending over $7,000 for a 10 day "camino" I personally find it offensive. What that money could do for others or to help those working for a better world for all of us.

That $7000 isn't just going up in smoke - it's employing people. Perhaps a single mother who really needs the job, a student working their way through school, or a retiree supplementing their Social Security payments. Plus the owners of small inns and restaurants in Spain. Which I would say is possibly a better use of the $7000 than if it were just sitting in a rich person's bank account.

 

[dick bird]

“It is the duty of the wealthy man,
To give employment to the artisan”
Hilaire Belloc
I don’t entirely accept the argument that extreme wealth and inequality can be justified by the fact that rich people spend lots of money. Very unequal societies tend to be more inefficient and dysfunctional. But we are moving off topic so I shall say no more.

 

[Kathor1]

A short but pleasant article about a pilgrim’s experience on a guided Camino trip. Some nice pics.

I agree, it is a short and pleasant article about the writer's personal experience on a guided Camino journey with a few nice pictures. BTW, I changed "pilgrim" to "writer" because nowhere in the article did she say that she considers herself to be a pilgrim; the contemporary concept of what this means in the context of Camino walking is not mentioned and not defined. When I saw the thread, I was hoping that nobody would click on the link to the travel agency and the price would not get mentioned. But it happened. Now all that is missing is a post where someone expresses their deep sadness about the writer and the participants in such journeys, and I think that we would have covered the topic as thoroughly - or shallowly - as in similar earlier threads.

I found the bit about the life of one of their three (Spanish?) guides interesting. From the article I thought that I could also tell that the writer had been made acquainted with the history and the cultural background of the pilgrimage road to Santiago in Spain; some may consider this as an asset of such guided journeys.

 

[trecile]

I don’t entirely accept the argument that extreme wealth and inequality can be justified by the fact that rich people spend lots of money

I agree. But as a percentage of income I think that wealthy people spend less than average income and poor people. It's the accumulation of wealth which keeps money from circulating in the society.

 

[lt56ny]

That $7000 isn't just going up in smoke - it's employing people. Perhaps a single mother who really needs the job, a student working their way through school, or a retiree supplementing their Social Security payments. Plus the owners of small inns and restaurants in Spain. Which I would say is possibly a better use of the $7000 than if it were just sitting in a rich person's bank account.

When we meet again I can expand on your statement and maybe shed a new light, or more accurately, a different perspective on why I almost completely disagree. Hope to see you down here in rainy, humid and hot PV soon!

 

[lt56ny]

I agree. But as a percentage of income I think that wealthy people spend less than average income and poor people. It's the accumulation of wealth which keeps money from circulating in the society.

You are right about the % of income but when you are speaking about people that have tens, hundreds of millions or billions of dollars it is almost impossible to spend less than the average person as they are accumulating wealth because of their investments. (Remember the investments that they make the average person would never have access to). They generate such great wealth from their investments, have paid for lobbyists to write tax codes that supply a substantial number of loopholes and work arounds for anyone who is wealthy up to the mega rich. In fact most of the richest people in America pay little or no taxes at all. So of course as a percentage of wealth they spend less, but that less is more than the combined income in many cases of thousands of families.

The Secret IRS Files: Trove of Never-Before-Seen Records Reveal How the Wealthiest Avoid Income Tax

ProPublica has obtained a vast cache of IRS information showing how billionaires like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Warren Buffett pay little in income tax compared to their massive wealth — sometimes, even nothing.

www.propublica.org

https://www.propublica.org/article/...ds-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax. Also there are millions of people who are one $600 or 700 unexpected expense that would necessitate less food or having to take less of life saving medications because they are out of money. A recent pool in Forbes Magazine shows 79% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck.

