How empty is the Lisbon section?

[Ungawawa]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

 

[Deleted member 397]

I t s been awhile since i last did this route but didn't think it w a s bereft of others.however from porto busy and tui very busy. I would say lisbon to porto still has a good mix between busy and bearable numbers. As for nationalities...i met portuguese ( obviously),an american lady,irish bloke,2 german girls etc...i avoided albergues because i prefer hotels...and they are reasonably priced in portugal

 

[Elle Bieling]

I walked Lisbon to Porto in late April, early May in 2017 and saw very few pilgrims. Aussies, Swiss, Americans and that's about it. We saws LOTS of Portuguese pilgrims walking the other way, southward toward Fatima, after we passed Tomar.

After Porto, the whole camino changed. Lots and lots of pilgrims from everywhere on both routes, the Coastal in 2017 and the Central in 2018. And numbers are growing, from what I understand. You can read all about my experiences of the Many Ways on the Camino Portugues to get the flavor of what I experienced.

Good luck and buen camino!

 

[redgoonerinoz]

We are at Santarem after walking from lisbon. Yesterday was busy day. 1 french guy 2 irish ladies 2 koreans and a czeck and Lithuanian. Nice and peaceful with good weather. Tuesday 7th may. Not at all like the Francis at this time of year. It will not get much busier!

 

[Ungawawa]

I walked Lisbon to Porto in late April, early May in 2017 and saw very few pilgrims. Aussies, Swiss, Americans and that's about it. We saws LOTS of Portuguese pilgrims walking the other way, southward toward Fatima, after we passed Tomar.

After Porto, the whole camino changed. Lots and lots of pilgrims from everywhere on both routes, the Coastal in 2017 and the Central in 2018. And numbers are growing, from what I understand. You can read all about my experiences of the Many Ways on the Camino Portugues to get the flavor of what I experienced.

Good luck and buen camino!

Thanks Elle. I've been reading your blog already, even before you suggested it.

 

[Ungawawa]

We are at Santarem after walking from lisbon. Yesterday was busy day. 1 french guy 2 irish ladies 2 koreans and a czeck and Lithuanian. Nice and peaceful with good weather. Tuesday 7th may. Not at all like the Francis at this time of year. It will not get much busier!

Thanks @redgoonerinoz , that's just the info I was after!

 

[Walking Lover]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

Very empty. We walked it in July, '17; didn't see any other pilgrims until the end of the first stage. There we saw 5. The same wad try until we got to Tui.

 

[The Kolbist]

Actually if you walk within 5-6 days before every 13th from May to October, a lot of local pilgrims are walking towards Fatima. The route for CP and Camino de Fatima are the same from Lisbon to Santarem. We didnt get an accommodation in Azambuja because 100s of locals took all the accommodation including the school gym. We had to stay in Villafranca de Xira and took the train to Azambuja to continue to Santarem.

 

[Rex]

Walked Lisboa to Santiago in Sept 2018. First night there were three of us in the hostel at VFdeXira. Two Scandinavian ladies and me. Next night in Port do Muge, 2 Kiwi ladies and me. Next night in Azzancha, 1 French lady, a German couple and me. Next stop, Tomar. Albergue full, mostly of Germans, Kiwis and Portuguese, and me. (Detoured to Fatima for a day - couldn’t find a reasonable room, but did find hundreds of pilgrims from everywhere.) Not until Coimbra did I begin to see more than 5 or 10 pilgrims in the albergues, and then it was Aussies, Brits, Kiwis, Germans, and a couple of Brazilians and one lone Yank... that would be me.
Never had a full albergue anywhere until Mealhada, and then there were more pilgrims... but still plenty of rooms.
It seemed to me that the albergues and hostel keepers from Lisboa to Tomar were particularly grateful for the intrepid pilgrims who chose this path and chose their rooms. The hospitality was outstanding in this stretch.
Bom Caminho

 

[Ungawawa]

