Here you will find all useful information and answers to possible doubts if you decide to hike the path of St. James in Spain, the famous el Camino.
You’ve chosen one of the routes to Santiago de Compostela, and now you’re moving on to the practical part – planning your trip. This can be overwhelming if you don’t start on time with your preparations.
- Am I fit for the kamino?
You have a strong desire to meet and complete the journey of St. Jacob in Spain. Certainly, many new acquaintances and interesting experiences awaits you, but also count on unexpected difficulties and challenges on the way. Be honest with yourself and your physical condition. If you haven’t already, start exercising: Put a backpack on your back with one cover, water, sandwiches, weighing up to 10% of your weight. Walk 20 km. And again tomorrow. And the day after tomorrow.
Don’t forget that this is how your dynamics will look during the days of the pilgrimage: getting up early, walking for 6-8 hours a day, arriving at the hostel for pilgrims, showering and washing clothes, resting, sleeping. And so from day to day. That doesn’t mean you have to be a professional athlete to complete the Camino. The most important thing is the desire and will to go on that path. If you are someone to whom isn’t strange to moderate physical effort, you will work out your body and find your own pace while walking.
After all, remember the fable of the hare and the tortoise.
- What things do I need?
Important question.
As we have already mentioned, it is recommended that you carry 10% of your weight on your back. This seems like an impossible mission, but it’s almost doable. Have a scale and pen and paper ready for adding up. But seriously.
a) The most important item is hiking shoes. It can be anything from hiking boots, to trekking shoes, to hiking sandals. Yes, you heard right. Those with toe protection . As an alternative to closed shoes, sandals of this type can provide very welcome space to the feet. It is very important that the shoes are worn. NEVER start such a long journey in new shoes. You’ll get blisters and cramps sooner than you might think.
b) Each peregrine or the pilgrim should have a backpack. A backpack (preferably a hiking backpack, with a belt around the hips) should be neither too small nor too big. You don’t want to feel like you can cram and pile things into it like Reese Witherspoon in the movie „Wild.“
You should definitely place in it:
- 2-3 t-shirts (preferably active ones),
- Underwear (don’t overdo it)
- Active shorts/bermuda/pants, one on you, the other in your backpack. Depending on what time of year you are traveling, study the weather conditions for the regions you are passing through. People used to go to el Camino mostly in the summer time for a number of practical reasons. It is a period of rest and stable weather, and then the largest number of pilgrims in northern Spain wear shorts during the day and even in the evening.
If you are a mountaineer, you already know that active clothing is a plus for this type of activity. Personal hygiene items: toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, soap – you will need this last item both for showering and for washing clothes by hand. Although you will occasionally come across accommodation with a washing machine, most often you will wash your clothes by hand.
- Shower slippers again, the lighter the better.
- Towel – the smaller the better. It’s a matter of personal taste, but if you really want to reduce the weight of your backpack as much as possible, instead of a puffy and bulky cotton towel, bring a microfiber towel that you can find in hiking stores like Decathlon, Intersport, Iglusport… Why? They are very light, take up little space and dry quickly.
- Aluminum water bottle, you know the ones used for hiking? Preferably, not less than 1 liter. Glass bottle? Only if you want to add a few unnecessary hundred grams to your backpack.
- Alcohol/Povidone iodine, cotton wool, gauze, a box of Hanzaplast, scissors, tweezers, a needle and thread. All of these, among other things, are necessary to heal the blisters that will most likely appear on your feet sooner or later.
+ tip: Although it’s very likely that someone on el Camino will show you this, learn how to heal blisters.
- A sleeping bag that will be your bedding on el Camino days. A sack pad isn’t necessary, but it can come in handy in critical moments when all you have left to do is sleep on the floor.
… Sleeping on the floor?! For the answer to that question, keep reading.
- Hat/cap, glasses and sun cream for obvious reasons, you will be exposed to the sun for a good part of the day in a Mediterranean country.
- A couple of pairs of socks, also hiking socks, for hikes and treks. If you can, find ones without seams – seams are the enemy of el Camino feet as they encourage blisters. Stop blisters!
- Even in summer, there is a high probability of rainy days in northern Spain. Therefore, prepare a light raincoat. Do not panic – in shorts and short sleeves, covered with a raincoat (which, if possible, also goes over your backpack), you will be wet but you will walk with a smile on your face. Don’t stop unless the thunder starts. Some of the most exciting one day, it will be you, rainy one, on el Camino. Two or three clothespins – It may sound funny, but sometimes you will need to effectively dry your laundry in places where this little practical item is in short supply.
- In addition to sandwiches, always have a couple of chocolateand energy bars, dried fruit in your backpack. They will definitely help you, especially on demanding sections in hilly areas.
a) Don’t forget the cutlery. By that, we primarily mean a Swiss knife with many useful accessories (you will be the leader in the company when you need to open a bottle of wine), or something a little light, which is a knife-fork-spoon, so-called. a Spork that we heartily recommend. Of course, don’t forget that the Swiss will have to go in your checked luggage if you went by plane.
