Setting out on Camino Portugués route.

[Kerry C]

We will begin this Camino in Porto on May 3. It’s our second Camino, as we did the Camino Frances a few years ago. We plan to start out coastal but go in at Arcos. I’m thinking it will take as about two weeks including days of rest.

 

[t2andreo]

The Camino Portugues from Porto typically takes at least 10 days (via the traditional route). You spend the first five days in Portugal, then cross into Spain. Some newer routes, along the coast and the Spiritual Variant can take a couple of days longer. I have not yet walked these, so I cannot speak directly to them.

Don't forget to advance your watch one-hour when you cross the river. Spain is on CET (Paris, Rome, Berlin). Portugal is in the same time zone as London.

In 2015, I started from Porto along the coast, then cut inland at Villa do Conde, towards Rates. The coast was boring to me as I grew up literally on the other side of the same body of water. Everything was identical, except for the sun's position.

As mentioned, at Villa do Conde, I turned to the east to join the internal route. That took 10 days. In 2017, I left Porto on the inland route. This also took 10 days.

On both occasions I used the Metro [2015] (to Matosinhos (next to last stop - climb stairs, cross bridge) or a train [2017] (to near Vilarinho, then walk to Vilarinho) to skip over the industrial areas and city barrios that are difficult to walk through, at least IMHO.

Others have alternative views on this. I respect those differences of opinion.

Personally, I do not like walking where the walking is either tedious or dangerous if I can avoid it. Plus, industrial estates, office parks, light industry or rows of big box stores and outlets do not help my emotional state, so I avoid them. In the Brierely books, these are the areas surrounding larger towns and cities and usually shaded grey.

On the Portuguese route the only area where you need to "suck it up" and endure the 'industrial ambiance' is coming into Porrino. It is within the 100 km limit for being eligible for a Compostela. Cheat here, and you run the risk of not being compliant... just sayin...

NOTE: There are also much smaller industrial belts around Redondela and Pontevedra, but these are not onerous, at least IMHO.

Hope this helps.

 

[Kerry C]

Thanks Andrew, for your encouraging advise. We figure to allow 2 weeks knowing Its a ten day hike which gives us two midpoint rest days, and a free day in Porto before we start, as well as a free day in Santiago. We are concerned about hiking the longer stages as we aren’t so young anymore. We could happily pass on the Porto city walk. I’m excited about having this adventure and grateful for each day of hiking. Norm also grew up on the coast, though on the Pacific side. He loves it so we’ll give that a try.

 

[Deleted member 56069]

We will begin this Camino in Porto on May 3. It’s our second Camino, as we did the Camino Frances a few years ago. We plan to start out coastal but go in at Arcos. I’m thinking it will take as about two weeks including days of rest.

Having walked the Portuguese Camino with my wife also from Porto via the central route in April 2017, your plan sounds good. We walked our first day out of Porto on the central versus coastal route and if I walked it again, I would also go via the coastal on day one and cross back over to rejoin the central before Arcos as you are planning to do.
Day one on the central has a fairly long stretch on the shoulder of the busy N-306 and a lot of cobblestones and granite setts as well. The Portuguese route may not have much elevation changes, but the amount of cobblestones and granite setts starts to weigh on your feet after a few days.
After day one though, we very much enjoyed the rest of the central route.

 

[Former member 22438]

Having walked the Portuguese Camino with my wife also from Porto via the central route in April 2017, your plan sounds good. We walked our first day out of Porto on the central versus coastal route and if I walked it again, I would also go via the coastal on day one and cross back over to rejoin the central before Arcos as you are planning to do.
Day one on the central has a fairly long stretch on the shoulder of the busy N-306 and a lot of cobblestones and granite setts as well. The Portuguese route may not have much elevation changes, but the amount of cobblestones and granite setts starts to weigh on your feet after a few days.
After day one though, we very much enjoyed the rest of the central route.

Very easy to cope with taking the central out of Porto. Skip the first part by taking the metro to Póvoa da Varzim and go out the metro at the station Vilar do Pinheiro and you are close to the yellow waymarkers and in a rural area.nice albergue in after about 10 kms walk to Vairão in a former monastry.
Then a walk through Vilarinho and directly after you will be in a beautifull rural area where the Roman road begins. In Arcos you join the pilgrims coming from Vila do Conde and all go up to São Pedro de Rates and Barcelos.
Within 3 weeks from now on April 5th I start again from Vairão . Love the area

 

[Deleted member 56069]

Very easy to cope with taking the central out of Porto. Skip the first part by taking the metro to Póvoa da Varzim and go out the metro at the station Vilar do Pinheiro and you are close to the yellow waymarkers and in a rural area.nice albergue in after about 10 kms walk to Vairão in a former monastry.
Then a walk through Vilarinho and directly after you will be in a beautifull rural area where the Roman road begins. In Arcos you join the pilgrims coming from Vila do Conde and all go up to São Pedro de Rates and Barcelos.
Within 3 weeks from now on April 5th I start again from Vairão . Love the area

I kind of have this thing about walking 100% of the entire route of any Camino I walk. So skipping parts or taxi's are not something I would do myself, but I understand that sometimes some may feel they need to do so for various reasons.