Walked Lisboa to Santiago in Sept 2018. First night there were three of us in the hostel at VFdeXira. Two Scandinavian ladies and me. Next night in Port do Muge, 2 Kiwi ladies and me. Next night in Azzancha, 1 French lady, a German couple and me. Next stop, Tomar. Albergue full, mostly of Germans, Kiwis and Portuguese, and me. (Detoured to Fatima for a day - couldn’t find a reasonable room, but did find hundreds of pilgrims from everywhere.) Not until Coimbra did I begin to see more than 5 or 10 pilgrims in the albergues, and then it was Aussies, Brits, Kiwis, Germans, and a couple of Brazilians and one lone Yank... that would be me.
Never had a full albergue anywhere until Mealhada, and then there were more pilgrims... but still plenty of rooms.
It seemed to me that the albergues and hostel keepers from Lisboa to Tomar were particularly grateful for the intrepid pilgrims who chose this path and chose their rooms. The hospitality was outstanding in this stretch.
Bom Caminho

Thanks Rex. That's pretty interesting, and I'm impressed you walked such long stages!

 

[Camino Chrissy]

I'm on the Portuguese now and started in Porto. I am in Tui now. Mostly met Portuguese, 3 other Americans, 2 from Finland, and several Germans.

 

[Leigh Macklin]

Very empty. We walked it in July, '17; didn't see any other pilgrims until the end of the first stage. There we saw 5. The same wad try until we got to Tui.

I walked at the same time with the same experience. I did not see any pilgrims the first 5 days (Lisbon to Tomar). In Tomar I met a pair of New Zealanders. A day or two later I met another Canadian. Right before Porto we 'picked up' an Italian. After Porto we encountered more pilgrim, mostly French and Spanish. It never felt busy and we always had choice of accomodations. The infrasture is expaning rapidly with far more albergues then are in guidebooks.

 

[Ungawawa]

Thanks. I guess it's good news that the albergue race won't be happening, but I don't really want to be potentially alone for so many days in a row. For me the social aspect of the camino is a big part of its healing ability, and one I'm craving right now.

 

[surya8]

If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

I walked between Santaren and Porto out of season, at the end of Oct. There were between 3 and 9 people at the stage on a particular day, more came after Coimbra. I found a Camino family easily, right after my first day and we walked together all the way to Porto. Plenty of chats and shared meals with fellow pilgrims and amazing hospitality of the locals as well! There were people from Portugal, Brazil, Russia, Denmark, Canada, Australia and Germany. We'd been talking to the hospitalieros along the way and they say this stretch is getting busy, numbers are coming, so I guess June is usually busy and you will find your company on the way. Bom Caminho!

 

[Ungawawa]

I walked between Santaren and Porto out of season, at the end of Oct. There were between 3 and 9 people at the stage on a particular day, more came after Coimbra. I found a Camino family easily, right after my first day and we walked together all the way to Porto. Plenty of chats and shared meals with fellow pilgrims and amazing hospitality of the locals as well! There were people from Portugal, Brazil, Russia, Denmark, Canada, Australia and Germany. We'd been talking to the hospitalieros along the way and they say this stretch is getting busy, numbers are coming, so I guess June is usually busy and you will find your company on the way. Bom Caminho!

Thanks surya, that's encouraging to hear

 

[cullwer]

We (a group of 3) left Lisbon on June 1st last year and we met a few pilgrims. We were about 8 in the hostel the first night and we bumped into them a few times, they were much faster walkers and covered longer distances. But it is a beautiful route and if you enjoy peace and quiet this is a great stretch of the Camino

What pilgrims we met were very mixed nationalities, Spanish, American, English, Mexican, NZ, Irish, German...

 

[Ungawawa]

We (a group of 3) left Lisbon on June 1st last year and we met a few pilgrims. We were about 8 in the hostel the first night and we bumped into them a few times, they were much faster walkers and covered longer distances. But it is a beautiful route and if you enjoy peace and quiet this is a great stretch of the Camino

What pilgrims we met were very mixed nationalities, Spanish, American, English, Mexican, NZ, Irish, German...

Was it about 8 people in the hostels every night, or just that first one?

 

[Sunny Fitgirl]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

Hi,

I am planning to start around then too. Although it may be the 2nd or 3rd if I really like Lisbon. I hope to meet quite a few pilgrims and have fabulous weather this year.

Carla

 

[Helen1]

Walking in August a couple of years ago I don't think there were more than 15 of us. Given that some were camping, some sleeping out, some staying in private accomodation and we were walking different length stages it was really quiet and most walked alone or with a friend but we occasionally caught up at cafes. The only place where we were all together walking in a group was coming out of Tomar. Far more people walking to Fatima in the other direction. People were from all over and I think everyone had walked a camino before.

