Camino de Santiago - Walking The Way at an All-Time High

[@gregvanstaveren8700]

I am starting my Camino. I’m in Bordeaux heading to Saint Jean. Thank you all of all of your advice. I have my first 2 nights and then just show up to find a bed.

[@TheCaminoGuide]

🙂👍Should be really nice weather next couple of days, sunny and 70°.

[@billf4186]

I’m in Roncesvalles right now. Make your ressies 3 days in advance.

[@amyrullo549]

Leaving SJPP on May 30th…I will be looking for your reports! First Camino and going solo! 😊

[@billf4186]

No rumor! I’m in Roncesvalles today and it’s really busy (read crazy). Make your accommodation reservations in advance!

[@Socalhodaka]

I really appreciate your knowledge and tips. We are walking our first Camino in September.

[@dakshafata3559]

We are also walk-in end of Sept from Porto. Hope it’ll be nice and sunny. 🙏

[@billf4186]

Who wants to walk around town looking for a bed after completing a leg of the Camino? Do yourself a favor: make your reservations in advance! Why stress?

[@violasteffens339]

Thank you for your videos. I really appreciate the information you share. You mentioned the Buen Camino App, do you think it might be better to download the offline version as well? All the best for you and your preparations 😃

[@TheCaminoGuide]

I didn't know there was an offline version. There's lots of Wi-Fi at all the cafes, so maybe not necessary. I would download WhatsApp as well, as most of Europe uses it. Makes it easy to message albergues.

[@violasteffens339]

@@TheCaminoGuide Thank you 😃

[@CabelloKelly]

Thanks for the valuable tips. Since walking creates its own body heat, I rather tolerate a few cold days than hot days. May sounds like a perfect month for a comfortable journey. Also, as you mentioned, no signs that the number of pilgrims will decrease in the upcoming years. Imagine Sarria in July.

[@TheCaminoGuide]

I think people are already deviating from Sarria and heading to Portuguese Coastal. The Sarria crowd maybe just prebooking so they are less interested in the "bed race" difficulties. It's kind of a party atmosphere, so I try not to be the wet blanket on their fun. It's the final challenge for me on the Camino...getting through the last five days without dropping my hard earned peace. But it's a bit of a shock coming out of the Meseta to suddenly marching in line and having to pre-book five days ahead.

[@stigschmidtknudsen]

Thanks for your reviews. What App’s do you normalt use to check for rooms etc.

[@TheCaminoGuide]

I mostly use the Buen Camino app. If I'm looking for more of a hotel, I generally use booking.com. most of the albergues do not list on booking.com, I assume because of the fee involved. But I think most of them are on the Buen Camino app. If you have an iPhone, some people prefer Camino Ninja. But last I checked they did not support Android. If you have a Google login, you can go to the description on any of my videos and download my Camino packing list. It has all of the items you might possibly need, along with notes and links to items I've reviewed, as well as all of the apps I use.

[@paulafitz532]

Thank you

[@mccue2866]

Very busy and accommodation is tight.

[@alanhamilton890]

Yesterday, I completed the Portugese Central Route from Porto. From Tui it got really busy, like a stream of ants on the move. Yesterday 3,171 completion certs were issued for all routes. Amazing!!!!

[@TheCaminoGuide]

Maybe we need to figure out a few more routes for those last hundred kilometers?

[@alanhamilton890]

@@TheCaminoGuide Creating new routes may not go down well. It appears that this year is going to be a record breaker. The numbers are up everywhere. We shall see...

[@PaulNelson392]

I finished the Portuguese yesterday, and by 4:30 there were only a little over 1100 completion certificates issued so far. I think the surge from the holiday in Spain is over.

[@jdbro9956]

Have you found that there is a time of year that more Americans tend to walk the Camino Frances from SJPP?

[@TheCaminoGuide]

Based on the info from the Pilgrim's Reception office for last year, 32,070 pilgrims were from the US. (7.28%). The majority arrive in Santiago in May/June or Sept/Oct...about 5.5k - 5.9k each of those months. So they are likely starting their walk in late April/May and late August/Sept. Makes sense. We seem to focus on getting decent weather. July/Aug is too hot, but that's when Europeans get the majority of their vacation time. Much of Europe takes 5 weeks off in August, so even though it's very hot, it's still busy.

[@jdbro9956]

@@TheCaminoGuide Those are good stats. I'm hoping to do my Camino in 2025 and those are about the dates I was considering. How do you feel Easter, 20 April next year, will affect the crowds? Is there a reason why you prefer May to start your Caminos?

[@TheCaminoGuide]

April and the first half of May can be cold and rainy. It's still fine, but you have to pack a little heavier to account for the rain & cold. If I'm alone I will go any time. I'm bringing my son and nephew this time, so it's better for them to go when the weather is nice and they can wander the towns rather than being shut indoors while it's raining. September is nice...warm weather with no rain until October in Galicia.

[@mtmoonan]

Have you checked the Camino Madrid?

[@TheCaminoGuide]

I don't see a specific Madrid route on either the pilgrim's reception site or any of the top Camino travel sites. The pilgrim's reception does have a breakdown for point of origin, which has a couple of Madrid listings. One just reads "Madrid" and the other reads "Madrid-CF". The total of these two was 2,026 for the entire year 2023. So figuring most of those people likely walked during the most popular 8 months, it comes to about 253/month or about 8 people per day on average. So far, year to date, they are showing 364 total, with nearly all of them walking in March & April.

[@rrm8958]

Si vas a un camino que está masificado de personas, esa aventura ya no tiene ningún sentido

[@TheCaminoGuide]

Most of the way from France, the walking part is fine. The road itself is not too crowded. Only that last section from Sarria is overcrowded. The towns may want to consider opening churches or municipal buildings and charging a few euros, maybe €5 per person to sleep on the floor. I know a lot of people would choose that before taking a bunk bed even. I know I would.