 

[Former member 22438]

I kind of have this thing about walking 100% of the entire route of any Camino I walk. So skipping parts or taxi's are not something I would do myself, but I understand that sometimes some may feel they need to do so for various reasons.

One of the reasons is that out of Porto you will walk on the hardshoulder of a busy motorway. One meter from you will drive Portuguese as devils in their "holy cows" as we say here in the Netherlands-their cars trucks and busses.I better avoid that part rather than arriving at Heaven's Gate too soon and where by then I cannot show or prove that I acomplished my caminho. I rather will pospone my encounter with Saint Santiago there above better till a later moment to show my deserved Compostela .
To me it is not the distance but the caminho experience , meeting others and enjoying the company ,the Portuguese and Galicean people , the landscape , the food, the pastéis de nata and the vinho verde.
The French say "chaqun a son gôut" what means as much as everyone does what he thinks is good.
Bom caminho e passa bem ! Say the Portuguese.

 

[Leon Ivan]

t2andreo
To avoid that industrial part coming in to Porrino there is a beautiful alternative route where you come to a T junction at a cafe/bar. Take the left turn.

 

[Former member 22438]

t2andreo
To avoid that industrial part coming in to Porrino there is a beautiful alternative route where you come to a T junction at a cafe/bar. Take the left turn.

Yes that is right but you have to take care that the waymarkers point into the right direction or are wiped out.
A couple of meters further on in the direction of the polígono industrial (Spanish for the industrial area) are some bars/restaurants and at times they change the waymarkers into their direction so you can have a drink en or a meal ( they call that commercial thinking ) so you can get directed into the direction you do not want. This is going on for a while.

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/warning-detour-of-porriño-almost-wiped-out.27945/

 

[t2andreo]

t2andreo
To avoid that industrial part coming in to Porrino there is a beautiful alternative route where you come to a T junction at a cafe/bar. Take the left turn.

I know, I have tried to take that turn but was thwarted by vandalized directional signs that looped me back to the industrial estate approach, AFTER a two-hour wander through the forest area...

 

[David Tallan]

The Camino Portugues from Porto typically takes at least 10 days (via the traditional route). You spend the first five days in Portugal, then cross into Spain. Some newer routes, along the coast and the Spiritual Variant can take a couple of days longer. I have not yet walked these, so I cannot speak directly to them.

Don't forget to advance your watch one-hour when you cross the river. Spain is on CET (Paris, Rome, Berlin). Portugal is in the same time zone as London.

In 2015, I started from Porto along the coast, then cut inland at Villa do Conde, towards Rates. The coast was boring to me as I grew up literally on the other side of the same body of water. Everything was identical, except for the sun's position.

As mentioned, at Villa do Conde, I turned to the east to join the internal route. That took 10 days. In 2017, I left Porto on the inland route. This also took 10 days.

On both occasions I used the Metro [2015] (to Matosinhos (next to last stop - climb stairs, cross bridge) or a train [2017] (to near Vilarinho, then walk to Vilarinho) to skip over the industrial areas and city barrios that are difficult to walk through, at least IMHO.

Others have alternative views on this. I respect those differences of opinion.

Personally, I do not like walking where the walking is either tedious or dangerous if I can avoid it. Plus, industrial estates, office parks, light industry or rows of big box stores and outlets do not help my emotional state, so I avoid them. In the Brierely books, these are the areas surrounding larger towns and cities and usually shaded grey.

On the Portuguese route the only area where you need to "suck it up" and endure the 'industrial ambiance' is coming into Porrino. It is within the 100 km limit for being eligible for a Compostela. Cheat here, and you run the risk of not being compliant... just sayin...

NOTE: There are also much smaller industrial belts around Redondela and Pontevedra, but these are not onerous, at least IMHO.

Hope this helps.

If you were walking along the coast, I don't know why you would need to take the Metro to Matosinhos. The walk along the river and up the shoreline is quite nice and didn't strike me as industrial at all. I walked to Vila Chã the first day. On the second, I continued to Vila do Conde where I took the cut over to Arcos on the Central route, and then continued a few more km to Rates to spend the night.

 

[t2andreo]

Everyone has a preference. I did not want to walk to the old neighborhoods to get to the river, and the bridge over it.

Walking in crowded cities tends to heighten my anxiety level. It’s a quirk I have... among many...