 

[Walking Lover]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

Very empty in July, 17.

 

[Debbie Linton]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

Have walked Lisbon to SDC twice in the last two years - love Portugal. Last year we found it much busier than 2017 and it got busier as we walked. Having said that, the numbers are perfect in my opinion. You will not always find an Albergue between Lisbon and Porto but the Pensions and small hotels are very inexpensive. The nationalities were mixed with a strong German presence. Met some fabulous Australians and quite a few fellow Canadians.

 

[robproct]

I walked from Lisbon last October and did not see another pilgrim for the first seven days. Ahh, the luxury of solitude. I slept alone in the fire station in Alhandra and again at the nunnery in Santarem where I had the whole place to myself. After leaving Porto it was busier. The first leg was to Vilarinho, 27km and there was no accomodation left in the whole town so I took a taxi on to Sao Pedro de Rates where I met some lovely people and had a great meal at the local restaurant. I met a scattering of people with increasing numbers the after Coimbra and even more after Tui.

 

[Debbie Linton]

I walked from Lisbon last October and did not see another pilgrim for the first seven days. Ahh, the luxury of solitude. I slept alone in the fire station in Alhandra and again at the nunnery in Santarem where I had the whole place to myself. After leaving Porto it was busier. The first leg was to Vilarinho, 27km and there was no accomodation left in the whole town so I took a taxi on to Sao Pedro de Rates where I met some lovely people and had a great meal at the local restaurant. I met a scattering of people with increasing numbers the after Coimbra and even more after Tui.

Interesting, we started walking September 13 and had loads of company between Lisbon and Santarem. What a difference a week or two can make.

 

[robproct]

Yes, I was a bit surprised at how quiet it was but as I said I found the solitude to be most enjoyable and gave me ample time for contemplation.

 

[anthikes]

I am in Santiago now having just finished the VDLP. I swear that every pilgrim I have spoken to has come from the Portuguese way! Just a coincidence of course, but none came from Lisbon though.

 

[Mary Colleen]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

It's not busy but we did run into people everyday, Australian, Dutch, American, Italian, Spanish, Austrian, German, at least these are the ones we talked to.

 

[Mary Colleen]

The problem was we kept running into this group of around 7 when we arrived at the albergue, so sometimes we were left out, but we always found something, on the way sometimes we saw nobody.

 

[Friend from Barquinha]

We have a part-time home in Vila Nova da Barquinha, north of the railway, on the way to Atalaia and look down across a neighbour's field at the Caminho route. When we're there in the spring or fall, we typically see 3 or 4 pilgrims walking by, daily--and of course we're not always looking out! So around 10 a day is probably typical. We're about 2-3 hours' walk north of Golega.

I suspect numbers drop off a bit between mid-June and early September because it can get very hot in the Tejo (Tagus) valley, and pretty unpleasant for walking. Spring and fall are much more welcoming.

As far as lack of facilities in this stretch, the "Mediotejo" region (central Tagus) is working hard to develop more infrastructure. Obviously from their point of view, the tourist economy is a focus and pilgrims tend to be not big spenders, but still just word of mouth of how wonderful the country is, is good for tourism generally in Portugal. I think more towns will be developing hostels, etc. through this stretch (including, I hope, my own town!) and the signage and servies are bound to get better over the next few years.

There have been a lot of articles recently in the local Portuguese-language papers about initiatives to make the experience pleasanter/easier for pilgrims. It's a bit of a foreign concept (the Santiago pilgrimage) for many Portuguese, in my experience and conversations, because of the focus on Fatima in the local religious population. And the country's government is, of course, not religious in nature at all though many members of the government may be themselves!

 

[Red Rose]

I just returned from walking the Portuguese Camino starting March 28th in Lisbon and finishing April 25th in Santiago. The first night in Alpriate albergue there were ten of us, two of which I kept up with for about two weeks. Most days I walked alone, but met up at the albergues at the end of the day. Porto was busier and after Tui it was crowded. The only time the albergues were full was O Farmecello.

