No Mobile Phone

[Snigelanna]

Thinking about my next walk. I really want to do the Camino without a mobile phone. Last time I used it quite a lot to find and book accomodation and other things. That was some years ago. What’s it like now? Are you more or less expected to have a phone? What are your thoughts on the subject?

 

[David with new Kit!]

Take a phone. If you need it, you have it. If you don’t need it, leave it off. At least it’s available if you do need it.

 

[Tincatinker]

Thinking about my next walk. I really want to do the Camino without a mobile phone. Last time I used it quite a lot to find and book accomodation and other things. That was some years ago. What’s it like now? Are you more or less expected to have a phone? What are your thoughts on the subject?

It’s perfectly possible to walk a Camino without a mobile phone. So far as I am aware, without referring to the Pilgrim Office’s website, the use of one is not compulsory. Security will direct you to a computer terminal where you can register for your Compostela.

Other uses? You’ve already said that you used yours to book accommodation. Were you thinking of relying on luck or an early morning start to secure your next bed this time. Navigating? Scarcely necessary on the Camino Frances. Unless, of course, you are setting out in the dark of morning in pursuit of that unsecured bed. Contacting family, friends, emergency services? Unnecessary until it is.

As @David with new Kit! has said you can always just switch the thing off and stash it with your emergency money and spare socks.

 

[Paul-CH]

What are your thoughts on the subject?

I need mine for photos, writing the blog, booking rooms and reading the newspaper.
But not so long ago, these things didn't exist and yet there were pilgrims who made it all the way to Santiago.

 

[J Willhaus]

Only you can decide if it is a need or a want. You'll likely get both opinions here.

 

[Snigelanna]

Take a phone. If you need it, you have it. If you don’t need it, leave it off. At least it’s available if you do need it.

But I really do not want it. I want to be free. And if I know myself I will find many occasions when I would save time or make life easier if I just look something up.... And I really do not want to take that shortcut... but would not be able to stop myself :-D

 

[Snigelanna]

I need mine for photos, writing the blog, booking rooms and reading the newspaper.
But not so long ago, these things didn't exist and yet there were pilgrims who made it all the way to Santiago.

Photos is an important thing. Bringing a camera sounds really old fashion :-D

 

[Snigelanna]

Only you can decide if it is a need or a want. You'll likely get both opinions here.

Of course. I am asking about your opinion. Would you like to be without?

 

[SabsP]

But I really do not want it. I want to be free. And if I know myself I will find many occasions when I would save time or make life easier if I just look something up.... And I really do not want to take that shortcut... but would not be able to stop myself :-D

You are overthinking it IMO.
Put phone on airplanemodus or only operate it at a certain hour ( if you want to connect with the homefront).

 

[Snigelanna]

It’s perfectly possible to walk a Camino without a mobile phone. So far as I am aware, without referring to the Pilgrim Office’s website, the use of one is not compulsory. Security will direct you to a computer terminal where you can register for your Compostela.

Other uses? You’ve already said that you used yours to book accommodation. Were you thinking of relying on luck or an early morning start to secure your next bed this time. Navigating? Scarcely necessary on the Camino Frances. Unless, of course, you are setting out in the dark of morning in pursuit of that unsecured bed. Contacting family, friends, emergency services? Unnecessary until it is.

As @David with new Kit! has said you can always just switch the thing off and stash it with your emergency money and spare socks.

I do not want to be part of the getting up before sunrise and walk quickly to the next cheap albergue. I want to walk slowly and rely on luck and if I have to pay for more expensive hotels I do not mind. No contact with home would be great!

 

[Snigelanna]

I need mine for photos, writing the blog, booking rooms and reading the newspaper.
But not so long ago, these things didn't exist and yet there were pilgrims who made it all the way to Santiago.

Do you find it necessary to book rooms?

 

[Paul-CH]

Do you find it necessary to book rooms?

I never did the Frances. But on less frequent traveled camino like VdlP, VF, Aragones I wouldn't like to start for +30km hike without the knowledge of a bed in the evening.
Sure you can always ask someone to call in behalf off you.

 

[Tincatinker]

I do not want to be part of the getting up before sunrise and walk quickly to the next cheap albergue. I want to walk slowly and rely on luck and if I have to pay for more expensive hotels I do not mind. No contact with home would be great!

Your question is answered. Leave your phone at home.

You’ve not said which Camino or when but if the Frances in spring or autumn use the saved weight to take a bivi

 

[Snigelanna]

I never did the Frances. But on less frequent traveled camino like VdlP, VF, Aragones I wouldn't like to start for +30km hike without the knowledge of a bed in the evening.
Sure you can always ask someone to call in behalf off you.

Have you ever found yourself in that situation - not finding a bed? I do not think I have ever met anyone who did not find somewhere to sleep. Sometimes on the floor In the hallway, but always somewhere.

