Camino Portugués - lessons learned

[Nathen]

I just completed the Camino Portugués (Senda Litoral and Spiritual Variant) - I walked from Aug. 29th to Sept. 12th - and I want to share lessons learned.

On the plus side:
- The beaches/waterfront in both Portugal and Spain are stunning. It was a joy to walk alongside or near them, and to enjoy the sights and sounds of them.

On the challenging side:
- This route is much more of a solitary walk than the Francés (which I walked in '19). I embraced that, and at times I greatly missed the camaraderie that I experienced on the Francés.
- There's much less infrastructure on this route, and accommodation seems much more out of the way (on a couple of occasions, I had to get to the Coastal route to find an albergue).
In short - as has been mentioned in other posts - this route feels much less like a conventional Camino. And that's fine, IF that's what you're after.

Lessons learned:
- Do more research beforehand! I ended up using the Wise Pilgrim app, and it would have been even more useful to me if I'd also looked at its accommodation suggestions (I only used it for navigation). DON'T use the Camino Ninja app! On the one day I used it, It took me WAY off course and resulted in an 11 1/2 hour day (albergue to albergue)!
- Make sure that you get a phone plan that enables you to make phone calls and not only gives you data. (Many of the albergues I tried to connect with by texting via WhatsApp were not on WhatsApp, so I couldn't book ahead.)
- Do trial walks at home to make sure that your pack, shoes and socks are as comfortable as can be. I made the serious mistake of trusting that Injinji toe socks would deliver a blister free walk. Not so! On the very first day, I developed an enormous blister on the ball of my left foot which severely impacted my entire Camino. (BIG thanks to the German pilgrim who brought Compeed to my awareness - I wouldn't have been able to complete my walk without it.)
- Leg cramps in my upper thighs were also a serious issue. (I'm 65, but I'm in great shape.) Solutions include: Ibuprofen (up to 1200 mg every 24 hours), Calcium (1000 mg per day), Magnesium (400-420 mg per day for men, 310-320 mg per day for women), plenty of water (64 oz / 2 litres per day), and stretching. (I didn't do enough of any of these, save for taking Ibuprofen.)

I'm already planning a "do over" of the Portugués in the spring or fall of '25.
(The 1st day of the Spiritual Variant was very challenging - a LOT of elevation; the 2nd day was heavenly - mostly flat and very scenic. Next year, I'll walk the Litoral to Caminha and then join the Central Route all the way to SdC.)

Bon Camino!

- Nathen

 

[Orione]

Congratulations on finishing the walk! Sounds like a beautiful yet challenging route. Thank you for the debriefing. I don’t know if I’ll ever walk this via, but I love reading these lessons learned from someone who was just there, and I know they are invaluable for those about to start this route.

 

[Nathen]

Congratulations on finishing the walk! Sounds like a beautiful yet challenging route. Thank you for the debriefing. I don’t know if I’ll ever walk this via, but I love reading these lessons learned from someone who was just there, and I know they are invaluable for those about to start this route.

Thank you, Orione.
We're all in this together, and we have much to learn from each other.

 

[kiwiolivia]

I just completed the Camino Portugués (Senda Litoral and Spiritual Variant) - I walked from Aug. 29th to Sept. 12th - and I want to share lessons learned.

On the plus side:
- The beaches/waterfront in both Portugal and Spain are stunning. It was a joy to walk alongside or near them, and to enjoy the sights and sounds of them.

On the challenging side:
- This route is much more of a solitary walk than the Francés (which I walked in '19). I embraced that, and at times I greatly missed the camaraderie that I experienced on the Francés.
- There's much less infrastructure on this route, and accommodation seems much more out of the way (on a couple of occasions, I had to get to the Coastal route to find an albergue).
In short - as has been mentioned in other posts - this route feels much less like a conventional Camino. And that's fine, IF that's what you're after.

Lessons learned:
- Do more research beforehand! I ended up using the Wise Pilgrim app, and it would have been even more useful to me if I'd also looked at its accommodation suggestions (I only used it for navigation). DON'T use the Camino Ninja app! On the one day I used it, It took me WAY off course and resulted in an 11 1/2 hour day (albergue to albergue)!
- Make sure that you get a phone plan that enables you to make phone calls and not only gives you data. (Many of the albergues I tried to connect with by texting via WhatsApp were not on WhatsApp, so I couldn't book ahead.)
- Do trial walks at home to make sure that your pack, shoes and socks are as comfortable as can be. I made the serious mistake of trusting that Injinji toe socks would deliver a blister free walk. Not so! On the very first day, I developed an enormous blister on the ball of my left foot which severely impacted my entire Camino. (BIG thanks to the German pilgrim who brought Compeed to my awareness - I wouldn't have been able to complete my walk without it.)
- Leg cramps in my upper thighs were also a serious issue. (I'm 65, but I'm in great shape.) Solutions include: Ibuprofen (up to 1200 mg every 24 hours), Calcium (1000 mg per day), Magnesium (400-420 mg per day for men, 310-320 mg per day for women), plenty of water (64 oz / 2 litres per day), and stretching. (I didn't do enough of any of these, save for taking Ibuprofen.)

I'm already planning a "do over" of the Portugués in the spring or fall of '25.
(The 1st day of the Spiritual Variant was very challenging - a LOT of elevation; the 2nd day was heavenly - mostly flat and very scenic. Next year, I'll walk the Litoral to Caminha and then join the Central Route all the way to SdC.)