Living Paycheck To Paycheck Statistics 2024

As living expenses in the U.S. continue to rise and wages struggle to keep up, it’s unsurprising that Americans of all generations are having a hard time financially. For many, this means living paycheck to paycheck. But what does it really mean to live paycheck to paycheck, and what underlying f

www.forbes.com

I know that this post will probably be deleted so I will send it to you in a message.

 

[dick bird]

I agree. But as a percentage of income I think that wealthy people spend less than average income and poor people. It's the accumulation of wealth which keeps money from circulating in the society.

I think you are absolutely right there. Apart from any ethical issues, it is inefficient for wealth and income to be concentrated. And $7000 for a week’s holiday where you have to provide your own transport!

 

[Annw]

Though horrified by the degree to which wealth has been accumulated by a few, I would very much like to see any of them actually walk a Camino. Who knows; there could be a "road to Damascus" moment.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

That $7000 is for shared accommodation !

You need to ay another $1500 for your own room! Considering the costs along the Camino Frances for even the best hotels and meals for 11 days, I think the company is making a lot of money. And I kind of doubt they are paying their employees astoundingly well.

It probably cost a lot for that product placement in Vogue, though....

But it is what I experienced along the Camino Frances recently. It's a tourist holiday for many people. Maybe in some sense that even includes me and many of us, although on a lower budget. This is just an extreme example. To each his own.

 

[Perambulating Griffin]

I just want to say that I love the thoughtfulness of this thread, inspired by the unspoken assumptions working in the lede. I happen to lean very far to the socialist side... *and*... I could make an argument that going to Spain for an affordable sojourn in which I spend very little is still exploitation of the rural/agricultural settings that comprise the bulk of the areas we walk through.... *or* I could argue that maintaining low costs makes the saunter accessible to even those lowest income folk who *live* in Spain and Portugal (though the issue of time poverty would be an unresolved problem in that argument). Time poverty does, however, account for the bimodal age distribution of walkers (recent university grads and the retired with far fewer 30's-40's people out there for any lengthy amount of time).
I note that I have learned in my last few visits that many from highly economically unequal countries in Latin America are moving to the northern parts of Spain for their relative equity in costs of living, low rates of crime and greater enjoyment of health and quality of life. How did I learn this? I kept asking my hospitaleros, taxi drivers, bar-keepers what had brought them to this wee spot... and the answer was the same over and over...
TBH with the expensive pre-arranged tours, I do just worry that it's not a pilgrimage route anymore (and to the extent that the roads have been trades routes since the Romans built them, I think "oh well"...). But when things become sexy, easy and appealing but still promise a kind of (false) solitude, peace and so forth... then we will soon see that over-tourism is a serious problem.
Side note: Portugal had to kibosh the Golden Visa for foreign buyers of real estate.... driving up the prices to the point that the Portuguese locals could not afford their own land. I was saddened but not surprised to see the results of the Golden Visa programme for the Portuguese people on the streets of Porto just last week.

 

[dick bird]

The other point I noticed is that ‘gratuities’ aka tips are included - this in a country where you almost never tip.

 

[Bob Howard]

Isn’t it just a hierarchy though. We look at folks spending 7k, and think that’s crazy, but there are millions of folks out there who can’t afford to eat and clothe themselves who would see ‘us’ being ‘happy’ that we can do a camino (effectively a hobby) for say $2k and would feel that life is very unfair.

Exactly. How many starving kids in the Sudan could be fed if the OP donated the $1000’s he spends on his Caminos. And I would wager the person who can spend $7000 on a tour likely gives far more to charitable causes than those here complaining about “rich people”. I am about as liberal and far left as one can get, and I find the OP’s premise preposterous. It ain’t our Camino—it’s everyone’s irrespective of net worth. And if that statement is not inflammatory enough, here’s another one: I always tip, including leaving a few Euros on the pillow in the morning for the person who has to clean up after us.

 

[dick bird]

Re tipping in Spain; read what George Orwell had to say about it in ‘Homage to Catalonia’. He didn’t approve.