 

[Damien Reynolds]

I think my phone is the most important thing I bring... To me it is a tool that opens doors of opportunity constantly on the Camino... like how are you going to find the best pizza place in town without a phone?

That and the whole safety issue of being out there and having to seek assistance for whatever reason.

 

[Paul-CH]

Have you ever found yourself in that situation - not finding a bed?

No, but the thought of an uncomfortable, cold night without a bed is enough for me. Many people who have hiked 30km are too exhausted to walk to the next town.

 

[Snigelanna]

Your question is answered. Leave your phone at home.

You’ve not said which Camino or when but if the Frances in spring or autumn use the saved weight to take a bivi

I have only done summer before and I as I prefer very light packing (last time 3,6 kg + food). I would like the North but I think it might be harder without a phone. There are not as many accommodation options there - at least when I walked a part in 2018. Frances, I think would be easier.

 

[Snigelanna]

I think my phone is the most important thing I bring... To me it is a tool that opens doors of opportunity constantly on the Camino... like how are you going to find the best pizza place in town without a phone?

That and the whole safety issue of being out there and having to seek assistance for whatever reason.

I hear you! And I get it. Maybe I would just have to rely on other people, get out of my shell and talk to the locals :-D

 

[Damien Reynolds]

I hear you! And I get it. Maybe I would just have to rely on other people, get out of my shell and talk to the locals :-D

do you know if you are allergic to anything? I didn't until I got bit by a wasp on the camino once, and started going into anaphylactic shock while walking alone...

 

[Bradypus]

Of course. I am asking about your opinion. Would you like to be without?

I walked my first Camino with no mobile phone or anything else electronic. My only contact with home was by mail and two or three phone calls from payphones. No email or internet along the way either. These days I carry a mobile phone and I am very happy to use it for many different things. I have walked two Caminos without a mobile phone. I know that it can be done but I see no benefit in deliberately robbing myself of something useful to me.

 

[J Willhaus]

Only you can decide if it is a need or a want. You'll likely get both opinions here.

I would take mine because I have elderly parents who may need to reach me. I walked my first Camino without, but on another Camino, I had to make an emergency return to the US because a parent was having emergency surgery and needed my care. I think it is a very personal decision.

 

[akane81]

For safety reasons, I think it is a necessity. If you do not want to use or rely on it, just keep it in your bag. At least you can get help if something unexpected happens.

Take a phone. If you need it, you have it. If you don’t need it, leave it off. At least it’s available if you do need it.

The above is very true.

 

[henrythedog]

I hear you! And I get it. Maybe I would just have to rely on other people, get out of my shell and talk to the locals :-D

You do not need a phone.

I recall the first of my friends having a mobile in the late 80’s and the world turned on its axis before and after that.

If you speak a bit of Spanish, you’ll be fine.

For the last few weeks my iPhone has stayed home and I’ve just carried a ‘dumb phone’, and I haven’t used it. I think I just twiddle away on my iPhone because I have it, not because I need it.

I’m off to Andalusia in January and my phone’s staying home. All I need are two bus tickets and a train ticket in the course of a week and if I can’t figure that out in good old-fashioned analogue style, then I really am in trouble.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Take the phone but keep it at 0% battery level. Also take a charger, small power bank and a cord. Keep them all in a foam pad in a bag. Put a note in the bag that says "If opened before Santiago I promise to ..." then sew the bag shut.

 

[Damien Reynolds]

Ok, I just have to say this, and I'll shut up...

I think it is irresponsible for any hiker/walker to to go out on a trek without being totally self sufficient and having the means to "save themselves". My thinking may be skewed by some of my "less travelled" adventures.

 

[henrythedog]

Ok, I just have to say this, and I'll shut up...

I think it is irresponsible for any hiker/walker to to go out on a trek without being totally self sufficient and having the means to "save themselves". My thinking may be skewed by some of my "less travelled" adventures.

I do understand, and I’d fully agree with you if you just added ‘… or accept the consequences’.

On a less-travelled trip the potential consequences may be less avoidable and thus more serious than a village-to-village walk in Spain.

 

[Snigelanna]

You do not need a phone.

I recall the first of my friends having a mobile in the late 80’s and the world turned on its axis before and after that.

If you speak a bit of Spanish, you’ll be fine.

For the last few weeks my iPhone has stayed home and I’ve just carried a ‘dumb phone’, and I haven’t used it. I think I just twiddle away on my iPhone because I have it, not because I need it.

I’m off to Andalusia in January and my phone’s staying home. All I need are two bus tickets and a train ticket in the course of a week and if I can’t figure that out in good old-fashioned analogue style, then I really am in trouble.

Sounds wonderful!