Bon Camino!

- Nathen

Thank you. I'm planning this for next year spring or fall, training and research to do as it will be my first Camino, from NZ with no European experience in my travels thus far.

 

[Nathen]

You're most welcome, kiwiolivia. I wish you well with your training and research, and please feel free to ask me any and all questions you may have.

 

[SabsP]

Ibuprofen up to 1200 mg per day?
This OTC medication should come with a big warning IMO.
Please talk this through with your GP or pharmacist before taking it.

Extra magnesium? Aside from special medical reasons, a normal varied diet provides enough magnesium.

 

[Roland49]

I just completed the Camino Portugués (Senda Litoral and Spiritual Variant) - I walked from Aug. 29th to Sept. 12th - and I want to share lessons learned.

Congrats!

I'm already planning a "do over" of the Portugués in the spring or fall of '25.
(The 1st day of the Spiritual Variant was very challenging - a LOT of elevation; the 2nd day was heavenly - mostly flat and very scenic. Next year, I'll walk the Litoral to Caminha and then join the Central Route all the way to SdC.)

That's what I did in '23. But just out of necessity, I walked 1 week prior the catholic youth assembly in Lisbon, so both Albergues in A Guarda were booked out.

The walk to Tui up the river via the Fort in Valenca was quite amazing. That was the only part, that I felt solitude on the whole CP. It was a quiet sunday morning, many church-goers and bell-ringing across the valley, but not another pilgrim in sight! Lovely!

Good luck with your planning!

 

[LTfit]

Interesting observations because unless things have changed since 2016, there were lots of accommodations when I walked and I didn't use an app only the Gronze website. I did the Senda Litoral/Coastal until Redondela when it meets the Central.

And what is a "conventional Camino"? There is no other Camino like the Francés, each has particular characteristics. Maybe because I'm used to walking Caminos other than the Francés, but I found the Portuguese fairly busy (June) and the numbers have increased substantially since I've walked.

I guess that it all comes down to previous experiences and expectations.

 

[FLEUR]

I've walked these Portuguese routes. 3 of us then aged 75, plus one under 70 managed ok. We had previously walked other Caminos (Frances and Baztan).

I strongly recommend John Brierley's guide books for maps, distances and accommodation.

All advice is invaluable and it's good to share.

 

[lt56ny]

I just completed the Camino Portugués (Senda Litoral and Spiritual Variant) - I walked from Aug. 29th to Sept. 12th - and I want to share lessons learned.

On the plus side:
- The beaches/waterfront in both Portugal and Spain are stunning. It was a joy to walk alongside or near them, and to enjoy the sights and sounds of them.

On the challenging side:
- This route is much more of a solitary walk than the Francés (which I walked in '19). I embraced that, and at times I greatly missed the camaraderie that I experienced on the Francés.
- There's much less infrastructure on this route, and accommodation seems much more out of the way (on a couple of occasions, I had to get to the Coastal route to find an albergue).
In short - as has been mentioned in other posts - this route feels much less like a conventional Camino. And that's fine, IF that's what you're after.

Lessons learned:
- Do more research beforehand! I ended up using the Wise Pilgrim app, and it would have been even more useful to me if I'd also looked at its accommodation suggestions (I only used it for navigation). DON'T use the Camino Ninja app! On the one day I used it, It took me WAY off course and resulted in an 11 1/2 hour day (albergue to albergue)!
- Make sure that you get a phone plan that enables you to make phone calls and not only gives you data. (Many of the albergues I tried to connect with by texting via WhatsApp were not on WhatsApp, so I couldn't book ahead.)
- Do trial walks at home to make sure that your pack, shoes and socks are as comfortable as can be. I made the serious mistake of trusting that Injinji toe socks would deliver a blister free walk. Not so! On the very first day, I developed an enormous blister on the ball of my left foot which severely impacted my entire Camino. (BIG thanks to the German pilgrim who brought Compeed to my awareness - I wouldn't have been able to complete my walk without it.)
- Leg cramps in my upper thighs were also a serious issue. (I'm 65, but I'm in great shape.) Solutions include: Ibuprofen (up to 1200 mg every 24 hours), Calcium (1000 mg per day), Magnesium (400-420 mg per day for men, 310-320 mg per day for women), plenty of water (64 oz / 2 litres per day), and stretching. (I didn't do enough of any of these, save for taking Ibuprofen.)

I'm already planning a "do over" of the Portugués in the spring or fall of '25.
(The 1st day of the Spiritual Variant was very challenging - a LOT of elevation; the 2nd day was heavenly - mostly flat and very scenic. Next year, I'll walk the Litoral to Caminha and then join the Central Route all the way to SdC.)

Bon Camino!

- Nathen

I have a question about accommodations. You said you only used the Wise Pilgrim app for direction. I walked this route in November last year and had no trouble finding albergues every night. Did you use Gronze.com or the Buen Camino app? I use all three to give me the biggest variety of towns and albergues. I also stayed on the literol almost the whole way as it rained so hard and so much the camino in the forests were often like walking in streams. I didn't do the Espiritual Variente as it was such horrible conditions but I believe both Wise Pilgrim and Buen Camino have this variant included in their apps.