 

[VNwalking]

Though horrified by the degree to which wealth has been accumulated by a few, I would very much like to see any of them actually walk a Camino. Who knows; there could be a "road to Damascus" moment.

Exactly this. But in all honesty I'm not holding my breath.

I note that I have learned in my last few visits that many from highly economically unequal countries in Latin America are moving to the northern parts of Spain for their relative equity in costs of living, low rates of crime and greater enjoyment of health and quality of life. How did I learn this? I kept asking my hospitaleros, taxi drivers, bar-keepers what had brought them to this wee spot... and the answer was the same over and over...

Interesting, and not surprising.

 

[TravellingMan22]

Though horrified by the degree to which wealth has been accumulated by a few, I would very much like to see any of them actually walk a Camino. Who knows; there could be a "road to Damascus" moment.

I am sure rich people are just as capable of walking a Camino as poor people! Check out the the folks who have climbed Everest.


Can’t help seeing the irony of this forum complaining about people spending 7k to do a Camino when most folks with airfare are probably spending 3-5k USD anyway. Maybe folks should stay at home and donate the money to something worthwhile rather than spending money to walk a dusty track on Spain. I think saying look at old ‘poor me’ getting 2 Caminos for $5k, aren’t I poor, whilst those folks have the temerity to pay 7K in a bit daft!

Anyway back to the threads re airfares, private rooms, restaurant recommendations , shared taxis and so on!!

 

[Perambulating Griffin]

Though horrified by the degree to which wealth has been accumulated by a few, I would very much like to see any of them actually walk a Camino. Who knows; there could be a "road to Damascus" moment.

Indeed; where I live there was a very wealthy industrialist, a member of one of the local Catholic parishes, and somewhere around 2007-2010 (?) he walked from Sarria to Santiago... without having to think about his budget. What means did he use? I have no idea... but that short walk so disdained by so many produced in him a real commitment to sharing the wealth.

He donated 4 acres of good farming land on the site of an old sugar beet factory to a local Catholic Worker community outreach centre. They used the acreage to grow herbs, tender greens, vegetables, berries, and fruit trees. Until 2022 that food was used to supply their outreach kitchens, community cafe, and their CSA market boxes (that funded other non-profit outreach work).

At the height of the pandemic, the same man saw the need to do better than to have people losing homes and employment to pandemic crises living in tents throughout the region. He donated a large industrial site that he had vacant, including a banquet building that had kitchen facilities and washrooms and built "A Better Tent City".

Unfortunately the benefactor died from a sudden, aggressive cancer, and his kids ended up in legal hot water because they had run a pile of his businesses into the ground BUT, ABTC continues, and now employs a full-time, on site coordinator, provides 42 homes, has on site visits from public health nurses 3 times a week, provides addictions counselling and recovery support, etc. etc.

It's far more than many who are peevish about anything or anyone causing a disruption or inconvenience in "my camino" and yet feel superior for having put in more kilometres on a more limited budget.

It's *your camino* was never meant to be some blissed out yoga trip with hiking thrown in.... Too many people miss that point. Perhaps they should go listen a little to Fr. Manny at the Pilgrim Office chapel as he explains that "my/your camino" refers not only to the joys we each experience as unique, or the methods and means, but also the *burdens, difficulties, and obligations* that make up the larger path that is our road through the rest of life.

A selfish and self-absorbed person can be so on a limited budget as easily as a wealthy person can consciously deliver what s/he does not need to those who do.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

It seems to me that the question is not whether people are spending too much money for their Caminos, but whether a few businesses are charging too much.

What are you getting for that price? Maybe you get little side dishes of truffles with every meal?

Or a personal guide? It sounded from that article like the author may have had a guide all to himself? That might account for the cost.

 

[VNwalking]

What are you getting for that price?

One I looked at recently (link from another thread here) had a sag wagon, two guides, and a doctor. Not to mention 5-star accommodation. None of that comes cheap.