 

[surya8]

I've just heard from my friend who volunteers in the new donativo albergue Casa Catolico in Branca, about 50km south of Porto, between Albergaria-a-Velha and Sao Joao de Madeira. He said some days in the morning between 20 and 30 people pass by, so the closer to Porto the busier. I've posted about this albergue here as it's brand new and not in the apps yet: https://www.caminodesantiago.me/com...olico-lisbon-porto-stretch.62251/#post-745118 Bom Caminho! everyone

 

[sherrykirkham]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

I will be leaving from Lisbon with two friends I met last year on the Camino Frances - I'm Canadian and they are British. We depart May 31st so just a day ahead - hope we meet up! We will be the crazy fun loving ones that enjoy our wine and shenanigans - check out my blog: www.mycaminosresolve.com

 

[sherrykirkham]

Hi,

I am planning to start around then too. Although it may be the 2nd or 3rd if I really like Lisbon. I hope to meet quite a few pilgrims and have fabulous weather this year.

Carla

Carla - a fellow Canadian - hope to see you - leaving May 31st out of Lisbon!

 

[Jane Silverman]

Oh, do spend some days in Lisbon. Take the tram to the end of the line. Go to Belem and get the pastries. It is such a lovely city!

 

[Ungawawa]

Oh, do spend some days in Lisbon. Take the tram to the end of the line. Go to Belem and get the pastries. It is such a lovely city!

That's what I can't decide if I should do. I'm pretty eager to get going on my Camino!

 

[Jane Silverman]

That's what I can't decide if I should do. I'm pretty eager to get going on my Camino!

Up to you of course, just that Lisbon is one of my most favorite cities of all! And getting away from the Oriente area is necessary if you want to enjoy it. For me, as a North American it’s interesting to be in the area from which Magellan set off to “discover” this continent. But, each to his/her own.

 

[John Ferguson]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

I walked from Lisbon starting May 2017. From Lisbon to Porto the Pilgrims were few and far between. The Coastal route is amazing. Boardwalk for 90% of the way. Careful to watch the signs going through Santerim, I missed a post and got off track abit. Enjoy. Buen Camino.

 

[zpetty]

Hi, I think this is my first post on this website. I walked the Camino Frances in 2017, enjoyed it so much that I've been chomping at the bit to do another. So, I will be walking the Camino Portuguese from Lisbon, somewhere around the end of August to the beginning of September. I say "somewhere around" because I am retired U.S. Navy and plan on flying to Rota Spain then taking a bus to Lisbon to start. Flying Space Available means I'll have no idea when I can catch a flight. I'd love to find others in the same situation, or just anyone that is planning on doing the Camino around the same time period. I am hoping that one of my friends from the Camino Frances will fly from Transylvania to Lisbon to meet up with me, but the more the merrier. By the way, I am a 67-year-old male, married to a wonderful Spanish lady, but she has no desire to walk with me. Oh well...

 

[Friend from Barquinha]

Hi, I think this is my first post on this website. I walked the Camino Frances in 2017, enjoyed it so much that I've been chomping at the bit to do another. So, I will be walking the Camino Portuguese from Lisbon, somewhere around the end of August to the beginning of September.

I realize that this may be the only time you have available for the CP, but that is a brutal time of year to be walking from Lisbon. I live part-time in that area and was there from the end of August/to mid September the year before last, and it was over 40 C most days. That section of the Caminho has a lot of exposed roads/paths through farming areas. You would have to be very careful to keep hydrated, sheltered (?umbrella?) and sunscreened, and ideally only walk till about 1 in the afternoon as the heat intensifies from then till about dinner time. Later in September would likely be cooler (though last year we had another brief heat wave of similar temperature the last week in September).

Here's the Portuguese NOAA equivalent weather site for Santarem. Their forecasts are usually pretty reliable:

IPMA - Previsão 10 dias, horária diária, localidade

www.ipma.pt

Bom caminho!

 

[John Ferguson]

I hope you will indulge me a newbie question quickly.

I hear often that the section between Lisbon and Porto is really empty of pilgrims going to Santiago, but can you help quantify this for me. If I were to leave on 1st June from Lisbon, how many pilgrims would I be likely to see on the road, and how many would be sharing my albergue at the end of the day?

For bonus points, what would the most likely nationalities of the people be?

I'm just trying to get a feel for whether I should try this route for my upcoming next camino. Thanks!

