Camino Ingles or Portugués in late November

[DanielN]

I am thinking of doing a one-week Camino end of November. Either the Ingles from Ferrol or the Spanish part of the Portugues. What would you choose at that time of year? Which one is likely to have more favorable weather? How about acccomodation open /closed?
Any thoughts are appreciated.

 

[henrythedog]

Both routes spend more time passing through ‘real’ Spain where the facilities you use are far-less constructed specifically for the camino than is the case on the Camino Frances. Essentially there is less seasonality in terms of their availability. That is most certainly the case with food and drink.

That said - there is vastly more accommodation on the Frances and what remains open through the winter is - unsurprisingly - sufficient for the need. The Camino may provide, but free-market economics often gets there first.

My personal recommendation would be the Ingles. I can’t do weather forecasts, just reports, and on that basis wherever you are in north-west Spain in November you would be very lucky to get a dry week.

 

[surya8]

I walked the Portgues at the end of Oct and in the second half of Jan as well. Considering late Nov is out of season there there is still enough infrastrcture on the Portugues - all the municipal albergues are open, and some private as well. Fewer bars could be open on the way but there is still a chance to have lunch/dinner during the day/at the end of the day in most times, just grab your chance when you see one open! Self-catering is also possible, we did that in Jan. Even in Jan the weather wasn't bad: some sunshine, some drizzle, 1 day of down pour, temp range from +3 tp +14 in late Jan. Take some raingear and warm clothes for the albergues! There will still be people on the route as Portguese is quickly catching up in popularity and is ideal for waking in winter. Bom Caminho!

 

[Pelegrin]

In relation to weather in November, the chances of cloudy days with weak rain are higher on the Ingles, because the tail of the rain fronts that hit the British islands touch only the North of Galicia, but on the Portugues the risk of pouring rain is bigger because the big fronts enter Galicia from SW.
For me, the landscape is more diverse on the Ingles, because includes the "higlands" of Bruma, but very few pilgrims in November on that Camino.

 

[hel&scott]

Both will be cold and wet, but facilities were open we did these routes in November. Just take good wet weather gear and you should be able to cope for a week. I liked the route from Ferrol, but there will be more people coming up from Tui.

 

[witsendwv]

We walked last year from A Garda to SdC along the coast from the end of November through the first week in December. The scenery and sunsets were spectacular. It was a lovely, albeit very wet walk, but we were never cold. Met only two pilgrims, both walking south. I would do it again in a heartbeat, and we might actually be able to walk the Ingles in Dec or Jan. (Keeping my fingers crossed.) It would still be warmer than home in the mountains!