Camino de Santiago travel advice

“Train for it by doing a lot of road walking with a lot of hill work. I met people who had trained in a gym and they had problems with the grim reality of the actual experience of road walking. Wear a good pair of boots with thick soles, they don't have to be expensive ones, I bought mine from Aldi for less than £20 and they did me very well for 500 miles and I did not have a single blister ...water bottles most important and can be filled at fountains en-route and keep one empty for the wine fountain at the Irache monastery…The chocolate museum in Astorga and the Plaza Obradoiro in Santiago were also amazing.” - Philip Francis

“Go with the flow – no early starts in hotels in Camino Norte. The earliest breakfast was at 9am. It doesn’t get dark until late and you have all day to walk… I was told the Finistère was the most beautiful part- but most of Camino Norte was just as beautiful and quieter- so if doing this again, I would stop the journey at Santiago.” – Wendy Williams

“Walking into the square in front of Santiago cathedral after walking 111 kilometres to get there, the emotion of achieving it and the realisation there was no more walking overwhelmed me. The square was filled with other pilgrims each one full of the same joys. It is all about the feet and you cannot have too many Compeed blister packs! A good pair of rugged footware and the best hiking socks will repay the investment. Be in the moment, if you think how far you have to go to finish you will be overwhelmed. We stopped every 45 mins for a drink of electrolytes and a shared energy bar. Smile, everyone is on the same walk and all are your companions. The Camino walk is hard but it repays in so many ways. You grow in your belief of yourself. The scenery is stunning and the walks so peaceful. A week where cars were rare and the sound off birdsong was the noisiest part of the day, what's not to like!” – Tony Finn

“Although this was our third time walking the Camino Santiago de Compostela. It was still as fantastic spiritual experience as our first. I do not think that there is a walk like it. Prepare well and walk at your own pace if walking as a group spread out so that everyone can go at their own pace. Do not let yourself be pushed to fast it leads to injuries and possibly worse blisters… this is the most spiritual walks available and having the bags brought from hotel to hotel meant that all we had to carry was a small day pack. We walked the Camino in a vacation mode.” – David Lohan

“It was an amazing experience. I went with my 15 year old son in order to practise Spanish for his GCSE exam. We were looked after by a local mountain guide in the mornings who knew the mountains like the back of his hand and took us on some strenuous hiking through beautiful, unspoilt and mostly deserted terrain whilst speaking to us in Spanish.” – Rosie Pennie, learning Spanish and walking the Camino in the Picos de Europa

“I'd buy and wear in a decent pair of lightweight walking boots. Ignore people who say it can be done in flip flops. The Way is uneven in places and you are dependent on the state of your feet.” – Maire Lowe

“Pack lots of layers outside of summer. We were there in late March and although it only rained properly on one day it generally felt colder in the village than the temperature indicated as it was quite damp.” – Paula Rutherford in the Picos de Europa

“We went in early October and were fortunate generally with the weather... This is a fiercely mountainous area and walking in it is not for the unfit. We expected the Picos de Europa to be lovely but they are dramatic and stunning.” – Margaret Andrew

“The afternoon walks along the coast (Camino del Norte) were well organised and brilliant fun. I brought trekking poles for the first time on a walk and found them useful when we climbed one of the Picos. They were invaluable when we climbed La Ruta del Careas.” – Helen Kearney, learning Spanish and walking the Camino