Guide in English

[monam]

Does anybody know which is the LIGHTEST of the best Camino guides?

 

[Anna-Marie]

I'd say the Confraternity of Saint James guide (available in their bookshop). It's quite a thin book, but packed with information.

 

[Daíthi]

Hi, I walked " El Camino Frances " in 2009 and the guide book I used was by John Brierley. I found it excellent . It was packed full of usefull information, Very understandable and the maps for each day were simplicity it self. Buen Camino. Daíthi

 

[nellpilgrim]

Hi,

I found Brierley 2009 edition to be very useful re accommodation (all types), maps (including route variations), elevations (which are sometimes more relevant than distance :shock: ) and concise local history.
The authors personal insights are not for everyone but they are very helpfully (and appropriately) written in purple so easy to avoid!
Brierley also has a 'maps only' version which is very thin indeed.

Good luck
Nell

 

[jeff001]

I found the Brierley guides to be indispensible for both the Frances and Portuguese. As far as I am concerned those who simply walk the Camino from arrow to arrow until they get to the next alburgue are missing a big and important part of the journey. Knowing something that bridge I crossed or that church I passed or something about those castle ruins in addition to knowing how far the next village is and what services are available there greatly enhanced the experience.

 

[monam]

Thank you all very kindly for your info and for the links
:arrow:

 

[mmm042]

Hi. I did the last 109km of the VDLP last fall and couldn't find any guides on it. Since I'm a journalist, and the Camino stole my heart, I'm returning next month and will be creating a mobile app on the entire route. (The lightest guidebook of all!) The first release will be on the Sevilla to Merida leg, and I'll return several times in 2011 to do the remainder. If there's any particular type of info you feel is indispensable in a guide -- e.g., the presence of ATMs or Internet access in towns, if the locals tend to speak English or not -- let me know!

Melanie

 

[jl]

Hi Melanie, just a quick note to say that there is the Cicerone guide by Alison Raju which is in English. This is now a few years old, but I have found the other guides written by her very useful. I always check for new information and write it into the guide before I depart as I will do for my VDLP trip next year. The pilapala press edition of the VDLP unfortunately though is out of print with no thoughts of reprinting - although they publish updates on their web site.

I also use the information found in the very good german guides - "Outdoor' & "Rother" as well as a wonderful Spanish one (I just get my friends to translate the things that I think might be important - the maps really say it all in these guides). There are also a couple of French language guides on the VDLP too.

The beauty of the Cicerone guide is that it includes the Camino Mozarabe route and then, further north, the Camino Sanabres as well as the route leading into Astorga.

Cheers, Janet

 

[nathanael]

I think that the Brierley is the best guide..have used the Confraternity one and yes it got me there but was not happy with it.
n.

(edited by moderator as this is the posters opinion not necessarily that of the forum)

 

[JohnnieWalker]

It is an interesting topic. Some pilgrims prefer to carry a very light guide and thereis no doubt that for the Camino Frances the Confraternity Guide is both lightweight and unlike every other guide is kept up to date every year - therefore changes in accommodation, phone numbers, new albergues and so forth are almost automatically added. However it is short on local history and so on and I understand some pilgrims want that information. I must confess that in the past I've eith copied or extracted the pages I have been interested in from other guides including John Brierly's to supplement the lightweight guide. But as has been said before on the forum probably the lightest guide is the one which can be uploaded electronically to a device which the pilgrim would be taking anyway!

 

[josephleaf]

My Brierley guide was usually being passed around over dinner table for the info it has to offer. Feel free NOT to follow the stages and start/stop as and when you like.

I also have a albergue list from the pilgrim office from SJPDP.

Combining the guide and the list, i have sufficient info to finish the camino at reasonably ease, as long as eating and sleeping is concerned.

If you are walking in winter, it is advisable to call ahead and check if the albergue is opened. You might get lucky as a supposedly 'closed' alergue might indeed be opened and taking pilgrims.

 

[nathanael]

Merry Christmas to everyone and a New Year filled with great hopes. Came across a title of a guide someone I met last year on the Camino, who raved about it want your feed back. It's called "The road to Santiago the Pilgrim's practical guide" author is Jose Maria Anquinta Jaen.
Is better or comparable to Brierley's guide.
n.

 

[ffp13]

Have you considered a kindle snook reader? Weighs 250gm battery lid 1 month and can hold 1000s books including 2011 camio f guide. Provides hrs reading without a big impact on pack weight!

 

[ffp13]

Oops auto spell ha done it again, snook = E-book

 

[ffp13]

I will be buying a kindle from amazon go my next camino, all the books I need in 250 gram an free 3G if I want more whilst I am walking

 

[renegadepilgrim]

Migh want to look into the Nook too. It allows you to borrow e-books from the library. The Kindle does not.

 

[Troppo]

Does anybody know which is the LIGHTEST of the best Camino guides?

I am also preparing for the camino, so I got a couple of guides from Amazon.
The John Brierley guide and also the Rother Camino de Santiago walking guide. Good to cross-reference between the two guides The Rother guide is translated from German, but is practical, accurate, and very portable. I will be using it for my camino