I realize that this may be the only time you have available for the CP, but that is a brutal time of year to be walking from Lisbon. I live part-time in that area and was there from the end of August/to mid September the year before last, and it was over 40 C most days. That section of the Caminho has a lot of exposed roads/paths through farming areas. You would have to be very careful to keep hydrated, sheltered (?umbrella?) and sunscreened, and ideally only walk till about 1 in the afternoon as the heat intensifies from then till about dinner time. Later in September would likely be cooler (though last year we had another brief heat wave of similar temperature the last week in September).

Here's the Portuguese NOAA equivalent weather site for Santarem. Their forecasts are usually pretty reliable:

IPMA - Previsão 10 dias, horária diária, localidade

www.ipma.pt

Bom caminho!

I walked the Porto route from Lisbon in May 2017, The route from Lisbon to Porto, I found to be poorly marked and actually made a wrong turn at Santerum. There were few Pilgrims ( The Pope had just been to Fatima, and I think most had finished the Pilgrimage before I started). I took the coastal route , which was about 80% along the seaboard, on Boardwalk. Not much shade but a nice breeze off the ocean. The people were amazing, the few Pilgrim from Lisbon to Porto were a varied mix of Koreans, Auzzies, Brits, etc. the usual?

It was a great walk.
Buen Camino.

 

[Ungawawa]

well thanks to everyone who posted here. i now have my own first hand experience to report. I walked from Lisbon starting 29 may. the most number of pilgrims in a hostel was about 18, but generally it was just a few. Many of the stages were boring, lots of highways, high temperatures 38 degrees max, perhaps five of the 14 stages were really interesting, the rest I could happily leave. Glad to have done it once, but once was enough. Things got a lot better once I reached Porto.

 

[Friend from Barquinha]

Portuguese agencies take a while to catch on to trends, but there is a very recent initiative to improve the Caminho route through central Portugal, and a lot of the smaller municipalities are now working on signposting, creating/upgrading albergues, etc.

Here's a news story about the Portuguese and Spanish governments working together to promote the caminhos:

Portugal e Espanha fazem promoção conjunta dos Caminhos de Santiago e de Fátima - Governo | Médio Tejo

Portugal e Espanha passaram a fazer em conjunto a promoção turística dos Caminhos de Santiago e Fátima, desde que foi lançado em fevereiro um programa de certificação e valorização desses percursos, disse hoje a secretária de Estado do Turismo. “Articulámos com Espanha fazer a promoção...

www.mediotejo.net

"Portugal and Spain jointly promote the Camino de Santiago and Fatima (May 10, 2019)

Portugal and Spain started to jointly promote the tourist promotion of the Caminhos de Santiago and Fatima, since a program of certification and appreciation of these routes was launched in February, said the Secretary of State for Tourism.

"We have worked with Spain to promote internationally the two roads, Santiago and Fatima," said Ana Mendes Godinho, who today participated in marking the routes in Valada, Cartaxo, in the district of Santarém, which sees thousands of pilgrims.

It is a "product that is increasingly in demand" by tourists from around the world, such as New Zealand, Australia or the United States of America, he said, adding that in 2018 90,000 tourists were registered pilgrims in the Caminho de Santiago in Portugal. (I think this is a bit high; not sure where they got this number)

The National Center of Culture and Tourism of Portugal are developing a project of structuring, marking and information of the ways.

"It is increasingly a path with more demand and it was essential to provide security conditions [to pilgrims] and have a well-structured and well-marked path," said the minister, adding that in some cases alternative routes have been found to focus on security, while in others the existing ones were restructured.

In this context, the site "Caminhos da Fé" (https://www.pathsoffaith.com/en) was launched in 2018, where information is provided to tourists hikers accompanied by the promotion of points to visit in the territories crossed by the paths.

"It's also a way to open the map of Portugal and get people to discover the territory, whether they do it for religious reasons or do it for spiritual reasons, which also creates opportunities for the territories," said Ana Mendes Godinho.

The most advanced phase of this work is in the territory of the Tourism of Alentejo and Ribatejo, where an investment of 400 thousand euros is being made, supported by community funds. (this is the area that includes Santarem and Tomar), north of Lisbon)

That regional tourism entity is completing the installation of the markings on the way, only missing the route between Port of Muge, still in the county of Cartaxo, and Alcácer do Sal." (not sure if this means they're not marking this stage, or whether they just haven't got to it, yet!)

