Hi Walli, Thank you for your earlier reply to my question. And thank you for sending me your travelling schedule. I am planning to start on September the 13th. I wonder if you start directly in Porto or did you take the metro tot Igreja de Maia for example? I read that the central route out of Porto is noisy and hazardous with much traffic. Or did you take the coastal route? The coastal route seems beautiful to me but busy I think?
The coastal is not busy in the sense of many pilgrims. It is a beautiful walk on boardwalks which you may share with locals doing a stroll, tourists and sometimes bikers.as soon as you are at the end of your walk there is Vila do Conde ,a lovely village with nice restaurants and bars for a meal and a drink.
There is no albergue but hostals. We saw hostal Bellamar. When you come over the bridge of VdC turn right and immediately right again so you walk underneath the bridge which also leads by yellow waymarkers to continue the coastal camino
As soon as you passed the bridge at the corner of a street you see an Opel cardealer showroom. Next door is Bellamar. Other side of the Opel dealer is a nice restaurant (not cheap) for an excellent meal.
If you go right over the bridge and keep going straight on you are on the central Portugese route direction São Pedro de Rates.
Advice if you want to walk the traditional route to Vilarinho, take the metro at Trindade metro station in the Porto center to the stop Forum Maia.
And walk direction Vilarinho following the waymarkers. First albergue you'll meet is Monasteiro de Vairão. Great place to stay in an ancient monastry. Carla is a very kind and helpfull hospitaleiro. Highly recommended to stay there
From Forum Maia you are almost out of the busy infrastructure and once you leave Vairão and Vilarinho you are in a nice rural landscape.
Just from São Pedro de Rates to Pedra Furada and Barcelos you meet some roadwalking. Keep the lefthanded traffic coming towards you instead of coming from behind but allways remind that traffic can overtake others so approach you from behind. Wear a fluorescent safetyvest and if you walk with poles point with them to cardrivers that you are walking there. There can be funny Portugese drivers.
After Barcelos do not forget Casa Fernanda to stay for the night. The best on the entire caminho Portugues from Porto. If you haven't been there, you haven't been on the caminho Portugues
. Make a reservation on before hand by giving Fernanda a call +351 914 589 521. It can be busy.
Arriving in Redondela, walk three kms further on to Cessantes. There is refuxio de la Jerézana, an albergue , far better than the very busy municipal albergue in Redondela. Marie is the very kind hospitaleiro. Highly recommended too.
Bom caminho