- Personal pharmacy – everything you normally carry when you go on any trip.
b) If you still find that your backpack is too heavy, you can mail the extra things to yourself in the city where you definitely plan to arrive. For example, in Oviedo you go to the post office (Correos), pack the extra things in a box and send them to yourself in Santiago. Pick up the package at the post office there. Cheaper than shipping home.
c) Walking sticks – they can be hiking sticks, or improvised wooden ones, real pilgrim’s. Although it is popular to see a pilgrim with a walking stick, it is best to use a pair of walking sticks because, as one physiotherapist from el Camino says, „a pair of walking sticks is another pair of legs“, and you need to distribute the load on both feet evenly.
d) Pilgrim’s booklet (el credential), identifies you as a pilgrim of the Way of Saint James. In it, you enter the stamps of the locations you pass through on your way. You need a minimum of two stamps per day to gain access to accommodation – albergues – at the end of the day. You can get it in the churches and cathedrals of the places from which you start the kamino. For more useful information, as well as where to get the booklet, see here. Although there is now a mobile application of this booklet, the physical copy full of stamps will remain as a very dear memory.
- What is the accommodation like?
In the first place, there are lodgings for pilgrims – albergues. These are usually dormitories with bunk beds within the monastery or some other state institution, where pilgrims are received in order of arrival. This accommodation is paid for by a symbolic sum (donation), but it should not be less than 5 euros. If you are late and find a full „alberge“, another option is private hostels (hostal), or boarding houses, where prices range up to 20 euros. If those places are also full, you will have to continue your journey to the next village with accommodation.
Sometimes the number of people is so great that the workers cope by letting the pilgrims sleep on mattresses or on the floor of the lodging house. However, try to avoid this by leaving on time in the morning from your previous accommodation, around 7-8 in the morning. And no, don’t fall into the competitive trap with other „peregrinos“. And yes, bring earplugs.
- How much money do I need?
There is a pretty good calculator in Spanish ( www.caminodesantiago.consumer.es) that will calculate the amount you need to plan based on the starting and ending destinations you choose. Valid only for accommodation or for accommodation and accompanying expenses (alojamiento + manutención).
- How to get to the starting point? Where should I even start?!
The pilgrim chooses his own path. You can start from where you want. You will decide that based on the time you have. You can reach the starting points by plane, bus, train, foot, etc. This company transported me to the airport in Belgrade from where I flew to Spain. Of course, it is easier to reach some more popular points, such as San Sebastián or Oviedo. You will most likely have to combine two types of transportation in Spain to get where you want to go.
Info +: The minimum required for you to be issued a diploma on the distance traveled is 100 km on foot and 200 km on bicycle/horse. Many Spaniards, due to lack of time, cross the camino in stages. So one year they cross the 100 km stage in 4 days, and the next year they continue from where they left off, which is completely valid.
- You have reached the starting position, what should you do next?
El Camino ethics dictate that on the first day one should not grab lodgings in pilgrims’ lodgings, which will better serve the weary pedestrians who arrive. Instead, book private accommodation in a hostel or hotel and hit the kamino the next morning rested and chilly. And more:
– Take a walk around the place, look around. You may want to find a bookstore with a handy, pocket-sized guidebook for your chosen route. It’s not out of the question.
– Go to the church/cathedral where they will issue you a pilgrim card. You will pay a small amount of money for it (a few years ago it cost 3eur).
– Buy food for the next day at the supermarket. And that’s what you do every day on el Camino: buy food only for the next day.
– There are often bars, restaurants, and shops, and the prices are affordable for pilgrims.
– There is enough water and food on the way. Whenever you come across a drinking water source, refill your (aluminum) bottle.
A few more final tips:
– Camino means „path“ in Spanish – it is your personal path, an opportunity to connect with yourself in the beautiful natural landscapes of northern Spain. Resist the temptation to compete with other pilgrims in speed.
– Whatever gender you are, don’t be afraid that you will be alone and unsafe on the this trip – very soon you will meet other peregrinos who, like you, are on the same path. Some of them will be your casual acquaintances, and with some you will walk kilometers of a good road and share laughter, (tears), conversation, food.
– Don’t use the camino as an excuse for a tourist tour of Spain. You will feel confused, and you will confuse other pilgrims. Remember: the camino is a spiritual path, connecting with yourself and the world in which we live. You will feel yourself losing your rhythm entering the big cities. Leave a detailed visit to Bilbao, San Sebastian, Pamplona and other beautiful Spanish cities for another occasion.
– Buy travel health insurance.
– And, don’t lose focus: follow the yellow arrow or shell.
Buen camino!
PS Višnja, thank you