Translation courtesy of Google Translate!

I suspect that by 2021 it should be a much more welcoming route! These things take a while...

 

[John Ferguson]

well thanks to everyone who posted here. i now have my own first hand experience to report. I walked from Lisbon starting 29 may. the most number of pilgrims in a hostel was about 18, but generally it was just a few. Many of the stages were boring, lots of highways, high temperatures 38 degrees max, perhaps five of the 14 stages were really interesting, the rest I could happily leave. Glad to have done it once, but once was enough. Things got a lot better once I reached Porto.

.

Yes, my impression exactly. But, the locals were great.

 

[sjcutrara]

would someone know how to get from Se Cathedral in Lisbon to end of city on the Camino way other than by walking - tram, bus or metro? We would like to begin walking after leaving the city. Thank you, Samuel

 

[John Ferguson]

would someone know how to get from Se Cathedral in Lisbon to end of city on the Camino way other than by walking - tram, bus or metro? We would like to begin walking after leaving the city. Thank you, Samuel

I walked from the Se Cathedral in May 2017, and as I recall, the Way was marked from there, out of town?

 

[John Ferguson]

I walked from the Se Cathedral in May 2017, and as I recall, the Way was marked from there, out of town?

 

[peregrina2000]

would someone know how to get from Se Cathedral in Lisbon to end of city on the Camino way other than by walking - tram, bus or metro? We would like to begin walking after leaving the city. Thank you, Samuel

It is easy to hop on the metro in central Lisbon ( get on green line in BAixa o Rossio, transfer to Red line in Alameda and go to Oriente). That’s where the river walk is. At the end of the river walk, you’re out of Lisbon proper and you’ll see the arrows near the base of the long bridge over the river. The metro ride is long in comparison to the distance travelled but that’s because of the metro map.

Im sure you have your reasons for wanting to do that, but for others I will just add that for the most part I found the walk from the cathedral very interesting. Goes through Alfama, past tile museum, through the old port area, and along the river walk. There is a small slog through car parts stores and other heavy commercial uses, but overall I think most people enjoy it.

Bom caminho.

 

[Rex]

It is easy to hop on the metro in central Lisbon ( get on green line in BAixa o Rossio, transfer to Red line in Alameda and go to Oriente). That’s where the river walk is. At the end of the river walk, you’re out of Lisbon proper and you’ll see the arrows near the base of the long bridge over the river. The metro ride is long in comparison to the distance travelled but that’s because of the metro map.

Im sure you have your reasons for wanting to do that, but for others I will just add that for the most part I found the walk from the cathedral very interesting. Goes through Alfama, past tile museum, through the old port area, and along the river walk. There is a small slog through car parts stores and other heavy commercial uses, but overall I think most people enjoy it.

Bom caminho.

Agree with the walking through the City instead of riding. Note: arrows in the city are occasionally covered by posters for festivals, announcements, etc... I took a couple of unintended detours into neighborhoods when the path turned and the flèche was not visible. Still, a lovely walk that gave me a greater appreciation of Lisboa than just the standard walk around the historic sites. Bom Caminho.

 

[peregrina2000]

Many members have already seen the thread describing a recent (September 2020) attack on two pilgrims. We wanted to issue the following caution.

Female pilgrims should be aware that there have been violent assaults at locations on the first stage from Lisbon. Complaints about police indifference about these incidents have also been made. For anyone setting out in the near future, walking in that area seems very risky.

One easy way to avoid this section would be to walk from the cathedral to Parque Naçoes, and there hop on a commuter train to Vila Franca. Getting off in Alverca or Alhandra (several stops before) would also be an option,because those towns are beyond the area where the attacks happened.

There are of course many ways to do this, but one possible first day would be to walk the 7 km from the cathedral to Parque Naçoes, take the train to Alverca, then walk the 9 km to Vila Franca. People who like long distances could add on the next 20 to arrive in Azambuja. Gronze makes all of this very clear, and the commuter train schedule is easy to understand.

We are hopeful that the responsible parties will be apprehended and brought to justice, but until that time, exercise extreme caution or better yet, take the train.