Best Mode of Transportation Madrid to St.- Jean - Pied-de-Port

This is one of those trips that will be a bit cumbersome no matter how you do it. My choice would probably be train to Pamplona and a coach from there to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port.

See if this article is useful.
https://www.tripsavvy.com/getting-to-st-jean-pied-de-port-1644066

I agree with Badger that if flying into Madrid, take the train from Madrid’s Atocha station to Pamplona, then take a bus the rest of the way (74km/50.4 miles). Depending on the train, getting to Pamplona will take between 3 and 4 hours. There are stops along the way and prices vary between 22€ and 53€. By taking this route, as the article linked by LIZinPA states is, you’ll be backtracking along the same route you’ll be hiking.

You would probably get better responses on one of the many Camino de Santiago Facebook groups or forums. I’ve read of people flying into Paris or Biarritz and taking a train to Bayonne, then train to St. Jean Pied du Port.

You can also check this old RS thread. on getting there from 2020.

I sort of did this, but it was about 12 years ago in early July- my journey was for Le Pays basque. Do you want to spend time in Madrid before or after? I flew from the US (west coast) directly to Donostia- San Sebastian but can't remember if it was through JFK? For my return I flew (less than an hour) to Madrid, but only for the return to the US. I visited Madrid and more of Spain on a different trip.
Is there a reason you don't want to fly directly there?
I think I used a taxi from the San Sebastian airport to Hondaribbia, where I then stayed overnight, then got myself by train/bus to France where I stayed a week. I took a train (filled with pilgrims and their backpacks) from Bayonne to St. Jean (which I absolutely LOVED) and actually went out one of the gates and walked a few kilometres of the Camino just to say I had- then returned to Bayonne. I still treasure my shell and my key chain and it's impossible to believe I once freely roamed the world....
I hope this is helpful- I loved every minute of that trip. The politics are fascinating and the food in San Sebastian was incredible.
I will caution that the language can be a challenge for public transport- not all the info is in English. I can speak French but had to get some help at times on the Spanish side, with euskara.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to respond. We had already set the Madrid flights up and figured we would get the details hammered out for the flights/trains/buses in Spain later. So now is later. :)

I will see if I can look into the trains and transportation to Pamplona to see if that makes the most sense. For the San Sebastian options, is there such thing as a taxi from San Sebastian to St Jean Pied de Port or would it be ridiculous cost and not feasible? Thanks again, everyone!

Taxi from S Sebastian airport to St Jean Pied de Port will be too expensive.
However, you could take a taxi from the airport to Hendaye station, then travel to St Jean Pied de Port by train via Bayonne, but that will take a while.
The Pamplona option looks best.

Thanks for clarifying- one more thought with your goal of minimal transport that is not your own feet is to reconsider your definition of "entire route". Living not far from the Pacific Crest Trail that has, for example, a definitive southern and northern starting/ending for the entire route.
I am no Camino expert but I do know there are numerous "entire routes" because medieval pilgrims would have commence from their homes.
There's certainly most popular ( of which I believe St. Jean is one) but I also learned in talking with pilgrims on the train some return over years to complete different sections. Anyway, you could begin in San Sebastian (fly from Madrid) and do this route:
https://caminoways.com/camino-del-norte
You needed to get back to Madrid from Santiago anyway?
If either of you have interest in history or enjoy food it is really worth spending a couple days in the area! Safe travels!

A great, historically-significant starting point would be Puente la Reina, where various paths including the one from St Jean Pied de Port meet. It is just outside Pamplona and thus much easier to reach. You do miss the Pyrénées crossing, but still a great journey.

If you did what Balso suggested, you may as well just start in Pamplona. That way you wouldn’t miss Alto de Perdón and the Iglesia de Santa María de Eunate, Puente de la Reina is 13 miles from Pamplona. A further 12 miles down the Camino is the Wine Fountain at Bodegas Irache. Rather than being a water fountain, it dispenses wine to pilgrims, as was done centuries ago.

Do you already have your flights booked for Madrid? If not, perhaps flying into Bilbao would be easier? Even Barcelona might be easier as there are direct trains to Pamplona (or flights) and from there you can get a bus to S. Jean. Or if you can get to Bayonne, there are buses and trains too.

I will be walking from Pamplona starting 16 April, so perhaps we will meet?

Wow, thanks to everyone for taking the time to reply! Would love to meet up on the journey with you! We will take all of these considerations into account and see what works. I appreciate the advice. Safe travels, everyone!

You can find many discussions on this exact topic on the Camino Forum located at https://www.caminodesantiago.me

Try this (old, but updated) thread for a starter:
https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/a-compendium-of-useful-links-for-travel-from-madrid-to-roncesvalles-and-sjpdp-via-pamplona.23395/

If you post your question on that forum, you will get many up-to-date answers.

I'm told that the bus/coach is no longer running from Pamplona > SJPDP. I was referred to this website https://www.alsa.com/en/web/bus/home and sure enough there is no bus route/schedule from Pamplona > SJPDP. Your ideas welcome.

Thanks