We asked one of our PTMs, Louise McCarthy, to share her guide to walking the iconic Camino Trail. From what to expect on the walk, what to pack, and the best time of year to go, Louise offers honest insights and practical tips for anyone considering this unforgettable pilgrimage. Whether you’re planning your own Camino or simply dreaming about it, this is a truly inspiring read.
The Camino de Santiago is more than a walk, it’s a journey of reflection, connection and discovery. Winding through historic villages and breathtaking landscapes, it offers travellers a chance to slow down, challenge themselves and experience the quiet magic of the road.
Last September I stepped way out of my comfort zone and completed a section of the Camino de Santiago.
How long was the walk: 117.4 kms
How many days: over 6 days
From and to: from Sarria to Santiago de Compostela in Spain
I didn’t go alone, I took a group of 16 fellow travellers with me and we had such a great adventure. A year in the planning, the route we took was really determined by the number of days we wanted to walk, the level of fitness of our participants and the quality of accommodation we could get along the way. I did think I may have stepped outside my comfort zone … as camping is not for me! So, good accommodation at the end of each day was a must.
We worked with Wandering the World for our journey. Glenyce the owner of the company, is passionate about walking and the Camino and her enthusiasm made us all so excited for our journey and the advice and tips she gave us were very helpful. She even booked our restaurants each night so that when we arrived, we had no decisions to make. Being a group we needed to be very organised and we set off each day with our handy app with the map of our route and we knew where we had to be that afternoon. Our luggage was transported for us each day leaving us just to carry our day pack.
The right shoes and socks are so important, but wearing them in is critical.
I highly recommend you see a specialist when it comes to your shoes and a great tip is get yourself good quality wool walking socks.
For your day pack – I had Walkers Wool, a must for blister prevention along with good hydration and a supply of lollies for a little sugar hit each day worked a treat. Of course the usual items like block out and a hat.
Our group varied in aged from 55 to 74 and before we came away we did quite a few practice walks on weekends – backing up to try and do 2 or 3 days in a row as we felt that’s where the challenge would lie. It’s easy to walk one day but getting up to do it every day is something our feet weren’t accustomed too.
Although we were a group, it wasn’t guided, it was self-guided so we could walk at our own pace and finish anytime within the day. We started with a couple of nights in Madrid where we did some great tours, and then we took the train to Sarria which is about 3 hours out of Madrid.
The first 2 days were quite long, more than 24 kms each day and it was very hot, but after that the days were shorter and cooler, and I think we found our rhythm more. We learnt to get going early in the morning when it was cool and misty and be finished before the heat of the afternoon. Some parts were steeper than others but generally it wasn’t too difficult and there were many beautiful towns and lots of lovely scenery to walk through each day. We met many other pilgrims along the way and everyone was always welcoming with the saying “buen camino!”.
As we travelled, we had our Pilgrim passport stamped by local people in each town and some of them quite elaborate wax stamps – a great keepsake. Each afternoon we were all well ready for our Beer Grande!
On our final day we walked into Santiago de Compostela, and it was an amazing sense of achievement. The beautiful cathedral there in the square was a great backdrop to celebrate and the following day we attended the very special Pilgrim’s mass in the cathedral which is hosted each day. We got our certificates to say we had all completed the walk and celebrated together.
If I was to do it again or give advice to others I would probably have gone a week or two later so that it was a bit cooler but otherwise we were so happy with every aspect of our trip – the accommodation was excellent, the dinners we had each night were wonderful and most of all the company of our fellow travellers was fantastic and we came away with lots of lovely new friendships and memories to last a lifetime – and a great sense of achievement! Being extremely organised was a great benefit making sure we had the right gear, and everything organised for us was critical to the success of the trip.
Following our walk our 16 travellers all set off to do different trips! Travelling all the way to Europe meant incorporating other adventures with the Camino and our group headed to Morocco, Croatia, Tuscany Greece and even South Africa following their walk.
A really popular choice was a cruise out of Barcelona – cannot think of a better way to end an amazing pilgrimage than boarding a ship and relaxing on a cruise.
By Louise McCarthy, Personal Travel Manager
With so many Camino tours and routes and information to know, talk to our Personal Travel Managers who have taken the journey and can guide you every step of the way.
TravelManagers respects and honours the Traditional Custodians of the land and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and culture of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands where we work and gather, and those we visit.