 

[Snigelanna]

do you know if you are allergic to anything? I didn't until I got bit by a wasp on the camino once, and started going into anaphylactic shock while walking alone...

That is a risk of course! I guess the phone saved you?

 

[Snigelanna]

Ok, I just have to say this, and I'll shut up...

I think it is irresponsible for any hiker/walker to to go out on a trek without being totally self sufficient and having the means to "save themselves". My thinking may be skewed by some of my "less travelled" adventures.

Well... I agree if we are talking about going to Antarctica or climbing K2... but I do think I can, and should (!), rely on other people when I go out walking in any town... we do live in a society and all kinds of relationships are worth living for... And to be honest the Frances is not much more of an adventure than taking any walk... shops and beds and people all around.

 

[Snigelanna]

Take the phone but keep it at 0% battery level. Also take a charger, small power bank and a cord. Keep them all in a foam pad in a bag. Put a note in the bag that says "If opened before Santiago I promise to ..." then sew the bag shut.

I like it!

 

[Damien Reynolds]

That is a risk of course! I guess the phone saved you?

No, not really. I happened to run into a doctor from Tennessee on the trail about an hour and a half later, who coincidentally had a "bag full of drugs." But I knew I was in trouble because I could look up my symptoms and tell him what was going on. I got lucky.

The next day's trip to the hospital, navigating the Spanish health care system, getting a prescription, acquiring an epi pen, would have been difficult, for me, without a phone.

 

[Stephan the Painter]

I like it!

The problem is that 20 years ago the world was not designed for people with phones in their pockets. But now the world is. Everybody expects you to have a phone, so it's more work than it used to be to get along without one.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Having a phone could come in handy saving a phone-less fellow pilgrim who is suffering from heat stroke.

Edit. Put everything in separate sewn bags and then those in another sewn bag. Make things real inconvenient.

 

[Tincatinker]

Or you could just feed them sips of salted sugar water until someone else turns up

Walking without using a phone is entirely different to choosing to walk without a phone at all. I refuse to speculate how much time in the present might be lost to that past decision.

 

[CarolamS]

How good is your Spanish? Can you explain a problem to a Dr or Pharmacist? Can you understand what they might say to you?

I feel more safe and secure with personal access to Alertcops and a Translation app. My prime use, in practice, is the camera. I also use the Wise Pilgrim and Kindle app.

If you choose to leave your phone at home it would be interesting to hear how you get on.

 

[Annette london]

A few years ago , we met a man who was very”anti phone “ usage on the Camino
Mind you, it didn’t stop him using mine a few times

 

[Sirage]

I lived the first 50 years of my life without a mobile phone perfectly well.

Walked my first Camino (1,500 kms in 2005) with a primitive phone - a few SMS messages to friends back home.

I couldn't imagine doing a Camino without one - the world, and I, are no longer the same.

 

[rappahannock_rev]

Thank God for all those internet cafes you can fall back on in a crisis!

 

[Damien Reynolds]

Thank God for all those internet cafes you can fall back on in a crisis!

Ummm... They have been closed for like 15 years.

 

[dick bird]

It is perfectly possible to walk a camino without a phone, pilgrims did it for about eleven centuries before now and some people still do it.

But a 'dumb' phone is a good compromise.

Cameras are not old-fashioned and you can get a high quality digital compact for a few hundred euros.

It is the private accommodation that is more likely to be full - the camino demographic has changed so it is bookable accommodation that fills up while dorms in public and private albergues have space.

The waymarks are still there.

Buen camino.

 

[rappahannock_rev]

Ummm... They have been closed for like 15 years.

"No, no, no! Can't be!", said the grumpy old man.... "Why, I remember when I had a problem in Logrono in 2012...."

 

[Damien Reynolds]

"No, no, no! Can't be!", said the grumpy old man.... "Why, I remember when I had a problem in Logrono in 2012...."

ok, 12/13 years, . You are funny. Why, because we have the internet in our pocket.

 

[Damien Reynolds]

ok, I guess I didn't shut up. my bad. buen camino!

 

[ParisOslo]

Few years ago I walk the Camino Norte without a book a map and a cellphone. I was learning Spanish and told myself that I would learn much faster on the Camino.

I arrived in Irun and start following the blue arrow. Sometimes I was missing the arrow but I was asking for my way to the locals. One more way for me to learn practice my Spanish.

The locals are nice and patient especially towards the people’s trying to speak their language. I found all my accommodations by asking to the locals.

I was looking for water and knock at one house in a tiny village and they also give me fruits.

My experience

…

 

[trecile]

but I do think I can, and should (!), rely on other people when I go out walking in any town.

In relying on other people it's quite possible that you will also be relying on their phone.

 

[C clearly]

Would you like to be without?

Absolutely not.

