Travel from Santiago de Compostela to San Sebastian de Garabandal

[Renee C]

Hello my fellow Pilgrams,
I will be walking the Camino Portugues Coastal Route with a group which finishes Oct 14th this year. I would like to carry on by myself to San Sebastian de Garabandal via bus, train, or plane afterwards but the route does not seem to be clear and with limited options. Will any of you experienced travelers please help me find the easiest way to get there? And is it safe for a woman to be travelling on her own in these parts?

Any suggestions are welcome and I thank you in advance for your help.

 

[Pilgrim Patricia]

Hello my fellow Pilgrams,
I will be walking the Camino Portugues Coastal Route with a group which finishes Oct 14th this year. I would like to carry on by myself to San Sebastian de Garabandal via bus, train, or plane afterwards but the route does not seem to be clear and with limited options. Will any of you experienced travelers please help me find the easiest way to get there? And is it safe for a woman to be travelling on her own in these parts?

Any suggestions are welcome and I thank you in advance for your help.

Try Rome2Rio dot com. Good luck and buen camino!

 

[Renee C]

Try Rome2Rio dot com. Good luck and buen camino!

Thank you so much. Yes, I will definitely do that.

 

[BarbaraW]

I had a look, out of simple curiosity to see where San Sebastian de Garabandal, which I'd never heard of, is.
The place looks stunning but all the routes suggested involve long taxi journeys to the village.

Having found myself having to hitch-hike earlier this year despite R2R's information that a journey from Plasencia to El Torno could be done by bus and taxi, I'd suggest that you try to contact someone in the village to check the taxi situation in advance, and book one.

Or maybe a tour from Santander would suit you eg https://touristjourney.com/tours/mo...de-garabandal-pilgrimage-tour-from-santander/

No problem at all travelling around Spain as a solo female. Just the normal precautions about money/passports and care in crowded places. The only thing I still find awkward is eating alone in the evening., so I usually eat in the afternoon, like the Spanish do. But that's me, and just a couple of encounters with waiters unused to solo female diners.

 

[peregrina2000]

It looks like San Sebastián de Garabandal is a pilgrimage center in its own right. Here is a pretty good website that lists transportation options, not from Santiago, but I think you can figure out how to get from Santiago to Santander, which is what the website uses as a starting point. One bus a day to a place that’s 5 km from Garabandal, with the recommendation being taxi after that.

TRAVEL GARABANDAL | Pilgrim Center Garabandal

www.centrogarabandal.org

Looks lovely — is this a destination for some post-camino R&R, or are you interested in the pilgrimage destination itself (if you would care to tell us, of course!).

 

[Renee C]

I had a look, out of simple curiosity to see where San Sebastian de Garabandal, which I'd never heard of, is.
The place looks stunning but all the routes suggested involve long taxi journeys to the village.

Having found myself having to hitch-hike earlier this year despite R2R's information that a journey from Plasencia to El Torno could be done by bus and taxi, I'd suggest that you try to contact someone in the village to check the taxi situation in advance, and book one.

Or maybe a tour from Santander would suit you eg https://touristjourney.com/tours/mo...de-garabandal-pilgrimage-tour-from-santander/

No problem at all travelling around Spain as a solo female. Just the normal precautions about money/passports and care in crowded places. The only thing I still find awkward is eating alone in the evening., so I usually eat in the afternoon, like the Spanish do. But that's me, and just a couple of encounters with waiters unused to solo female diners.

Yes, it's not easy to get to but I'm sure well worth it. Great advise! I'm going to look into a tour. I like the sound of that!! And I like the idea of eating in the afternoon rather than the evening by myself. Thanks.

 

[Renee C]

It looks like San Sebastián de Garabandal is a pilgrimage center in its own right. Here is a pretty good website that lists transportation options, not from Santiago, but I think you can figure out how to get from Santiago to Santander, which is what the website uses as a starting point. One bus a day to a place that’s 5 km from Garabandal, with the recommendation being taxi after that.

TRAVEL GARABANDAL | Pilgrim Center Garabandal

www.centrogarabandal.org

Looks lovely — is this a destination for some post-camino R&R, or are you interested in the pilgrimage destination itself (if you would care to tell us, of course!).

Yes, there are pilgrimages that go to Garabandal. You should check out the history of Garabandal. I'm interested in both - a little spiritual journey after the physical one.

 

[mlcarlson3]

Any thoughts on how to get from Santiago to Garabandal economically. Have looked at Rome2Rio but the ways are long and arduous. Looked into hiring a driver but the quoted cost is $1000 for our group of 4 (from Santiago to Garabandal). Just seeing is there is a less expensive option. Many thanks in advance for your assistance.

 

[M2ME]

Checkout Rome2Rio app it has details of buses.

 

[Tincatinker]

Any thoughts on how to get from Santiago to Garabandal economically. Have looked at Rome2Rio but the ways are long and arduous. Looked into hiring a driver but the quoted cost is $1000 for our group of 4 (from Santiago to Garabandal). Just seeing is there is a less expensive option. Many thanks in advance for your assistance.

Which Garabandal? There are a few. As it’s unlikely that many people from Santiago/ Galicia would want to go to any of them there’s unlikely to be anything resembling a direct route. Try planning a trip to the closest major city and then sort out the fiddly bit at the end. A quote of €1000 suggests that the consulted provider had no desire to do the trip. Even one way car hire from one of the internationals will come in well under that. The layout of the rail networks in Spain mean that the easiest route to anywhere from anywhere that isn’t just up the track is via Madrid. Same applies to flights

Pick a Garabandal, finds it’s nearest likely transport hub and you’ll be there easier than you think

 

[mlcarlson3]

To clarify we want to travel from Santiago de Compostela to San Sebastian de Garabandal. Will try your suggestion. Thank you.

 

[Tincatinker]

To clarify we want to travel from Santiago de Compostela to San Sebastian de Garabandal. Will try your suggestion. Thank you.

Hmm, looks like flight / train to Bilbao and some train / bus/ taxi combination from there will fix it. Hope you’re not in a rush.

I’m minded of that old rustics’ joke: “If I were going there I wouldn’t start from ‘ere”.

 

[Tincatinker]

@BarbaraW ’ s suggested route could be a good option. Bus, or FEVE train from Ferrol, to Santander and a taxi from there.

Happy planning

 

[M2ME]

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This may help. A bus from Santander to nearest village Cosio Mon to Friday the company is ALSA.
Then taxi to the Garabandal.
Desde la Estación de Autobuses de Santander a Cosío-Garabandal: Hay un autobús de lunes a viernes (excepto festivos) hasta el pueblo de Cosío, de la empresa “ALSA” http://www.alsa.es/portal/site/Alsa. Desde Cosío a Garabandal se puede subir al pueblo en taxi (6 Km.).

 

[mlcarlson3]

Many thanks for all your suggestions. I will look into them. There are so many possibilities other than want is on Rome2Rio. Thank you for taking time out to help us plan our trip.