December 2025.
- Practice near your own home with a packed backpack and walking shoes. Carry 12-15 kgs maximun. I have seen pilgrims carrying power blocks. (Picture above) or 40 Mars bars. Spain is a modern country.
- Do not cross the Pyrenees Mountains at night. (From St. Jean Pied de Port to Roncesvallles). The fog will surprise you: within ten minutes!
- The buses in France are usually a lot cheaper than the trains.
- Plan 3 days ahead where you will stay overnight. Do not arrive in Navarra without reservation (unless you sleep in the Albergues).
- In winter many Albergues are closed. You will be informed by the locals which ones are open. Buying a Credencial in Spain is easy: it costs € 1,= to € 2,=.
- Planning the whole route from France to Finisterra while still in your own home is impossible (1000 kms) unless you take buses and taxis.
- The walk from St. Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela will take one month.
- The cost: € 10-15 per night in an Albergue. Very few Albergues are free (or: donation only). Hotel/Pensión: € 35,- per night (low season) if you plan ahead. Galicia is cheaper than the French side. Other expenses: transport, food, equipment, insurance, entrance fees.
Staying overnight: the cheapest are the Albergues. Hotels, hostals are cheap in winter, but pricy in summer: Easter week until September. The hotels which are exactly on the camino are usually more expensive than the ones in the villages around it. But, few buses are available, in particular on Sundays. Cities like Bilbao and Barcelona can be expensive, as well as the "casas rurales" of Navarra. To get an idea: look at websites like Booking.com or Trivago. Taxis charge some € 2,= per kilometer. The more you prepare, the more you know, the less you pay.
- Decide what you want: a pilgrimage or a holiday, It will rain, snow and it can be hot. Bring a rain cover for you and your backpack. And a cap. An umbrella won't last long.
- Annum 2025 not many persons are on a pilgrimage. There are still a few, but most modern "pilgrims" (thousands in summer) are on a holiday, taking pictures to show to their friends at home. They drink lots of alcohol, take drugs, play with their phones etc. They take taxis, buses and trains. These exercises won't change your life; they only empty your purse.
You can still go on a pilgrimage, well prepared with a phone and travel insurance, but be aware of the fact that this will certainly result in significant changes physically and mentally.
- To walk the final 100 kms to SDC you may start in Sarria (at 112 kms). Just take an ALSA bus to Lugo and from there a MONBUS to Sarria. There are trains to Sarria, but not many.
- The walk from SDC to Finisterre takes 3 days: SDC - Negreira - Oliveira - Finisterre (passing Cee). You may even continue to Muxía (one long day).
- Water is safe to drink in the hotels and bars. (Some fountains warn you not to drink it.) The voltage is 220 V. (European plugs.)
- Campers may be parked on special parking lots to limit pollution.
- Large backpacks are not allowed inside the cathedral, only handbags. Entrance is free. During Mass: no entrance at all, unless you were inside the building already. You enter through the southern gate.
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I have walked the various caminos since April 2001. My camino guide is not for sale anymore. Make sure that the guide you buy was written by a writer who is still alive and walking. Better: use the Internet.
In Galicia try the local delicatesse called "Pulpo gallego": squid rings with boiled potato.
More suggestions:
The white cheese of O Cebreiro.
Deep fried eel from the Miño river. (Served at Habitaciones Pérez in Portomarín.)
Breakfast of toast, tomato mousse, olive oil and a pinch of salt.
DECEMBER 2025: There were hardly any pilgrims in Santiago and no tourists (empty hotels).
Galicia made a choice (long ago): work hard in Summer & pay the bank in Winter.
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