Camino Portugués Traditional Route

Macs Adventure has been running self guided pilgrimages on the Camino Portugués since 2010.  As soon as we established the Camino Frances, we knew this incredible walking experience could be replicated with different landscape, cultures and flavours, so the Camino Portugués was the natural next step. 

From humble beginnings, we now send over 350 Pilgrims every year on the Portuguese Camino, each of them finding their own adventure on this spiritual route. We provide the freedom to choose your route, itinerary and travel companions and to take the Camino at your own pace. 

We know how daunting it can be, setting off on an adventure of this scale and we quickly realised how important it was to have amazing partners on the ground to deal with any issues that you might come across.  We are proud to say that our ground team are outstanding and should you have the slightest issue, they will fall over themselves to help you out. 

We offer a flexible, tailor-made Camino experience that gets you in comfortable, friendly overnight accommodation in local B&Bs and guesthouses. We carry your bags to lighten your load so you can concentrate on simply putting one foot in front of the other and enjoying the unique culture, food and unique cities of this less-travelled part of Portugal. No hostels, no shared dorms, no heavy bags on your back, no rushing along to secure your bed for the night.  You can book with confidence that we have it all covered for you. 

We want to showcase our expertise, by giving you all the resources you will ever need.  In the planning stage, we have free guides, comprehensive videos and a host of staff with their own Compostela certificate, waiting to answer your questions. On the route, we use high-quality digital mapping as well as the best maps and guidebooks to make sure you find your way.  

We love the Camino Portugués and our main aim is to make sure that you do too.  

1. The Cities - It is difficult to think of another walking holiday where you encounter such amazing cities on the one route.  Each is entirely different, with their own look and feel, each is bursting with local colour and specialities and all are a joy to visit. Lisbon, the capital is full of antique trams, crumbling beauty and tiny, vibrant food joints. Tomar is all history, bursting with a glorious past. Coimbra is an ancient seat of knowledge, full of students and intensely good pastries! Porto is constantly regenerating, keeping strong ties to its people and history and Santiago is glorious, all the more so for having walked to get there. 

2. The Food - Portugal is unique in its gastronomy. In general, there is a rustic feel to the food of Portugal with stews and simple grilled fish and meats commonplace, however, these are elevated by the amount of flavour and skill of cooking involved.  While not massively famous for barbequed food, Portugal is the master of this culinary art, bringing so much much flavour and a weirdly delicate touch to its fish. There are pastries that you will dream of afterwords, wine that never leaves the country that is silky smooth and packed with flavour.  

3. The Peace - The Camino Frances through Spain is the main artery for all things Camino, and for good reason.  This is the classic pilgrimage and it draws people from all around the world.  The only downside to it is that it gets really busy, particularly on the final section.  Now, this is great in a way, because you meet so many people and it becomes a bit like a travelling festival, but if you want a quieter experience, the Camino Portugués is the way to go.  The final section from Tui to Santiago is every bit as pretty, just a lot more peaceful. 

4. The People - The Portuguese welcome is warm yet understated. The passion and flair of the Spanish are there, but just not on display as much, however I have rarely encountered a more friendly, giving people than the Portuguese. On the Camino Portugués, I have been invited into strangers houses to share a meal and sample their home-grown wine. I have been driven to places that were out of the way, but entirely spectacular and I have been encouraged to sample different types of food with glee and gusto and each of these has been a memory that I will not lose.  Portuguese people seem in general to be lovely, but definitely try to learn some of the language, it goes a long way! 

5. The Coast - Unlike the Camino de Santiago, there are two ways to walk the Camino Portugués.  Once you reach Porto, after the first three sections, you can choose to continue on the main route, or deviate and take the coastal route.  While both have their plus sides, the coastal route makes for a welcome change, in both scenery and cuisine.  This part of Portugal is very much untouched by tourism and it is a pleasure to walk along the wild Atlantic coast in perfect solitude and then feast on the bounties of the ocean at night.  

Probably one of the most daunting prospects of planning any trip is finding the right places to stay! However, Macs Adventure takes this out of your hands when you book one of our Camino packages and book all your accommodation in advance for you, leaving you free to enjoy the walk! Here is what to expect from your accommodations on the way! 

Variety - you can expect to be staying in a large variety of different types of accommodations on any of our Camino routes. This ranges from small family-run B&B's or "pensiones", to "casa rurales" which are refurbished country cottages,  to slightly larger hotels in the bigger cities and towns. Sometimes the smaller accomodations may be called "hostales" but please don't worry - this is not the typical bunk room you may expect in a hostel. You will always have your own private room and bathroom. We always aim to book you into the most personal and charming options available so that your experience is an authentic one. Staying in a variety of accommodation like this is all part of the experience, but it is important to keep this in mind to manage your expectations, as if you stay in a slightly fancier place one night, it may not always be the same the next night! 

Air-Con? - generally, the smaller accommodations we use do not offer air-conditioning as they are in older buildings and of a more traditional style. Most of the time there will be some sort of fan in the room to cool you down during the hotter summer months!

Breakfasts - again, the types of breakfast on offer at your accommodation vary hugely. One morning, you may find a true feast presented to you with everything from fresh pastries and bread to cooked eggs. Other mornings, you may find the selection slightly more limited with just bread and cheese on offer. Generally, when you have a long walking day ahead of you it's best not to fill up too much anyway, but you will soon become accustomed to the pilgrim way of life! 

Upgrades - you may be surprised to learn that there are actually some very luxurious upgrade options available along the Camino which you may be tempted to upgrade to for a night or two! If this sounds like your idea of bliss, you may want even want to consider our Camino in Style tour which includes the finest boutique hotels and country manor houses (pazos). Otherwise, speak to us about perhaps upgrading to one of the famous Paradores, a range of state-owned hotels which are usually very luxurious and housed in old historical buildings. There are Paradors in several locations across the Camino routes.