Let me write this week about the CAMINO TOUR. As this tour is the one that welcomes more questions, I will try to answer this week all of them, and next week I will describe the tour.
If you have any questions regarding the Camino tour, please do not hesitate to ask.
Here we go!
Do you only offer one Camino tour per year?
Yes, at this moment I will only do one Camino tour in 2023.
This year Camino tour will start on October 9th and go all the way to Oct 17th.
Is this a religious tour?
No, it is not. If you are looking for a Christian tour, this is not for you. We use as an excuse the Camino to Santiago to discover Northern Spain´s culture, landscape, gastronomy and much more. Of course, we will be visiting Cathedrals and churches, but not for praying but to admire the art and history in them.
As a group we will not attend any mass together, that will be on you during your free time.
How much are we walking on the trail?
We will be walking three parts in three different days on the Camino, each one of them are about six miles. Every two miles (aprox) we will stop to check if we are all doing fine.
If by any chance you are done with the walking after the first two miles or after four miles, that is perfect, our bus will take you to our next stop, where you will wait for the rest of the group while we walk. No stress, find yourself a bar and wait for us drinking a beer!
Is it a difficult path to walk on?
I will not deny it, it is a path, and you will find pebbles, shingles loose rocks, gravel, etc… It is not a paved floor, but it is easy to accomplish.
You also need to understand that as the walk is in the open, the terrain will be eroded by rain and wind, so we never know exactly how it will be. It might be dry or muddy, maybe the rain washed away part of the path…
If you are afraid of walking along a cliff, do not worry, we are not taking any dangerous route.
What will we do if it is raining?
We will walk no matter if it is sunny, cloudy, windy, or raining. Let´s face it, pilgrims in Middle Ages walked regardless the weather.
The only two reason I might cancel the walk are:
– First one, if I believe it might be dangerous for us to walk. For example, if a lightning storm is rolling in.
– The second reason to cancel a walk is if 100% of our group decides to not walk, but if there is at least one person who wants to walk, I will walk with that one person and the rest will have to wait for us. Sorry if I am to direct with this, but we never know the reason why people join the tour and walking in the trail might be the most important thing for them.
Do I need to be in good shape to join the tour?
It depends on what is good shape for you. I would say that you must be able to walk for about three hours per day. If you can walk six or eight miles, you will be fine. But as I have said before, if you get too tired on the days we walk the Camino, the bus will be there to help you.
In fact, many times city tours are more tiring the than the Camino hikes. City tours can go up to three hours walking a bit, then standing, then walk a little bit more and stand again….
As we are pilgrims, will our accommodations be OK?
OH YES! Our hotels are great, yes there are a couple of them that are not 100% but there is a reason for it.
Our first hotel is a just fine, the reason is that as we start the tour in Saint Jean de Luz and chances are that you will arrive by high-speed train, this hotel is right across the train station, it is also one minute away from the city center. It is perfectly located, clean, with a bathroom in each room, but just not fancy.
The other hotel that is different is the one in OCebreiro. This mega small village doesn´t have hotels, it only has pilgrim hostels, and that is where we are staying. Don´t panic, there is a small bathroom in your room and the hostel is great. It is the day to really become pilgrims.
The rest of the hotels are four stars and are perfectly located in the city center.
Do I need to bring special gear for the walks?
Just good shoes and rain gear. Walking stick are not a must, but they are recommended. If you do not have folding ones that can fit in your suitcase, don´t worry, there are plenty of pilgrim shops along the Camino.
Well, my friend, I hope I have answered most of the questions regarding the CAMINO TOUR. But, as I said in the beginning, if you have any question, please do not doubt to ask.
I promise that in next week’s post I will describe the tour.
Have a great week
Fran