We are planning on cycling the pilgrimage route from Lisbon to Santiago Spain. We are having trouble finding maps of this route. Has anyone done this and have Any tips on places to check for maps and any possible leads on bicyvle shops that would rent bikes for this purpose. We would prefer not to join a guided tour and cycle the route independently. Thanks.
Posted by
Salem, MA
68 posts
Although I haven't cycled the Camino Portuguese, I walked the Camino Frances in 2014. There are a number of resources online, especially the Camino de Santiago Forum (https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/), similar to the RS Forum in that you can view the threads organized by topic or search for specific topics. There are also links to various maps and resources. You might also check out some of the pilgrim associations and their websites, such as American Pilgrims on the Camino or the Cofraternity of St. James. There are also numerous guidebooks. John Brierly is one of the authors who has written a guide for each route, but there are other authors and guidebook series as well.
I don't know for certain, but if the Portuguese is like the Frances, bikes and pedestrians travel most of the same route together, so hopefully some of these resources will help.
Buen Camino!
Posted by
Frankfurt, Germany
9249 posts
We are walking the Portuguese coastal route of the Camino in April but starting in Porto. The Camino forum/website as suggested by the previous poster is a treasure trove of information about EVERYTHING Camino. No matter what route, or what questions you might have.
Have purchased their own published book about the Portugal routes. It has been updated for 2018. Not sure how it compares to the Brierly book though.
If you are on FB, there are also a lot of Camino FB pages that are helpful.
Posted by
winston salem, nc, usa
1078 posts
We walked the Portuguese route this past October and used Caminoways.com for help with hotels, baggage transfers and support. They specialize in independent travel.There were bunches of cyclists on the route, and one are was particularly rough with them having to carry their bikes over a rocky area going up one of the hills. We also saw a pretty good assortment of broken parts on the route and it looked like some of the riders were prepared for damage where others were not.
I would really urge you to contact Caminoways-they'll put together a suggested itinerary for you based on their experience of the difficulty of each section. Finally, please, please get yourself in condition for the trip-we walked several 20k days in a row and bikers usually go much further per segment-your conditioning will be a big help for you and the others you will encounter on the pilgrimage