Camino Portugues - which part?

[MCS]

Hi, I am doing the Portuguese way with 2 other friends next May. Which is better, Coimbra - Oporto or Oporto - Tuy in terms of signalling and hiking difficulties compared to Sarria - Santiago in Galicia which we walked last year? Any comments / suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Former member 22438]

Hi, I am doing the Portuguese way with 2 other friends next May. Which is better, Coimbra - Oporto or Oporto - Tuy in terms of signalling and hiking difficulties compared to Sarria - Santiago in Galicia which we walked last year? Any comments / suggestions would be appreciated.

Don't know the Sarria walk but walked the Portuguese several times.

There are different walks. The caminho Portuguese pela costa,the coastal walk.
The rota central, the central route snd the caminho de Braga
The coastal is easy to do, the central too andcthe Braga way is more advanced.

If you like more company, go for Porto to Tui. You can do that by walking the coastal or the central way.
From Coimbra to Porto is less crowded. All route are well waymarked.
The Portuguese route you will walk on more hard surfaces so be prepared for good shoes .

Bom caminho

 

[lt56ny]

I walked from Lisbon to Santiago. As the last person said there is ALOT of road walking and sometimes on busy highways. I walked the central route all the way. I would never walk the route again from Lisbon to Porto. It is not very nice or peaceful for long stretches. (But great Pilgrims and the Portugues people are the best). I would say only walk any route from Porto, north. There are some beautiful stretches and towns. I would definitely like to walk the coastal route jump on the bus in Santiago and do another Camino as the Coastal route is too short and I am lucky enough to have time for more.

 

[t2andreo]

I have walked the Porto-Santiago stretch (10 days +/-), and also also the Lisbon to Santiago, via Porto Camino (31 days +/-). My preference and recommendation is to walk the 250 km from Porto to Santiago. South of Porto there is more road walking.

Yes, many of the villages and small cities are beautiful. Coimbra and Tomar are worth visits and rest days. But, until you reach Porto, IMHO there are too many stretches of sketchy national route walking with inadequate verge or shoulder for safety.

Hope this helps.

 

[Walking Lover]

Hi, I am doing the Portuguese way with 2 other friends next May. Which is better, Coimbra - Oporto or Oporto - Tuy in terms of signalling and hiking difficulties compared to Sarria - Santiago in Galicia which we walked last year? Any comments / suggestions would be appreciated.

OPORTO to Tui.

 

[surya8]

The stretch between Lisbon and Santiago is not particularly difficult in terms of terrain but cobblestones you'll remember for sure. Lisbon to Coimbra is more picturesque in terms of nature then Coimbra to Porto, where you see more fences and it has a more suburban feel to it. Porto to Santiago is easier to walk in any respect: nature, towns, accommodation, company on the road, etc. The route is very well marked all the way from Lisbon.