Camino Norte advice

[hikerat1]

I am planning my 4th Camino, next spring, the del Norte from Santander, and have heard from others that Cantabria and Asturias are poorly marked with markers that do not provide directional arrows. Any town or city I should take a day off in? Are any coastal deviations worth the extra time and distance? any don't miss cultural, or historic sites? should I plan to head on the trail to the airport & Santiago or go into Azura to Santiago ?

anything else
Thanks
Randy PA USA

 

[donalomahony]

Enjoy your planning. Many of us here use Gronze for planning

Camino del Norte | Gronze.com

www.gronze.com

The text machine translates into English using Chrome.

I found the route generally well marked, less so than the Frances, but adequate across all regions.

The coastal variations are well worth it especially if the weather us good.

Spring? Well check the Easter 2025 dates, some albergues "may" not open before then. Keep an eye on Gronze, it's updated as information becomes available to them.

One ofvthe Camino apps may be useful eg @wisepilgrim

 

[trecile]

Spring? Well check the Easter 2025 dates, some albergues "may" not open before then

Last year on the Norte I discovered that some albergues don't open until May or June.

 

[Shazzza]

I am planning my 4th Camino, next spring, the del Norte from Santander, and have heard from others that Cantabria and Asturias are poorly marked with markers that do not provide directional arrows. Any town or city I should take a day off in? Are any coastal deviations worth the extra time and distance? any don't miss cultural, or historic sites? should I plan to head on the trail to the airport & Santiago or go into Azura to Santiago ?

anything else
Thanks
Randy PA USA

I just returned from the Norte. It was hard(!) but so beautiful!! Download the Buen Camino app just in case you take a wrong turn. I found the path to be very well marked in all 4 regions of the Norte. I did go the wrong way a couple times, pulled out my app and found my way.

Yes! Take ALL the coastal routes! If you are doing the Norte, I assume one reason is to see the stunning coastline so absolutely. I took every one and created my own too. Even in the pouring rain covered in mud. So worth it.

If you want a town that has lots going on, Bilbao is good for a rest day. But, that’s before Santander. Gijón is another big city with lots to see. If you want a quiet rest day, in a smaller village Santillana Del Mar is quite amazing. Very historical. I also really like Llanes! It all depends what you prefer to do.

I would stick with Arzua to Santiago. I stayed in a farmhouse outside Arzua (away from crowds) and in a Rua my last night. Some say to walk closer to Santiago for your last night. Not a bad idea so you can get into Santiago early and beat the crowds. I arrived at 10am and it was getting busy.

Buen Camino!

 

[mattythedog]

I am on del Norte now with 4 days to Santiago. It is much better marked than last year. Many new arrows. Wise Pilgrim app is more accurate than last year, but still not perfect.

 

[wynrich]

Amen to all those who urged you to take any possible coastal variation. Although, if I remember most of the coastal variations are BEFORE Santander. In general, I think the best coastal walking is before Santander. And I second person above who said Llanes is a nice place to spend more time. That is if you want a small quiet town. My husband and I spent a week there this past spring and loved it. There are several beaches, an amazing cliff-side walk, good places to eat, really nice small town.

 

[CindyMX]

I second the recommendation for a stopover in Llanes. It was my favorite place along the Norte. My husband’s favorite town was Luarca. So many beautiful places to see, you’ll have a wonderful experience. ¡Buen Camino!

 

[Garry Collins]

I am planning my 4th Camino, next spring, the del Norte from Santander, and have heard from others that Cantabria and Asturias are poorly marked with markers that do not provide directional arrows. Any town or city I should take a day off in? Are any coastal deviations worth the extra time and distance? any don't miss cultural, or historic sites? should I plan to head on the trail to the airport & Santiago or go into Azura to Santiago ?

anything else
Thanks
Randy PA USA

Loved LLanes where I had extra 2 nights Llanes Hostel ., lovely Paula manageress extremely helpful Great town and beautiful beach . Also Pilgrims restaurant Europa .

 

[Daddyfrog]

Agree with pretty much everything already said. Don't miss the Coastal variations! Plenty of great small towns. We loved Llanes, Ribadasella, Luarca, and Navia in particular, but pretty well every town has something to offer.