Maybe I would just have to rely on other people

Which means rely on other people who have phones.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Have you ever found yourself in that situation - not finding a bed? I do not think I have ever met anyone who did not find somewhere to sleep. Sometimes on the floor In the hallway, but always somewhere.

I met a man on the Frances in late April 2017 who said he had to sleep on a park bench in Pamplona due to "no beds at the inn".

 

[BookGirl305]

so what is your real issue with wanting "no phone"? Because that's the issue, the issue is not the phone. Is it that you find yourself endlessly surfing TikTok? Delete the app. Are you hitting Google instead of learning the hard way? Break the habit. Are you wanting to put away electronics and do things the old fashioned way? Sure, but every paper guide printed is already using information from 1+ year ago when it was written, then printed, then made it's way to where you bought it. And everything is 30% higher. And weighs more. Figure out the why and solve that. Or take a paper guidebook, a digital camera, a paperback book, and a pad and paper instead.

 

[Anamya]

Having a phone could come in handy saving a phone-less fellow pilgrim who is suffering from heat stroke.

As the wife of a pilgrim who had a heatstroke in the middle of nowhere, I agree.
We always carry a phone, which we leave in airplane mode and only use for photos. We don't use it during the day, unless really necessary (like having a heatstroke...). I'm one of those people who loves asking people around for restaurants and stuff in every place we go. But I was glad that on the one occasion I needed to find help FAST, I had the phone with me.

So yes, I totally understand your feeling of not wanting to be connected. Maybe it's more about how you use it than about having the phone?
I'm pretty good with my general phone behaviour: only use it at night, once I'm into an accommodation, for quick messages to family and maybe a booking for the following day if the trail was busy. No social media, no scrolling.
What is it about the phone that impacts your connection with people on the trail? Sorry if the question is not well-placed, but I love engaging with others while on camino, so it made me really curious. (editing to add that I always back off if fellow pilgrims indicate preferring to be alone/in silence! )

 

[CTLawGal]

Are you good at paper maps and a compass? If you’re on a less traveled route it might be easier to take a wrong turn somewhere that’s not well marked - walking a few extra miles is not a big deal if you’re doing a 12 mile stage, but for me it kind of is if you’re doing 18-20 and there are no lodging options in between. I missed some markers on the Norte and Primitivo and was glad I could use my phone and the Wise Pilgrim map to help get me back on the path (and see how I missed them, poorly marked, faded, covered with leaves, etc.). I know I’m not good at paper maps, having the phone to help made all the difference. On some days I rarely crossed paths with anyone I could have asked to help, no pilgrims or locals for hours. So if you don’t mind getting lost and having no one to ask, it’s less of a problem. But I don’t see the benefit of not having your phone if you’re asking people who do use one to help you - possibility of a connection to meet someone you otherwise wouldn’t have met? Are you walking solo or relying on others in a group to find the way?

Another consideration is paying for things. If you don’t take a phone you still need to take a credit card, especially for hotels. It’s easier and safer to tap your phone than pull out your credit card. Some airlines charge extra (a lot extra at some) for paper boarding passes - arrival flights are not an issue but departing flights might be if you’re not staying some place where you can’t print one. You may be less sensitive fo extra charges than you are to smartphones, so this may not be an issue for you, but I don’t like it on pure principle

I also keep photos of my passport and drivers license on my phone in case they are lost or stolen on a trip. (Before smartphones I kept paper copies tucked in my luggage so you could do that instead). In the Santiago airport I had to rebook a flight, there were zero personnel in the airport to help at the hour I was leaving, so I couldn’t have done it without a phone.

If you think that tucking a phone (turned off, with a cable and charger) in a dry sack into your pack is too much “temptation” then my suggestion would be to use your Camino as an opportunity to practice self control over temptation. I think it’s one thing to take advantage of the kindness of strangers when you’re in a pinch, another thing to put yourself in the position of having to rely because of a deliberate choice not to be prepared. People like to say that the Camino provides, but I personally wouldn’t want to count on that especially if not on a well-travelled route. And I say that as someone who did a lot of providing for others along my route.

 

[SabsP]

Absolutely not.


Which means rely on other people who have phones.

Ah yes I remember such pilgrim in the years before we in most of Europe had general roaming for mobile phones.
Not that I imply the OP would do the same but that particular pilgrim would ask numerous pilgrims to help him out. He once asked to call a certain albergue if there was still room. I declined seeing it was not an emergency plus the cost was also an issue for me.
Same pilgrim who was always asking for other people to translate for him. Another thing a smartphone can help with all the various translation machines.
The thing that bugged me enormously was his quite expensive outfit and then his " statement of no phone ".

 

[Paladina]

The problem is not cell power: it’s will power. It’s perfectly possible to carry a phone for emergency use only, and not to rely on it to keep you occupied or entertained. The Camino will do that.