Camino Planning
This post assumes you know the basics about the Camino de Santiago.
| Visit Our Camino, Our Way to read our story, and brush up
| Camino Resources
Planning your Camino can be easy, but there is a lot to consider. My mom is the one who was called to Walk the Way, so she did the majority of the planning. Since both of my parents are elderly, there were some specific wants and needs to accommodate, which my mom needed the assistance of a Camino-specific planner/travel agent to fulfill.
Wants
- To stay in hotels, not albergues/hostels.
- We did not want to worry about where we would be sleeping each night.
- We wanted our own beds, and our own bathrooms--not having to share with anyone outside of our party, not having people wake us up several hours before we are ready.
- Less exposure to the infamous Camino Bedbugs.
- To hit specific towns, and play tourist in some of them, along the Portuguese Route, Spiritual Variant.
Needs
- 'Roadside Assistance' of sorts - one of our party was nervous about not being able to walk the full miles each day. They knew that they would not receive the Compostela if they did not walk the required 100 km (62 miles).
- Breaking down our daily distance walked to no more than 8 miles a day (13 km). We all know we cannot walk more than that.
- Luggage transfer: since we are carrying only daypacks, we needed our luggage to be moved from hotel to hotel.
- Due to our daily miles limit, and our hotels being a little too far out of the way, transportation was arranged for us: pick us up at a spot when we are done for the day. The next morning, we will be dropped off at the exact same spot to continue forward.
- Having someone speak the native language to make reservations, organize the luggage transfer, and to inform all of our reservations (hotels, restaurants) that I have Celiac Disease was an enormous relief.
My mom emailed many companies, gave them the most basic and important of our needs, and requested their thoughts and quotes. Some ignored her specific requests, and gave her an itinerary that we would never be able to accomplish (15-20 miles a day), and skipping all the towns in which my mom specifically stated she wanted to play tourist. Another set us up with a private guide and van with snacks that would follow us at all times as we walked. We had no use of a guide, and no intention of eating the snacks or using the van enough to justify the expense. They would not remove it, and it was such a huge added expense that we had to cross that company off of the list.
There were some other decent companies that did listen to us, but the one that fully understood us was Ultreya Tours.
Nellie of Ultreya was pleasant, professional, super helpful, and most of all, patient with our many questions. She actually listened to our needs, and fulfilled each and every one of them. Our number one need had a brilliant solution: she recommended a driver with whom she regularly works. He would be aware of our needs, and we could call him if we needed assistance. We could also call a true taxi if necessary.
Planning Your Camino
For planning your own camino, decide where you want to start (which country), and which route you wish to take. Decide if what time of year your Camino will be [whether based on the local weather, or when you are able to travel]. Google the temperatures during those times of year, at those locations. Then, considering the temperatures, pick your clothing and gear accordingly.
