How much money should I bring on the Camino de Santiago?
Most pilgrim budgets fall in the $30-60 (€25-50) per day range, meaning a 30-day walk would cost $900-1800 (€750-1500).
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To complete the trail in four weeks, you would need to average 29km/18 miles a day without any rest days. To complete the trail in six week, you would need to average 19km/12 miles per day.
You are using so many calories each day that it is difficult to replace them all with food. Most years I have started my camino several kilos over weight and generally lose around 6-8 kilos. However last year I made a big effort to lose my extra kilos before starting my camino and only lost 2 additional kilos.
It is advisable to carry some cash with you when you walk the Camino de Santiago. The main reasons you will need some cash are to pay for accommodation and to pay your bill in some cafes. On the Camino de Santiago, some albergues will accept card, but this tends to be the private ones that are bookable via Booking.com.
The hardest day of the Camino is on the first day of the French Way, where you have to cross the great mountain range of the Pyrenees over the Napoleon Pass. You must hike 26km to get to the first stop, but you are awarded with a stay in the stunning monastery town of Roncesvalles and two days later Pamplona.
We would recommend that you do not pack a pillow for the Camino de Santiago. We don't think you will need a pillow, unless you're planning to wild camp of course. All albergues and guest houses will have pillows.
While not as common, some pilgrims opt to carry a tent and camp along the way. It offers a close connection to nature, though it's essential to camp in designated areas and respect the environment.
The average age of Pilgrims walking El Camino de Santiago is between 30 and 60 with nearly 60% of Pilgrims finishing the Camino being in this age group. There are also 15% of Pilgrims being over 60 years old and this is a growing group with more and more seniors walking the Camino de Santiago.
Public bathrooms are not frequent on the Camino de Santiago. But, cafes, restaurants and bars are frequent, you may find one or two during the day, and these all have bathrooms that customers can use.
In general, the best time to do one of the Camino de Santiago is between April and October. The months of July and August can be very hot and most Spaniards are on holiday so it's a period that is usually busy. But it can also be very attractive.
I lost about 8kgs, around 18 lbs, over a four week period. So yes, I did lose a lot of weight on the Camino. However, losing weight was never one of my reasons for walking the Camino. I did not set out on the Camino to lose weight, and I must admit that it never entered my mind at any time while I was there.
Mornings on the CaminoThis was mainly around 6-7am with a quick half hour to brush teeth and get ready for the day before setting off. Most Pilgrims stay in an albergue or hostel, where they'll have access to a shared kitchen to prepare breakfast if they want.
One pair of nighttime shorts/pantsYou will often wear them to dinner both in the albergues and out in restaurants. And there will be days when everything is dirty, so you wear your nighttime pants and t-shirt on the trail. For this reason, I recommend quick-dry clothes even for bedtime.
I will not recommend wearing heavy, waterproof boots on a hot dry Camino in summertime (July/August). Walking in the shoulder season (May, June, and September), can be good, but rain is possible. We walked a very wet Camino Primitivo during this time and waterproof boots worked fantastically.
Buy two pairs of shoesI found it a lot more comfortable to be able to put on a dry pair of shoes every morning. That was worth the weight of an extra pair to me.
Of course, there are some nice spots where a couple of friends were able to camp, like a small secluded beach on the Camino del Norte, but in general they were forced to pitch their tent in the garden of some albergues. It must be said that wild camping is not welcome in Spain.
Many pilgrims who have never set foot on a pilgrimage route are afraid of getting lost along the way. The truth is that orienting yourself on the Camino de Santiago is quite simple, even for beginners. It's unusual to get lost.
Generally, most people believe that the Camino del Norte is the most beautiful in terms of landscape. This is because you walk along Northern Spain and at times have the option to walk on a direct coastal path overlooking the ocean.