I would like to start our SDC walk from Sarria, then continue our trip with Bilbao & into Burgundy, France & work our way toward Paris. What is the best travel route to Sarria from the US? Do we fly into Madrid & rent a one-way car & drive to Sarria? From what I've been reading, there is no flight available, and the bus is 9 hr long & only to Lugo. Then once we finish the walk @ SDC, can we fly or drive or train to Bilbao from there? Which would be the best way to go? Thank you in advance for any advise you can help with. Oh and we're thinking of doing this around the beginning/middle of July next year, is this a good idea, time wise?
Posted by
Rick Steves Europe
354 posts
If you fly into Madrid or Barcelona, you could take a connecting flight to Santiago and continue by train or bus to Sarria. This would be a pretty long travel day, so I'd recommend spending a few days in either city before heading to Santiago. There are pretty cheap flights to Santiago from Madrid and Barcelona on Ryan Air, Iberia and Vueling if booked ahead, See www.skyscanner.com for options. From Santiago, it's a 2-3 hour train or bus ride to Sarria, but neither are direct. Trains change in Orense or La Coruna, buses change in Lugo. Trains are rather infrequent in this part of Spain, so the bus might be a better option. See www.renfe.com for train routes and ticket prices.
After you finish the walk, how you travel and where you stop along the way depends on your interests, budget and how much time you have. From Santiago, it's about a 6.5 hour drive to Bilbao. You can also travel by train or bus (about 10.5 hours by train with a change in Miranda de Ebro). There are some great towns to stop in and see along the way such as Leon and Burgos (both accessible by train or bus) or with more time, driving the north coast would be nice, stopping in small fishing villages along the way. If you do decide to drive, I'd drop the car in Bilbao or another Spanish town and continue on to France by train to avoid a very steep international drop fee (200-300 euro).
If your time is limited, you can fly relatively inexpensively from Santiago to Bilbao. You could spend a day or two in Bilbao, seeing the old town and the Gugenheim museum, before heading to San Sebastian for a few days, my favorite town in Basque country. From San Sebastian, there is a frequent train called the Topo, which connects San Sebastian with the French border, where you can catch a French train to your next destination. You might consider spending a few days in one of the towns in French Basque country, such as St. Jean de Luz or Bayonne. From either of these towns, you can take a high-speed TGV train to Paris, or fly from Biarritz. Other French stops worth considering would be St. Emilion in Bordeux (great wineries) or Sarlat in the Dordogne.
Posted by
Rick Steves Europe
354 posts
Actually, Wonderful, you are incorrect. Iberia has 3 direct flights daily from Santiago to Bilbao, each around $200. Although the trains are infrequent and involve a train change, they do not take all day, only 2.5-3 hours (see www.renfe.com for schedules). As stated in my previous post, the bus would probably be a better option although both the bus and train involve a change in another town.
Posted by
Rick Steves Europe
354 posts
Relatively inexpensive can be different for each individual. I flew from Santiago to Bilbao myself last June and paid $165 for a one-way ticket on Iberia, having purchased a little more than 2 months ahead. While $165 isn’t as cheap as tickets on many budget airlines such as Ryan Air or Vueling, I didn’t think it was too much to pay for a 1 hour, direct flight, especially when I considered the cost of a one-way car rental, gas and the time it would take to drive.
The prices you quoted are certianly more expensive. When I do the same search today, the prices are higher than I saw last week- $370 one-way as opposed to $200. Last week the flights for next July were not showing up, but this does not necessarily mean that Iberia won’t offer flights between Santiago and Bilbao next summer (although anything is possible) most likely, there were no flights showing because they hadn’t been loaded into their system yet. Flights for next July are showing up today. What this shows is the reality of air travel – ticket prices change regularly. What I typically suggest people do for travel more than 6 months in the future, is to look at prices now and continue to check every week or two over the next several months, monitoring the ticket costs and buying tickets 2 or 3 months before their trip. If the price drops significantly before that, then buy.
On many National airlines, such as Iberia, one-way tickets can be expensive, but if you book a round-trip ticket (even if you don't plan on using the return flight), prices are reasonable. Looking at a round-trip flight for next July 15th, tickets start at $155 (€121).