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money/banking/budget

  1. ATM in Spain and Portugal

    I've barely been out of the house for over 2 years, so before I head to the CF, I have a few questions and the threads here may or may not be outdated. My credit union has stopped being a reliable source of information. Which Spanish and Portuguese banks with ATMs are on the Cirrus or Plus...
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    Albergue Prices

    Hi. I'm Dan from Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. I am planning to hike the Camino Del Norte or Camino Frances in September-October 2022. The accommodation prices for Albergues on booking.com are much higher than any guidebook indicates. Is there an accurate resource for current Albergue pricing? If...
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    Euro budget needed for food on Frances

    I am wondering what is a daily budget for food on the Frances? I'm also wondering if most restaurants of the type where you sit down for your big meal of the day typically take credit cards or is it recommended that you bring enough Euros for all dining? Many thanks, Cynthia
  4. Travel Pre paid debit cards

    Could anyone tell me what they would recommend as a Prepay travel card when travelling Porto to Santiago? I'm from the UK. Thanks
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    Credit travel or debit card???

    Hi Just wondering what is best based on experience … a travel card, normal credit card or normal debit card? Many thanks Austin
  6. V

    Best place to exchange dollars for euros?

    Starting from SJPP in mid May. I know you can exchange money at the airport, but the exchange rate isn’t so great. Any other suggestions?
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    Euros - how many to take for the Camino Frances?

    I wonder how many Euros to start the journey with and how to obtain them on the journey. We are doing the Frances route and notice some accommodations take Euros only and no credit cards. Thank you.
  8. Cash or credit in times of Covid

    I know cash used to be the preferred method of payment prior to Covid, but I'm wondering if that has changed. Will pilgrims who have been on the Camino in the past 2 years please chime in?
  9. Budget considerations for 2022

    I am doing the Camino Frances in Aug - Sept 2022, (my first) and trying to come up an idea for the budgeting of the trip. In my earlier research, (pre covid), most vlogs, blogs etc. reflected very low costs of lodging, ex: 8 - 15 Euros. Just a preliminary search for costs of albergues for late...
  10. Opening new credit card for the bonus (plus airlines question)

    Hi, all. If this is not the correct location, I trust it will be re-routed. I'm thinking about opening a new credit card in order to get the bonus miles and perks for my Camino travels (which is in October 2022). I have a Jet Blue card, which would indeed get me from SFO to Madrid, but flights...
  11. Tipping on the Camino

    Is there tipping on the Camino? I will be doing the Camino Frances in April.
  12. Can the Italian section of the VF be done on €35/day without camping?

    Hi all I was browsing across the threads for this route and I came across this guide, linked to by @Harington: https://pilgrimstorome.org.uk/planning/ Within the pdf, on the section about budgets, it contains the following: Italy: In Italy, you can walk nearly the entire route (with a...
  13. Inflation surge in northern Spain? (Winter 21/22)

    I’ve recently been reading a couple news articles about inflation surging in Europe. Wondering how that’s affecting northern Spain and towns on the Camino Frances? I’m hoping to do a March/April Camino start from Roncevalles. A couple years ago when I was planning I was budgeting at about 30...
  14. Can Geneva - Le Puy route be done on €35 per day without camping?

    Hi all I saw a post on the Le Puy forum where the posters daily cost was ~€33. Is this route more expensive than the Le Puy route? Thanks for any and all info.
  15. Cash Is King?

    Hi All, when I last walked the Camino (2016 and 2017) cash was pretty much the only way to go. I'm walking the Portuguese route from Porto in May 22 and wondered in the Covid era if this has changed. Any info gratefully received :)
  16. 2021 Le Puy budget

    The title is the question. For those of you who have Le-Puy'd recently or those of you who live in France, what should I budget for daily costs in euros? Particularly, what about food costs? I know that I will probably demi-pension most of the time, but if I decide to go out and have...
  17. Money exchange - current rates

    Phil is getting worst money exchange rate on this trip. Even at the cash machine which is usually pretty good today he got only 77 cents to the dollar. The online rate is 85 cents to the dollar.
  18. Cash or cards?

    Hi all I walked the camino Frances in 2017 and 2018 and am hoping and praying I can go again in 2022. On the previous pilgrimages cash was definitely “king” especially in bars, cafes and Albergues. I am interested to hear from pilgrims who have walked this year in 2021 whether this is still the...
  19. Revolut instant debit card for intl use

    From the US, I was getting hammered with ATM fees in Spain to get euros cash. Plus crappy exchange rates, blablabla. I finally got clued into Revolut....downloaded the app and in 5 minutes had euro exchanged and in my preloaded virtual card. Any place that accepts credit card omt on Norte, and...
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    Spending Money on the Del Norte

    Evening everyone! I've come with a question about spending money on the Camino this year, particularly on the Del Norte. My first Camino was the Frances in 2018 and on that trip I took €2000 spending money for about 35 days. That comes out about €57 euros a day, which funnily enough - or not-...