Last Spring, after my 2nd vaccination, I was feeling very positive about the possibility of taking the Camino Portuguese in the Fall 2021. The Delta variant surge was unnerving and it looked like the walk would need to be shelved for 2021. But, in early Summer I began to hear about the success of vaccination programs in PT and ES and how their "surges" were dipping. By September I decided to move ahead with my plan of 2 nights in Porto, an 11 day walk to Santiago (with a 1/2 day excursion to Braga), and an extra day in Santiago. A Spanish travel agent/Camino guide whom I had worked with before handled my reservations, luggage transport, and booked three local guides for city tours.
Airline logistics: TAP from Newark to Porto - simple. Getting back to the States required flying on Ryan from Santiago and then Madrid to NYC. All three airlines and four airports were very well organized and appeared to me to be very committed to COVID safety practices (masks, social distancing in seating, etc.). Before flying I used the eMed/Abbott BinaxNOW Home test; it was simple to use and well proctored.
While visiting Portugal and Spain in the cities and towns, I felt quite comfortable with the COVID safety measures in place. Total mask compliance. Plentiful outdoor seating options for bars, cafes and restaurants. In the few cases where indoor eating was necessary (i.e., breakfast), the hotels had implemented many COVID safety measures (tongs, pre-wrapped individual portions, etc.).
The walking was fabulous - approximately 20 to 25 Km per day. The weather was remarkable 13 days of sun and 1 day of light right - almost unheard of in Galicia. T-shirts and shorts during the day and sweatshirt in the evening. The countryside was still green and many flowers were still in full bloom.
Thanks to my family for supporting my 3rd Camino and 5th European walking trip. And, thanks to people and governments of Portugal and Spain for meeting the COVID challenge straight on with vaccinations and safety measures.
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"Before flying I used the eMed/Abbott BinaxNOW Home test; it was simple to use and well proctored."
Thanks for this wonderful post, it's very helpful. Bear with me please because I'm flying TAP from DC to Lisbon this Friday and I'm having pre-trip gitters about every possible thing haha. TAP accepted the Aboot BinxaNOW for the flight to Portugal? Thanks in advance!
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OP
Wynnewood, PA, USA
275 posts
@jim.golder
For your return trip to the US, you can also take extra eMed/Abbot tests with you to Portugal/Europe; of course, you’ll need a good internet connection and a tablet/smartphone or laptop for a video session with the eMed test proctor/guide.
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Thanks so much, I'm planning on taking a few kits with me and hoping for decent signal at my hotel haha.