 

[Simperegrina]

Amen to all those who urged you to take any possible coastal variation. Although, if I remember most of the coastal variations are BEFORE Santander. In general, I think the best coastal walking is before Santander. And I second person above who said Llanes is a nice place to spend more time. That is if you want a small quiet town. My husband and I spent a week there this past spring and loved it. There are several beaches, an amazing cliff-side walk, good places to eat, really nice small town.

There are lots of great coastal variations after Santander, not least the amazing one westwards from Santander itself, avoiding the very dull official route to Boo de Pielagos

 

[trecile]

There are lots of great coastal variations after Santander, not least the amazing one westwards from Santander itself, avoiding the very dull official route to Boo de Pielagos

I agree. Walking along the coast from Santander is amazing!

 

[wynrich]

There are lots of great coastal variations after Santander, not least the amazing one westwards from Santander itself, avoiding the very dull official route to Boo de Pielagos

Ah, I had forgotten about that one. Unfortunately we missed it. Thanks for pointing out my mis-information.

 

[Chris Aston]

I just returned from the Norte. It was hard(!) but so beautiful!! Download the Buen Camino app just in case you take a wrong turn. I found the path to be very well marked in all 4 regions of the Norte. I did go the wrong way a couple times, pulled out my app and found my way.

Yes! Take ALL the coastal routes! If you are doing the Norte, I assume one reason is to see the stunning coastline so absolutely. I took every one and created my own too. Even in the pouring rain covered in mud. So worth it.

If you want a town that has lots going on, Bilbao is good for a rest day. But, that’s before Santander. Gijón is another big city with lots to see. If you want a quiet rest day, in a smaller village Santillana Del Mar is quite amazing. Very historical. I also really like Llanes! It all depends what you prefer to do.

I would stick with Arzua to Santiago. I stayed in a farmhouse outside Arzua (away from crowds) and in a Rua my last night. Some say to walk closer to Santiago for your last night. Not a bad idea so you can get into Santiago early and beat the crowds. I arrived at 10am and it was getting busy.

Buen Camino!

Instead of turning inland at Ribadeo, continue on the Ruta del Mar to Ferrol and from there, the Ingles to SdC. Stunning coastal scenery on the RdM and I only saw one other pilgrim during the 8 days I walked from Ribadeo to Ferrol. Information can be found on the Cicerone guide Camino Ingles and Ruta do Mar.

 

[ChadEstes]

Hi fellow pilgrims! I'm planning on walking the Norte with my wife and one of my daughters next June. I'm hoping to take many of the coastal variants. I'm curious which apps are good at showing the different variants. Thanks for any help!

 

[trecile]

Mapy.cz is great for following both the official Camino and non-official coastal variants.

I recommend reading this thread too:

Thread 'Coastal alternatives to the Norte's asphalt'

Jul 25, 2017

To explain -- I walked the Norte in 2007 and suffered mightily with all the pavement. In fact, I found my foot in a walking cast for about 4 months afterwards due to the pounding. Tarsal tunnel is what they called it.

I went back to the Norte this year and got a lot of forum help in finding coastal alternatives. For me one of the biggest Norte frustrations was that it is a Camino that is frequently within a few kms of beautiful coastlines but the arrows keep you pounding the pavement on the side of the national highway.

I'm attaching a document that contains descriptions of my...

• peregrina2000
• route variant/side-trip
• Replies: 220
• Camino de Santiago Forum: 🇪🇸 Camino del NORTE (from Irún)

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[AlbertoCamino]

Cantabria and Asturias are magic.

 

[John Cook]

I walked the Norte in April, May 2022 and found the route well marked for most of the way. I used a lot of the GR variants to stay close to the coast wherever possible and so I had to look out for their signs as well as the camino markers. I did stray a little off the route on the longer coastal alternative after Santander as I only saw one arrow but that may have been due to dehydration and lack of concentration; all six bars that I passed, a week before Easter were closed and the temperature was in the high 70's so I quickly ran out of water.
BTW, many of the waymarkers are just shells but the guidebook should tell you whether to follow the direction indicated by the pointy or the flat end.
All the municipal albergues were closed in 2022 and yet I didn't have a problem finding accommodation. It's a great route and I'm sure you'll enjoy it.